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Reatta no heat


gtjr49

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My reatta heater does not work. the engine gets up to heat and is not low on coolant, I pulled the glove box, disconnected the arm which did not move when hooked up, ran the temp up and down, and the arm still does not move. i am assuming the box full of wiring connectors mounted on the firewall is the HVAC controller. question is, should I just replace the controller, or can I replace the motor? or could it be something else? not sure what my next step should be.

 

 

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The the black box with the lever on top is called the Programmer and the servo motor and rod controls the temperature. Our vendors should have a good one.

Edited by Padgett
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There was just a thread about this same subject. The motor is replaceable but the only source I know of is another controller. The pic below is the motor which simply unscrews and unplugs from controller. The motor can be tested by applying 12vdc to the motor terminals after it has been unplugged, reverse polarity for opposite direction. The other three wires are for the position encoder not needed for testing. If the motor tests good the problem is with the controller or communication.

1127161353-00.jpg

Edited by 2seater
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I believe there is a motor for the programmer that was available, 16050729 discontinued, that is a replacement for the motor. If this is so I might be able to find one and replace it in the programmer. does anyone know if this is fact? It is my understanding that Eldorado used this as well. I see a programmer, part number 16137740, discontinued on Ebay. this would be the same as the reatta? another alternative if I could not find the motor? 

 

to remover the programmer all it appears to do is remove the wire connectors and there are what appears to be three fasteners holding it in. am I on the right track?

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You need to remove the vacuum tubing bundle on the bottom also. There is a retaining screw in the center of that bundle and the whole package comes off intact. I believe you are on the right track with that part number. A quick search brings up a part that looks correct, but availability is a question.

 

edit: I believe that is a nut that retains the vacuum tube connection

Edited by 2seater
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got my part yesterday, and it looks just like the one above so I am sure that is right. does anyone have instructions for R&R of the motor?  my 90 shop manual says to refer to the 89 shop manual. guess GM did not want to spend the money on ink and paper,lol. if someone has this I would appreciate it. rather than stumble through it trying to figure out what fasteners, how many, and their location. 

I am at a disadvantage as I have never ventured into this side of the dashboard.

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Has the HVAC controller been removed? I don't see removal instructions in the How To guides in this forum either, but I can give a very rough idea of removal from memory. The panel under the glovebox area of the dash and the glovebox and door must be removed. I believe all the mounting screws for the controller are T15. I think there are two on the lower part and there is one at the top that is accessed through the glovebox, and is a pain to get to it, at least it was for me. The electrical connection and the vacuum tubing are all on the bottom of the controller. As mentioned above, the vacuum tubing comes off as an assembly, secured by a very small nut in the center of the bundle, 7 or 8mm IIRC. The controller has a cardboard or stiff paper cover over the inner workings. The motor above is retained by a couple of screws in the top and the wiring unplugs from the circuit board.

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On 2/4/2022 at 2:27 PM, gtjr49 said:

my 90 shop manual says to refer to the 89 shop manual.

I looked at the '89 manual. I could find no instructions for removing the motor from the programmer. There are minimal instructions for removing the programmer from the dash. The instructions you get from 2seater are better.

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Seeing you are new to the Reatta forums allow me to let you in on a secret [and this isn't directed at just you but all the "Newbies" that come on line here].

5 years ago you might have gotten 10 guys to give you responses but they are all gone now. Even the Reatta Technical Advisor on the AACA Reatta Forum hardly offers advice. There are really only three of us left. 2seater, Ronnie and myself. So if you get a response at all [on one site or the other] consider it "Golden" and start in. 

This isn't a Mustang, Corvette, or Camaro forum where hundreds of thousands of cars were sold, the Reatta sold less then 22,000 over 4 years so parts and advice is getting scarce. 

So allow me to add to what 2seater already told you;

The top screw to remove the controller is the hardest one to remove and when you reinstall the unit leave that one out, it's really not needed. The cardboard that 2seater refers to is like the cardboard on a scratch pad, it's that high tech and is held in place by strapping tape. Once that is removed you will see that the motor is right there waiting for you to remove it. I commend you for figuring out what is wrong and actually getting a replacement part.

Jim Finn has a number of these for sale, pretested and he is reasonable in pricing. He is an excellent source for parts.

There are a lot of other parts that you might want to look at obtaining if you plan on keeping your Reatta for any length of time. The 1990 Reatta only, one year only, headlight switch, instrument cluster [88-92 Reatta and Riv], teves pump and motor, teves pressure switch and ball [89-90 on the pump/motor, 88-90 switch and ball], struts/strut mounts both front and rear, ABS sensor leads.

And for other year owners, the Reatta only headlight switch [88-89], CRT and instrument cluster [88-89 Reatta and Riviera].

Edited by DAVES89
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thanks to both of you. I think you have given me enough info to make this doable. I grew up in a Buick dealership, but was in our Olds/GMC (four of the most miserable years in my car experience) store when the Reatta came around so i did not have much exposure to the Reatta.

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" arm still does not move" have seen the blend door stick shut before. I have ad to open by hand and bend the rod a little so it does not close so hard.

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okay so I see the three torx screws, and I can see the piece of cardboard. i am trying to pull the gray panel under the dash but I do not see the cluster of vacuum hoses. i am having some difficulty there.st this point I have identified just about everything so I will take another crack at it tomorrow. any little tips on finding and unhooking the vacuum hose cluster>

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3 hours ago, gtjr49 said:

any little tips on finding and unhooking the vacuum hose cluster>

This

On 2/4/2022 at 5:30 PM, 2seater said:

The electrical connection and the vacuum tubing are all on the bottom of the controller. As mentioned above, the vacuum tubing comes off as an assembly, secured by a very small nut in the center of the bundle, 7 or 8mm IIRC.

 

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