it's not just the resistor on the dial. they need to replace the blower fan as well (per TSB). otherwise it will keep doing wat it's doing. the root cause appears to be the amp draw on the fan.

mine was fixed a few months ago at the dealer under warranty and it's been working fine.

 

@jdufford: Did you end up having to replace the HVAC blower motor?

Mine bit the dust two days ago and I am trying to figure out if I should try cheap fix first (replacing blower resistor) since it worked for some or if I should just replace it all.
(FYI: I'm underemployed so even 100bucks makes a difference to me)
This is my first car of my very own so I am sorry if I am a little slow.

 

Why not go for the really cheap fix of having the dealer do it under goodwill?

 

@Malraux: is it likely that they will actually do that? I've no issue doing the labor myself and the car is out of warranty at 47,712 miles.

Just trying to get a feel for how it turned out for the people who fixed it themselves. I realize I won't always have the skills needed to fix my car but this time I do.

 

You won't know until you ask, worst thing that can happen is they'll say no. And you'll need to go to dealer anyway to buy the resistor so no wasted trip. It depends on the dealer and your relationship with them. Print out this TSB and take it with you. It states repair can be eligible for out of warranty goodwill consideration.
Blower Motor Resistor Inop
I got two separate out of warranty goodwill repairs done on my car at 44K miles, new passenger seat cover and mpg display software update.

_

 

This happened to me yesterday, when I got in the car to head home from work. Started the car and there was a "pop" and then the cabin was filled with the acrid smell of burnt electrical components.

After pulling over to make sure the car wasn't on fire, I headed home and thankfully discovered that position 4 still worked. (It's very hot here in NJ this week.)

Just made a warranty service appointment at Paul Miller Honda for next Wednesday and decided to check the forum to see if this ever happened to anyone else. Lo and behold, this thread is right near the top. Didn't have to look long.

At least I'm no longer worried about ending up by the side of the road, watching my car burn up!

 

As others have mentioned, the TSB specifically says that Honda will authorize out of warranty work. Worst thing that can happen is a "no".

That said, if it were me, I'd just replace the switch, then if it blew again I'd have to decide between replacing the blower motor and soldering in higher wattage resistors.

 

I have a 2009 Fit sport and had this issue rear its ugly head last week. I have only had the car 2yrs and 1 month, but I have 51k on the odometer. Called the first stealership (Honda of Columbia) and the best advice the service guy could offer was "Well, the best thing would to have bought an extended warranty since you were gonna drive it so much." Yeah thanks a lot genius. The next dealer at least offered to check the vin against recalls and tsb's and found that I hadn't had the Vtec lost motion springs (recall # 11-010) so they offered to take care of that and check out my fan issue in the meantime.

They said since my car was no where near the 36k warranty point and I didn't have a complete service history with Honda they could not goodwill the fan issue. They said the blower motor was $290 and the resistor was $32, total for parts and labor?

$475.

I will be replacing the resistor and seeing how long it lasts next time.

 

List on the fan/motor is $225. Majestic Honda sells it for $157. The resistor pack is another $14.75 from Majestic. It's a pretty easy DIY. For under $200 I'd be doing it myself...

 

I plan to just do the resistor first and see if it works. Thanks for the info!

 

I'm sitting in my car experiencing this problem. Anyone know the part number? My car is out of warranty and I'm planning to do this myself.

Nevermind the TSB link shows it. :-)

 

Has this high current draw from the blower motor been fixed by a superceeded blower motor part number?
ie. have they made a new motor to fix the problem since then? And what years did they start using them on?

 

So I might not really recommend doing what I just did, especially since the resistor part is just $15, but its pretty easy to repair the resistor (which is actually an inductor, not a resistor). I should have taken pictures, but I didn't, so my description might be a bit confusing, but this was really easy to understand and do once you get it opened. Here are the steps:

1) Remove the part as described in links above (just the resistor piece)

2) The plastic cover slides right over the spade connectors, take that off

3) There are four metal tabs holding the metal back cover in place. Use needle nose pliers to bend them straight so you can remove the cover

4) There's a semi-circular, springy curved piece of metal that is currently attached only on one side. You'll be able to see that it should be soldered to a tab on the metal leg that doesn't connect to one of the spade connectors. Use something insulated to hold the spring in place while you solder it back down. Probably you shouldn't use too much solder.

5) Re-assemble the device and install in your car in the reverse order of how you removed it.

--

So the functionality of that piece is that when there is too much wattage going through the network the solder joint heats up and breaks; so essentially a fuse. It's possible that the amount of solder is calibrated to break at a certain heat, which is why I mention it might be best to just spend the $15 on a new one.

And related to the above, here's some cya words for my behalf: I am not responsible for any damage you may incur to your vehicle or person related to the herein described procedures.

 

Nice fix you did there. Pretty easy to imagine if you have any experience with electrical parts.

 

I replaced the resistor and the fan worked for maybe a day. It's now broken again. Might just try replacing the blower, or just live with it.

 

The blower motor is drawing too high current resulting in the resistor pack failing. Eventually the blower will blow a fuse or just stop turning. Seattle? Who needs heat or A/C?!

 

I have replace the fan and resistor and 1-3 still doesn't work. Traced the wiring and they don't have any breaks. I'm at a lose. Any ideas?