OK. I solved my porblem. Here is what hapened. The nut that holds the temperature control to thee front panel came loose. The knob and control started to wobble. This stressed the wires on back. Eventually 2 of the 3 wires attaching the temperature control to the cotrol circuit board broke. When the control knob was in certain positions one or both came into contact and the heat would come on.
I went to the dealer and they said "replace the heater contol unit." It costs $ 586.00 plus labor. I bought one from a junkyard for $ 75.00. I removed the bezel which surrounds the whole unit by gently prying it with a couple of screwdrivers. Be very careful not to sccratch the dash. Once that I saw that all connections to the back were electircal (3 plugs) I removed the old one. I opened it up and saw the broken wires. I soldered them, reinstalled it and it works fine now.
Anyone want a Heater control unit for a 2001 - 2003 Highlander for $ 75.00 plus shipping? It comes with the balance of the 30 day warranty.
Pictures attached.
I would like to do a bulb change on the heater controls and clock from green to white to match the speedo and tack. Did you notice if this is possible?
Just another note of thanks to Wizzer for the fix. My wife's 02 had the same issue, and I googled all kinds of things but the official name of the part (heat controller).
Took it to the dealer, who had it all day, then they called and said it was the heat controller (so that's what its called!) and would be $758 to fix, and the part was backordered!
I hit google again and found this threat. I just saved $750 buck and the wife has heat in her car again. Thanks!
OK. I solved my porblem. Here is what hapened. The nut that holds the temperature control to thee front panel came loose. The knob and control started to wobble. This stressed the wires on back. Eventually 2 of the 3 wires attaching the temperature control to the cotrol circuit board broke. When the control knob was in certain positions one or both came into contact and the heat would come on.
I went to the dealer and they said "replace the heater contol unit." It costs $ 586.00 plus labor. I bought one from a junkyard for $ 75.00. I removed the bezel which surrounds the whole unit by gently prying it with a couple of screwdrivers. Be very careful not to sccratch the dash. Once that I saw that all connections to the back were electircal (3 plugs) I removed the old one. I opened it up and saw the broken wires. I soldered them, reinstalled it and it works fine now.
Anyone want a Heater control unit for a 2001 - 2003 Highlander for $ 75.00 plus shipping? It comes with the balance of the 30 day warranty.
Pictures attached.
I just ran into the same type of symptoms and I saw your post. I decided to take the dash apart and check the wires for the temp control. Guess what? You were right again! I fixed the connections and the heater works as good as the first day I picked the car up from the dealer. Thank you Wizzer, I really appreciate the help you have provided me (and that's not counting the $). Thank you.
Heater knob just pulls out (center knob). I just pulled mine on my 03 Highlander and tightened the nut about 3/4's of one turn. I didn't want to go further for fear of cracking the plastic housing behind the nut. Seems like something you might want to check once a year. I used a deep well socket. Thanks for the tip guys.
__________________
My first two Toyotas: a 1972 Yellow Carina and a 1974 Copper Corona 'woody' station wagon. Remember these names?
Hello. I have this exact problem on my 2002 Highlander. I actually talked the dealer into trying to solder these wires but the were not successful in getting the wire from the ribbon cable soldered, and because the whole process scared them to death, they gave up easily. Can somebody advise me on what size/type of replacement wire to use and what 'size' (how small?) of a solder gun do I need to do this? (I have no experience soldering).
Thanks,
Jack
Quote:
Originally Posted by dfluitt
Here are the photos documenting the heater control fix. The first shot is of the panel with the knobs removed. The nut that comes loose is under the knob and holds the shaft steady. The loose nut allows the small circuit board behind it to rock back and forth when the knob is turned causing the wires to break.
The second shot shows the back of the heater control unit with the cover removed showing the main circuit board and the small circuit board (circled) on the back of the control knob.
The third shot shows the ribbon cable where it breaks off at the solder joint on the small circuit board.
The fourth shot shows the three wires I soldered in place of the ribbon cable.
Guys, my highlander had the same problem and I got the same price from the dealership ($600 +). I have not yet fixed it, but I will be fixing it tomorrow and I'm sure it will be easy with the great instructions and pics provided above. You guys just saved me a lot of cash. I can't thank you enough.
Hi Jack - don't have any suggestions for replacement wires but i can tell you from doing mine that i reused the 3 wire original 'ribbon'. i cut slits in between the wires so they acted more like individual wires. also the wires were previously routed in thru the assembly from underneath. when i resoldered the 3 wires to the center dial i went directly to the back instead of in from the under side. this gave me a little extra slack on that original wire ribbon. i bought a $13 soldering pencil and some standard solder for like $1.50. no need for a big $50 soldering gun. hope this helps. good luck!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jack_MN
Hello. I have this exact problem on my 2002 Highlander. I actually talked the dealer into trying to solder these wires but the were not successful in getting the wire from the ribbon cable soldered, and because the whole process scared them to death, they gave up easily. Can somebody advise me on what size/type of replacement wire to use and what 'size' (how small?) of a solder gun do I need to do this? (I have no experience soldering).
I just wanted to add my name to the list. My 02 Highlander had the same problem with the same diagnosis from the dealer - $47.00 fee to tell me it would cost almost $900 to fix. After reading this post all I had to do was tighten the center knob last night and so far it works like the day I bought it. If anyone else reads this you might want to check the knob before taking off the panel. Thanks everybody!
Got to the point where I undid the four screws, but you are right. I can't pull the unit out because it is stuck to the wires in back holding it in. How do I take it off? And more importantly, I don't see how i will be able to plug wires back in since the unit would have to be set in before wires could be plugged back in. Help!
Got to the point where I undid the four screws, but you are right. I can't pull the unit out because it is stuck to the wires in back holding it in. How do I take it off? And more importantly, I don't see how i will be able to plug wires back in since the unit would have to be set in before wires could be plugged back in. Help!
mm49, Hey I'm doing this fix myself right now. After taking out the 4 screws also take out the six 10mm bolts Then the radio also comes out which gives you a bunch of slack on the wire bundle. then you can remove the 3 plugins. The 2 plugs side by side just depress the little tab while pulling the plug out. I used a scewdriver to help pop it out because the pugs are small and hard to get a good grip on. Just use twisting motion, doesn't take alot. The lager plug did not have a tab to push down but I used the same screwdriver method and it came out without too much difficulty. I have a hunch you have already figured this out but it might help somone else. Good Luck!
Thanks DFLUIT AND WIZZER for the photos on your post. After taking mine apart each nut was loose on both the temp. contoller and the controller that switches between defrost and heat on the footwell area. One to two wires were broken on the wire ribbon to temp. controller(hard to see my eyes don't work as good on the small close up stuff as they use to). Bought a fine point 15 watt soldering iron at Radio Shack ($7.99) resolderd the two conextions.
When I put nuts back on the controllers put some Permatex gasket stuff on the theads to keep the nuts from backing off. The Permatex is some grey color stuff I had laying around the garage, it sets up a little harder than silicon. I think it will do the job and I thought Locktite might be a little overkill.
One more story of the dealer missing out on $800 big ones!
Re: Heat problem solved
Re: Heater quit... sort of
Re: Heat problem solved
Re: Heater quit... sort of
Linear Mode
