2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer, Poor Heat, Clicking Sound Under Dash

This 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer came in with a clicking sound under the driver’s side of the dash and erratic control of heat and a/c, hot and cold,  air from the driver’s side of the dash. To find the actual site of the clicking noise, I had to remove some of the underside of the dash. Two screws up top.

Two screws under the bottom for the black hush panel.

Drop the hush panel down and unclip/ unbolt all of the stuff attached to it.

Remove the two screws at the lower edge of the knee panel. Lower and remove the knee panel.

Remove the four 10 mm nuts that hold the inner aluminum panel.

Remove the aluminum panel.

The driver floor vent duct needs to be removed. The left end of the duct has a retaining clip in it,  that holds the duct in place. You have to either remove the clip or firmly pull down on the left side of the duct and wiggle it until it comes loose.

Remove the hold down screws for the actuator through the openings in and around the bracket, 5.5 mm.

Remove the two 10 mm nuts and the wiring harness clamp from the studs as shown below.

Remove the 10 mm bolt from the leading edge of the bracket.

Now go back and loosen the studs as shown. You will need a torx socket for this operation.

With the two studs loosened from the inner aluminum bracket, grab the sheet metal bracket and pull it towards the steering column. This will allow enough room for the actuator to come out.

The new actuator did not come in the same position as the old when it was removed.  You can purchase a new actuator by clicking here.

The old actuator had a part number 16164972 and the new actuator has a label with part number 52402599.

I connected it to the wiring and turned the key on until it matched. I turned the key off as soon as it was in the correct position so that the actuator would not over travel and possibly get stuck.

I do not remember at this time if I left the wiring attached or disconnected it before reinstalling it in the dash. The sheet metal bracket has to be pulled again to get the actuator back into position. Then take your time and push the bracket back into place and align the two studs into the aluminum bracket, so that they will not cross thread.

19 discussions on “2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer, Poor Heat, Clicking Sound Under Dash”

  1. It is very likely that the actuator is faulty but I would normally recommend testing before replacing. The problem is that in order to do any testing at the actuator, you have to do all of the steps except actually removing the actuator to get to the wiring test point. If you do the wise thing and have a new actuator on hand to install if the old one is faulty you might as well go ahead and install it.It is a high failure part.

  2. Dear Sparky;

    I have been searching for a solution for my AC problem since long time with no hope.

    I own SLT Envoy 2002, since I bought the car the A/C is blowing fine on the passenger and rear side but very very weak on the driver side. (the air flow is changing when I change the fan speed).

    two days back I had front passenger tyre exploded, and I realized that the A/C has worked fine on the driver side for one day, then back again to be very weak. Is it that actuator need to be replaced?

    Note: I have digital dual climate control.

    Appreciate your help so much.

  3. Did you perform a recalibration? What year is your vehicle? The actuators for a 2002 are unique to that year and no interchanges will work. Was there any cooling going on before the actuators were changed? When did the noise start and does it go away if you turn off the compressor?

  4. I just replaced all 3 of the actuators, but now the a/c is completely hot. There is a whirring noise coming from the front of the vehicle when I try to run the a/c. Is this the compressor?

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