Lord help me my heat isn't working in -10 degree weather!

[mch4424]

I have a 2011 Hyundai Genesis, 107k miles. Not one single issue so far with this vehicle until now. I'm struggling to drive to work because of the freezing temperatures and no heat in my car. Just working on it is giving me hypothermia.

Problem: A/C Blower motor does not turn on with any speed or setting.

What I've tried:

I have changed the **40a fuse** for the blower motor.

I have changed the **blower motor relay** in the fuse box.

I have put a brand new **blower motor** in the vehicle.

I have installed a new **blower motor resistor** in as well.

Nothing has worked so far. Blower motor randomly worked one day, and now for the last 2 weeks I've had nothing at all. I pulled the fan out, hooked up to a spare 12v battery, works perfectly. I started my vehicle, hooked up a volt meter to the leads and (got 14 volts coming from the connector itself.) However, when the connector is plugged into the fan, no response from the fan at all. I thought it might be a bad connector, so I jumped cables from the connector to the blower motor and still nothing.

I am out of ideas at this point and I've never dealt with grounding issues before or anything. I asked my mechanic buddy and he thinks it could be a head unit issue (however the head unit can change the vents fine and everything else functions perfectly except the blower motor.) I would greatly appreciate any advice.

 

[Gunkk]

Diagnosis tips:
* Generally, you must isolate individual components and test them alone. So, for example, one would connect 12v directly from the battery to the blower motor to ensure its operation.
* Testing a component by connecting it to a questionably working system won't tell you what is and is not working, and can make diagnosis worse and/or cause damage to the new parts.
* Don't replace a part unless you know it is bad, or you have tested everything else and know everything else is good.
* Replacement parts can be bad right out of the box. It's good practice to check them before installing them into the car.


Looks like you have 3 more things to check from the 2012 HVAC manual (mosfet, control switch, and harness):




The diagnosis methods are numerous and too detailed to post here. Check your PMs.

 

[mch4424]

Diagnosis tips:
* Generally, you must isolate individual components and test them alone. So, for example, one would connect 12v directly from the battery to the blower motor to ensure its operation.
* Testing a component by connecting it to a questionably working system won't tell you what is and is not working, and can make diagnosis worse and/or cause damage to the new parts.
* Don't replace a part unless you know it is bad, or you have tested everything else and know everything else is good.
* Replacement parts can be bad right out of the box. It's good practice to check them before installing them into the car.


Looks like you have 3 more things to check from the 2012 HVAC manual (mosfet, control switch, and harness):

View attachment 42874


The diagnosis methods are numerous and too detailed to post here. Check your PMs.

I appreciate your help! I've read through it but one thing is confusing me. I have suspected it is my "speed control switch" that is creating the problem. However, the manual says it's all located in the "temperature control panel." Do I simply buy a new climate control panel and swap it in or is there a SEPERATE speed control switch I don't know about? Also, I noticed there is a climate control panel WITH and WITHOUT navigation listed in parts. I have navigation, so I would assume I need the one that says that? Seemed weird simply because the climate control panel is completely SEPERATE from my head unit.

 

[Gunkk]

I appreciate your help! I've read through it but one thing is confusing me. I have suspected it is my "speed control switch" that is creating the problem. However, the manual says it's all located in the "temperature control panel." Do I simply buy a new climate control panel and swap it in or is there a SEPERATE speed control switch I don't know about? Also, I noticed there is a climate control panel WITH and WITHOUT navigation listed in parts. I have navigation, so I would assume I need the one that says that? Seemed weird simply because the climate control panel is completely SEPERATE from my head unit.

Might be. Might not. What if it is the wiring, or a loose pin inside a connector? (rhetorical) So no, one does not simply guess and buy more parts (insert LOTR meme). We call this "firing the parts cannon" at a car problem. Yes sometimes it's a faulty part, but other times it's wiring harness that cannot be just purchased and installed. The fault has to be systematically tracked down, isolated, and then repaired properly.

Since you seem interested and have some time for DIY, my advice to you is this:

1. Diagnose the problem properly before firing any more shots from the parts cannon at it.

2. Do not make your parts replacement and repair labor choices on suspicion; test everything and know for sure what is, and what is not functioning correctly. Ask yourself: "Is this part good? How do I know it's good? Did I isolate the part and test its operation or measure it measures to be within specification. If I did not or cannot, can I tell if this same part is bad? How do I know that it's bad?" For example: Did you hook up the blower motor to 12v battery power directly? Did it spin well and blow strong? If yes: assume for now it's good. If not, pretty safe to assume it's bad. Are the switches and controls showing the proper conductivity and resistance values within specifications provided in the manual? ...etc...

3. If you do not have the correct tools or are not comfortable doing this, then you may not ready to do a solo DIY diagnosis of electrical problems. And that is okay; many of us have been there plenty times too. I once took an auto mechanics class, and I too have since repeatedly learned this same lesson the hard way. Sometimes I am just in over my head for any number of reasons (tools, experience, knowledge, etc.) and need to rely on a professional for their tools, skills and experience.

