Not enough hot air...car question

[Atman]

I'm as far from a car guy as once can get. I know the basics, and how most of the big stuff works, I've replaced radiators and thermostats and basic parts...but I'm stumped on something that seems like it should be simple, but might cost me a fortune if I don't know what to ask or look for on my own.

My kid has a 95 Ford Escort with AT/AC my mom gave him. She swears the heat worked when she last used it, but my issues with mom are for another forum.

Anyway, there IS heat in there, but the blower won't blow...it seems the fan is out. I checked the fuses, and cannot find one JUST for the fan. The circuit breaker on the HEATER appears to have been tripped, so I clicked it. But it didn't "click," I couldn't really tell if I did anything, but I swear the fan started blowing hot air. Yay.

But I guess I didn't wait long enough to confirm my "repair" because I went inside and left the car running, and came back out to...nada. No heat. Now the circuit breaker isn't even tripped, so now I'm questioning whether or not I actually heard the fan at all the first time, or if maybe just the engine's cooling fan happened to have kicked in, since it had been idling for 25 minutes (but it was 20 degrees).

Anyway, that is all I know. Is there something simple I can check or am missing? If a garage mechanic said he had to take the whole dash off and replace everything, I'd have no idea whether or not he'd be bullshitting me. Any ideas, DU gearheads? Thanks, in advance!

[tarheel]

1. Hey Atman !

Not sure what you meant by a circuit breaker ? I've never seen a car that used "circuit breakers". I've seen fuses and relays in cars before. But in any case. It sounds to me like the fan motor for the heat is not getting any juice or there is a short, or th efan motor itself has simply gone bad. Depending on how it is mounted in the vehicle (usually under the dash on the passenger side) it may not be that bad to replace it. Most of the GM cars I have owned were not that bad to get to.



If you can locate the fan motor under the dash (or possibly in the engine compartment mounted on that side of the dash) you can disconnect the wiring and turn the heater on inside and see using a volt/ohm meter, check for voltage on the wires. If there is voltage present, then the fan motor is likely bad. If there is no voltage, there is a bad fuse or relay or connection somwhere before the wiring gets to that point.

[TreasonousBastard]

2. Common problem.

Blower motors do fail eventually. Usually you hear clunking and they are intermittant for a while first.

If the manual still exists, it shows where all the fuses and breakers are, but you seem to have found one anyway. If it continues to blow, there's something wrong, probably with the blower, but there could be a short in the wiring harness. That would be bad. Very, very bad.

Dunno where the blower motor is in an Escort, but my guess would be behind the glovebox. That's about the only place with enough room in smaller cars. If you can find it, it's probably pretty easy to replace and a replacement aftermarket blower should be under 50 bucks. In my car, I took out 5 screws and the glovebox fell out, showing the shot blower in all its faded glory. Couldn't find an aftermarket one, though, and had to get a factory one for a hundred bucks. Bah!

Investing 10-15 bucks in one of those repair manuals in the parts stores might be a good idea. Shows you where pretty much everything is.

[Atman]

3. Thank you!

Good suggestions, lots of help...thanks. Now, to venture out into the cold...