Ignition key gremlins and HVAC

TJ_Tim said:
Yep. If you turn the key a hair backwards towards the ON/RUN position the HVAC fan will blow as normal. If you turn the key forwards a hair towards the STARTER position the fan will stop working altogether.
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Mine will continue to work once it is working. That does sound like an issue with the ignition switch just strange it isn't affecting your stereo or any other switched accessories. maybe it is both issues? Mopar part number for ignition switch for a 97 is 4565326.
 
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Mavesar said:
he charged me $20.00. $3.00 for each key and $14.00 to replace plates in cylinder. I just took him the cylinder so no real labor it only takes 10 min to change out the plates.
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That sounds great. Keys all match and still cheaper than replacing the whole lock cylinder. My only bummer is my cylinder is cosmetically damaged. The black plastic shroud on the early style like mine is missing.
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I actually don't know if the problem is affecting my stereo, because the PO hard-wired the damn thing to constant 12v. I just have it unplugged right now.
 
TJ_Tim said:
That sounds great. Keys all match and still cheaper than replacing the whole lock cylinder. My only bummer is my cylinder is cosmetically damaged. The black plastic shroud on the early style like mine is missing/broken off. View attachment 288649

I actually don't know if the problem is affecting my stereo, because the PO hard-wired the damn thing to constant 12v. I just have it unplugged right now.
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Mine is the newer style with the metal ring but I am 99% sure they are interchangeable. I would just get a replacement and take both to the lock smith so he can key it all the same. he needs your current cylinder to get the right plate numbers. your key is worn enough that it would be hard to get the right code from it directly. cheaper then rekeying the tailgate and both doors. With an ignition switch you would be replacing all the parts that normally cause intermittent accessory issues. I would replace the Ignition Switch Actuator Pin while everything is apart, but it doesn't affect the accessories.
 
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Mavesar said:
he charged me $20.00. $3.00 for each key and $14.00 to replace plates in cylinder. I just took him the cylinder so no real labor it only takes 10 min to change out the plates.
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Is there a decent write up/procedure that you used to remove the key cylinder? Our key is pretty worn and it can be taken out while the ignition is on, which I suspect means that our cylinder is also worn.
I'd like to replace the plates and get it back in proper working order before it leaves us stranded somewhere.
BTW, our '03 has the SKIM circuit w/ a chip in the key. This shouldn't make any difference to the process of cylinder removal, but I figured I should mention it.
 
WestCoastDan said:
Is there a decent write up/procedure that you used to remove the key cylinder? Our key is pretty worn and it can be taken out while the ignition is on, which I suspect means that our cylinder is also worn.
I'd like to replace the plates and get it back in proper working order before it leaves us stranded somewhere.
BTW, our '03 has the SKIM circuit w/ a chip in the key. This shouldn't make any difference to the process of cylinder removal, but I figured I should mention it.
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I just took it apart. I work on computers so I have all the protected torx bits. I found this on youtube which is almost exactly what mine looked like. Actuator Replacement Video
 
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Mavesar said:
Mine is the newer style with the metal ring but I am 99% sure they are interchangeable. I would just get a replacement and take both to the lock smith so he can key it all the same. he needs your current cylinder to get the right plate numbers. your key is worn enough that it would be hard to get the right code from it directly. cheaper then rekeying the tailgate and both doors. With an ignition switch you would be replacing all the parts that normally cause intermittent accessory issues. I would replace the Ignition Switch Actuator Pin while everything is apart, but it doesn't affect the accessories.
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That’s what I was thinking, too. Thanks for your help on those ideas. Now we just need to figure out the HVAC issues we’re having. 😏
 
Well unfortunately I have a melted resistor plug. unplugging it caused the issue with the HVAC not working intermittently to go away. Have a new pigtail on order. Need to search the forum and see if I can find the max normal draw of the blower fan, thinking of putting a fuse inline to the blower so when it stops to fail it will blow a fuse as appose to smoking the plug. The plug used on resistor terminals can only be rated at 20amps max based on the contact width. HVAC circuit is on a 40amp fuse, makes no sense.
 
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Mavesar said:
Well unfortunately I have a melted resistor plug. unplugging it caused the issue with the HVAC not working intermittently to go away. Have a new pigtail on order. Need to search the forum and see if I can find the max normal draw of the blower fan, thinking of putting a fuse inline to the blower so when it stops to fail it will blow a fuse as appose to smoking the plug. The plug used on resistor terminals can only be rated at 20amps max based on the contact width. HVAC circuit is on a 40amp fuse, makes no sense.
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Actually, it makes the same amount of sense as running the headlight and fog light power through the tiny contacts of the multiswitch instead of adding a relay. ;)
 
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WestCoastDan said:
Actually, it makes the same amount of sense as running the headlight and fog light power through the tiny contacts of the multiswitch instead of adding a relay. ;)
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At least my 97 has the pull switch for my headlights. 👍
Mavesar said:
Well unfortunately I have a melted resistor plug. unplugging it caused the issue with the HVAC not working intermittently to go away. Have a new pigtail on order. Need to search the forum and see if I can find the max normal draw of the blower fan, thinking of putting a fuse inline to the blower so when it stops to fail it will blow a fuse as appose to smoking the plug. The plug used on resistor terminals can only be rated at 20amps max based on the contact width. HVAC circuit is on a 40amp fuse, makes no sense.
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Bummer. Thanks for updating us about it. I haven’t sorted mine out yet. Been doing other things like finding out I need a new front driveshaft. lol, sh*t.

I changed my ignition cylinder because I was tired of stabbing the key into the wrong spot with my missing shroud. It didn’t solve the HVAC gremlin, though.
 
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Today while blasting the heater I smelled some burning electrical. It’s a smell you don’t forget if you’ve ever experienced it. I found the problem under the passenger side dash. It’s a melted plug and wiring, but not sure what this does. I unplugged it for now and I still have heat. What is this thing?

Other things worth mentioning in addition to the gremlins already gone over in this thread:

My HVAC fan only works on the highest setting.

The selector for floor, vent, defrost, etc does nothing.

There are some broken parts under the dash on the driver side related to the silver diaphragm canister thing. I was able to manually open it for floor airflow.

I’m pretty sure there are some similar broken parts under the passenger side.

I have limited knowledge of this electrical system and how it’s supposed to work. I could use any help I could get for this melted plug situation. Thanks in advance.
 
The melted connector you pulled is plugged into the resister, it does all the speeds of your fan except for hi which bypasses the resister. Best advice is to replace the pigtail, resister and blower at the same time.
 
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TJ_Tim said:
Thank you. Where is the resistor located in the Jeep?
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The resistor is mounted in the path of air flow from the fan motor. The resistor is mounted to the air box ducting usually with a couple screws. The resistor is located behind the glove compartment and generally the hinge mount for the glove compartment door sometimes will interfere when trying to remove the resistor from the ducting.
 
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Mavesar said:
The melted connector you pulled is plugged into the resister, it does all the speeds of your fan except for hi which bypasses the resister. Best advice is to replace the pigtail, resister and blower at the same time.
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I’m now remember this was the same thing that happened with yours, wasn’t it? Did you get yours all fixed up?
 
Yes this was the problem, when I fixed it all my accessory issues went away except for my wipers not returning to stop. Traced that down to the wiper motor contacts being bad so replacing that this week.
 
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