Owner's Manual isn't very detailed and I had a question about venting outside air without AC or Heat.

I'm assuming that when the temp dial is in the blue zone without the AC button engaged the fan is blowing outside air provided the lever for outside air is slid into position?

If that is indeed the case does the temp dial have any effect on the amount of air entering the car?

The air intake really doesn't seem to be very direct as without the fan I don't feel any air entering the car. Is that because all air goes through the air filter?

 

Correct.

Not really. The temp dial allows air to flow through the heater core to pick up heat from the engine. There may be a slight difference in the amount of air resulting from the resistance to air flow from the heater core.

That and all the turns the air has to make before it reaches the interior vent openings. It has to make lots of 90 degree turns plus pass through the blower which would resist air-flow when it's not turning...

 

WOW, thanks Steve!

I have a now have a crystal clear understanding of how the system works. The diagram was extremely helpful in seeing the route the air takes.

 

Most of the housings in those diagrams can be seen by dropping the lower glove box. Just open it and push in on the sides. The rubber stops will clear the edges and the glove box will flop down (and dump all your stuff). Directly behind the glove box is the blower housing (and the air filter drawer). The A/C coil and heater cores are in the housing to the left (behind the center console) of the blower.

Filters can be bought from Amazon for $15. Maybe $25 at the dealer. They'll charge about $60 to put it in (5 minutes, no tools. sheesh). It can get stinky after 12 months, especially down here.