The heater fan recently made a slight clunk, now it makes a constant rumbling sound that can be felt at higher fan speeds, as well as a slight sound like there’s a wire touching the blades. My mechanic says it’s a tight motor. Motor=$207.63, resistor=$61.44, fan control=$352.92, labor=$200. They figure the fan will soon take down the rest of the components. I’m not sure my comfort is worth $900+! I was hoping that a wire fell on top of the blade, but that’s too optimistic. Does this sound legit? Thanks!
Ouch, the folks at Subaru are mighty proud of their blower motors, resistors & controls.
Did your mechanic say why you need more than just a new blower motor.
I dont know about Subarus, but i’ve driven a LOT of miles on various cars-mostly Fords- and never replaced a blower motor. So for one of my Fords a motor from a wrecking yard would be a good bet.
He said the fan “went flat” or something like that (this was too long ago to remember). He said it would burn the other components out eventually. Granted, the switch is a little sticky (WD-40 cures that for months at a time), and he thought that would bring down a new motor. A vicious cycle. Sigh.
You’ve heard that old saying “knowledge is power” i’m sure.
In this case the knowledge you need will be in a 20 buck Haynes manual. Any auto parts store shoud have it.
Read the procedure in the manual for replacing the blower motor & you might decide to get a motor from the wrecking yard & replace it yourself.
I’d replace the motor & see how it goes.