So if you get stuck, don't feel alone. Because you're not. Take the car to a competent local automotive electrician and pay them money for their expertise. Shouldn't cost more than $250 to diagnose it completely and some shops may also discount part of that cost if they also do the repair. You may be pleasantly surprised, although that pleasant feeling might be offset by the slight sting of a lesson learned.

Important note: The repair manual section I sent was for a 2012 4.6. My car (like all 2012 v8's) and the repair manual is for the Technology Trim with Navigation and the DIS knob. Your 2011 *may* be configured differently. Odds are if your car likewise is tech trim with the DIS then your configuration will be similar. But understand that there was a mid-cycle refresh done starting with the 2012 model year that did include the head unit, so some of the details about modules and pinouts behind the scenes may have changed even if the controls look the same. So keep that in mind if you go poking around in the bowels of the car's electricals.

______________________________

 

[mch4424]

Might be. Might not. What if it is the wiring, or a loose pin inside a connector? (rhetorical) So no, one does not simply guess and buy more parts (insert LOTR meme). We call this "firing the parts cannon" at a car problem. Yes sometimes it's a faulty part, but other times it's wiring harness that cannot be just purchased and installed. The fault has to be systematically tracked down, isolated, and then repaired properly.

Since you seem interested and have some time for DIY, my advice to you is this:

1. Diagnose the problem properly before firing any more shots from the parts cannon at it.

2. Do not make your parts replacement and repair labor choices on suspicion; test everything and know for sure what is, and what is not functioning correctly. Ask yourself: "Is this part good? How do I know it's good? Did I test its operation or measure it measures to be within specification. If I did not or cannot, can I tell if this same part is bad? How do I know that it's bad?" For example: Did you hook up the blower motor to 12v battery power directly? Did it spin well and blow strong? If yes: assume for now it's good. If not, pretty safe to assume it's bad. Are the switches and controls showing the proper conductivity and resistance values within specifications provided in the manual? ...etc...

3. If you do not have the correct tools or are not comfortable doing this, then you may not ready to do a solo DIY diagnosis of electrical problems. And that is okay; many of us have been there plenty times too. I once took an auto mechanics class, and I too have since repeatedly learned this same lesson the hard way. Sometimes I am just in over my head for any number of reasons (tools, experience, knowledge, etc.) and need to rely on a professional for their tools, skills and experience.

So if you get stuck, don't feel alone. Because you're not. Take the car to a competent local automotive electrician and pay them money for their expertise. Shouldn't cost more than $250 to diagnose it completely and some shops may also discount part of that cost if they also do the repair. You may be pleasantly surprised, although that pleasant feeling might be offset by the slight sting of a lesson learned.

Important note: The repair manual section I sent was for a 2012 4.6. My car (like all 2012 v8's) and the repair manual is for the Technology Trim with Navigation and the DIS knob. Your 2011 *may* be configured differently. Odds are if your car likewise is tech trim with the DIS then your configuration will be similar. But understand that there was a mid-cycle refresh done starting with the 2012 model year that did include the head unit, so some of the details about modules and pinouts behind the scenes may have changed even if the controls look the same. So keep that in mind if you go poking around in the bowels of the car's electricals.

Thank you for the information, you make a lot of sense. I think I will attempt to diagnose properly then, although I must admit one of the issues is it's currently -10 degrees in Minnesota right now so I can only tinker with stuff for a few minutes before I have to go inside to warm up. Also, my Hyundai dealership (which would have the most competent diagnosing software) is booked out for about 6 weeks.

I have connected power to the blower motor from a spare 12v battery, spins perfectly. I have tested the voltage from plug and it gets weird voltage, however the voltage is the same after swapping the resistor. Was getting 7 volts and it bounced around messing with fan speed settings, not normally. Sending that information to my mechanic he said 90% chance it's the head unit from his experience, however he hasn't seen the vehicle either.

How difficult is it to remove that climate control panel?

 

[Gunkk]

How difficult is it to remove that climate control panel?

page 63.

 

[Veronious]

Diagnosis tips:
* Generally, you must isolate individual components and test them alone. So, for example, one would connect 12v directly from the battery to the blower motor to ensure its operation.
* Testing a component by connecting it to a questionably working system won't tell you what is and is not working, and can make diagnosis worse and/or cause damage to the new parts.
* Don't replace a part unless you know it is bad, or you have tested everything else and know everything else is good.
* Replacement parts can be bad right out of the box. It's good practice to check them before installing them into the car.


Looks like you have 3 more things to check from the 2012 HVAC manual (mosfet, control switch, and harness):

View attachment 42874


The diagnosis methods are numerous and too detailed to post here. Check your PMs.

I have the same issue. Could you please send me the diagnosis methods please.

 

[mch4424]

I have the same issue. Could you please send me the diagnosis methods please.

I swapped everything in my Genesis. Was getting low voltage through to the fan itself. Here's what I did.

Take a 9 volt battery and wire it to the fan, if it spins its not the fan.

See if the fan works on full speed but no other speeds, it could be your regulator then.

Check your HVAC relay and fuses as well, if they look good it could be the same issue I had.

I had a fried wire under the passenger floorboard where all the wires connect (sort of under the glove box. Had a mechanic track it down and fix the wire for a couple hundred bucks. Works perfect now.

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