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I bought a 1990 Legacy for my daughter 1 year ago but now for some reason the fan will not run all the time. The a/c will work only if it cool outside, same with the heater. When the sun hits the car and warms her up it won't work. I took it in to my mechanic whom I've know for years and trust. He spent 5 hrs. and several calls to the Subaru dealer mechanics and they just sent him on a goose chase with no reward. Help please. Thanks

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what doesn't work.....the heater & a/c or the blower fan?

 

The blower fan has a resistor pack that is installed in the evaporator box, right behind the glove box. If you remove the wiring from the resistor pack the blower fan should only work on high speed.

 

If the car is warmed up and the fan doesn't work.....and then you remove the connector from the resistor pack and the fan works on high speed....then you simply have a problem with the resistor pack. If it still doesn't work, even on high speed, I'd suggest testing the leads going to the motor to make sure you have proper power. If everything's good.....I'd say the blower motor is bad.

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i'm having a somewhat related issue in my '00 outback (in that my ac and defroster are giving me trouble).

 

when i run either the ac or defroster, i will periodically hear a sound which to me sounds like a belt slipping and if followed by a momentary loss of power (engine feels really heavy all of a sudden and car slows down). it only lasts a second tho and then things are back to normal. anyone run into this before or have any suggestions as to what might be causing it?

 

thanks =)

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When you put it on defrost, it turns your A/C on. This helps evaporate moisture off of the windshield. When the A/C comes on, you will feel a power loss, and If your belts aren't tensioned correctly or are worn, they will slip momentarily and squeal.

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When the A/C comes on, you will feel a power loss, and If your belts aren't tensioned correctly or are worn, they will slip momentarily and squeal.

it doesn't happen immediately, just periodically. i'll check the belts tho. thanks! :)

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  • 6 months later...
it doesn't happen immediately, just periodically. i'll check the belts tho. thanks! :)

I have had this same problem. I thought my A/C was going out and my mechanic said that the small loss of power and the sound coming from the A/C is normal due to the transmission shift, or something to that effect. I still feel uneasy about it, and now after 6 months I think my blower fan has gone out. I don't know if this is related. Keep me posted on any new info. Good Luck!

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  • 3 months later...

Hmmm... my new '90 has the "blows when it wants" problem. Always works when cold, then quits later and runs intermittantly after that. Kinda sucked coming cross country in storms! Anyhow, I'll try the resistor trick. Thx!

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  • 3 weeks later...
I bought a 1990 Legacy for my daughter 1 year ago but now for some reason the fan will not run all the time. The a/c will work only if it cool outside, same with the heater. When the sun hits the car and warms her up it won't work. I took it in to my mechanic whom I've know for years and trust. He spent 5 hrs. and several calls to the Subaru dealer mechanics and they just sent him on a goose chase with no reward. Help please. Thanks

 

 

I had a similiar problem with my 1990. Here's the post.

 

Hi, The AC and Fan in my 90 legacy works when it wants to. Sometimes turning thr car off and back on will cause it to work again. Anyone have this problem?Thanks

 

My fan went on and off, after a bump or pounding the dashboard with my fist. I read this newsgroup-- that the bad unit could be relays, switches, and fan resistors. I finally removed the dashboard, slid out the AC / Heater control panel, unplugged the connector in the rear and took the front of the control panel case off. Two more screws and I lifted off the rear circuit board and examined the solder points for the plug connector. Several of the solder connection had very fine cracks and when I moved the plug part I could see the cracks (and the soldered pin) move, but, this is very small movement and small cracks. Under a 4X lens the cracks on three pins were easier to see. So, I simply reheated the solder joints on all the pins and added some fresh solder to make a more secure phsical connection. Instant and complete relief!

 

The reason the solder joints cracked in the first place is that the wire cable and plug that connects to the rear of the control panel has significant inertia. After 15 years the bumping and jarring wiggled that plug enough to crack the joints, even with strain-relief strapping. After the cracks developed, oxide probably built up enough to hold the connection open until another bump (or my fist) knocked the connection together again.

 

I ran through a lot of tricky hypotheses trying to find a way around taking that dashboard off, like the relays, a vaccuum leak, the diaphragm, and the fan motor. Also, since the fan often started when I first started the car I though it might be some sort of element heating.

 

Good luck.

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