Locate an Auto Repair Shop in Eagle, Idaho

My blower motor would no longer turn by hand once removed, I also discovered that replacements are no longer made, and if you actually find one it's at least $168 online but NAPA did not have it in stock anymore. My successful $53 solution: Use a blower motor from a newer Chrysler and 'make it fit'. I went to an O'Reilly Auto store in Kansas City and Tom the Eagle Scout helped me out. The motor that Tom found is the VDO PM3324 for $53. The motor diameter of the body and the shaft are an exact match. Electrically it works perfectly at all speeds from ultra low to high, and this solution does not require any modifications to your original Mercedes wiring. However the new motor is constructed a little different and some creative engineering is required to get the fit just right. Before you start Use a voltage meter to verify the blower motor electrical plug has 12 volts when you turn the ignition key on. A no fan issue could be a resistor or fuse problem. Tools required: Bench grinder, basic metric socket set, screw drivers, crimping tool, 3m black vinyl tape, 3m double sided foam tape, hammer, drill with 15/64th bit or so, one male one female red spade connectors to crimp to the motor wiring, semi rusty vice grips optional. First remove the old motor under the passenger dash, so remove the panel first. The electrical connection easily pulls straight down. If you remove the 4 machine screws from rear to front, it will fall right into your hand, if like my 15 year old son you remove screws front to rear it will fall right onto your head. I love teaching my children the finer points of working on cars Remove the single bolt in the middle that holds the motor in place. The motor can now be wrestled out. Note the 4 vertical ridges in the Mercedes plastic that holds the motor. The new motor bottom needs 4 notches: The VDO motor has an ridge in it's bottom cap construction, I used my bench grinding wheel to notch this cap flush with the body in 4 90 degree cuts to fit the plastic ridges, 2 of them at the 2 attachment bolts on bottom, the other 2 90 degrees from these bolts. I recommend making them a little wider than required for an easier fit, a tight tolerance won't help you here. The new motor needs it's bottom cap circumference reduced: The bottom cap has a outside ridge, carefully rotate the motor against your bench grinder to reduce, but not remove, the outer lip. Once it fits into the top of the Mercedes plastic base this task is complete. Protect your wiring! The black and blue wires come from the top of the motor. Cut the foam tape, stick the wires below this so they are flush with the side of the motor. Wrap with 4 or so times with a good 3m black electrical tape. I highly recommend you avoid the cheap stuff here! Drill the New mounting Holes: Getting the new motor into the old Mercedes plastic requires a firm tapping, not hammering. Place on motor on your work surface, with shaft just off to the side and tap the plastic on the motor. When the bottom two mounting bolts hit bottom the will leave your drill location marks. Wrestle the motor out and use a 15/64 drill bit to make 2 new holes. Hint: remove the extra two nuts at this time. Re-tap the plastic onto the motor making sure the bolts come through the holes, attach with the washers and nuts that come with the motor. Cut no wires, Make the Electrical Connection: The fan requires a CCW rotation when looking down at the top of the shaft. Terminate the black wire with a red(22-18 gauge) male spade to fit into the Mercedes side female connecter, which is the + voltage side. Terminate motor's blue wire with a red female spade connecter for ground. The motor wires were a very tight fit into the red connectors and crimped down just fine. I did not cut any wires, and was able to nicely tuck them both down into the plastic base when done. The smart choice, a new squirrel cage: The shaft is a little longer, this was not the problem as there is room above. The original motor top is tapered, and the original fan support is curved to match. The new motor has a right angle top, not tapered which means the original squirrel cage fan cannot be tapped down as low on the new motor. Though this is not what I did I think it's likely the better choice. Plan B, What I did: Tap the old fan onto the shaft, when it reaches flush, use a deep socket to tap it further down about 1/4 inch, until the motor top is just barely not touching fan. I actually had the slightest of fan to motor rubs, as I assumed it rubbed itself out during the first 20 minutes of operation. The new system will be about 5mm to tall and the an will rub on the top side. I used a blue foam 10mm thick and 4 screws that were a little longer that the original and it works great. The foam I cut into a circle around the bottom of the fan, and use a marker to trace and cut the external plastic shape. A couple small pieces of 3m double sided foam tape and

The idea didn't work when it was an AMC Eagle and it doesn't work now

We drive 2006 TL Manual Tran. We live in the Chicago burbs. 75% hwy 25% city. Midgrade gas, 100k On OEM tires we were getting 27-29mpg, usually closer to 29 than 27. For the 1st 50k mi. With Conti Extreme Contact tires we dropped to 25-27mpg, and even worse when the Conti's were brand new. I've found that the sweet spot for good MPG is between 70-75mph. Taking it to 75-80mph can lose 1-2 mpg quickly ( maybe 3 over extended time?) You may think you're getting there quicker, but if you can make the trip w/ 1 less stop for gas, that prob. will save you 15 min, give or take :) Keep the shifts close to 3,000 rpm

The legal profession main objectivity is to have a myraid of laws and regulations, create confusion and doubt, so both sides can "agree to disagree." Therefore, the clock runs and the clients pay, been there and ended up paying 4 times what it should have cost, a very simple foreclosure on a large industrial acreage..I won and got the judgment and the land back.."Good old boy network" Doesn't the Democratic party receive their largest donations from the legal eagles???? Battles over employment issues, commissions due, and defective high-end purchases have all turned out well using the legal eagles at fixed percentages.. One last thing I did without a lawyer was had GM buyback a 1998 automobile with 28k miles, was refunded the full purchase price less $800 for mileage..It had brake and steering issues, and I turned around with the check and bought a 1999 model same brand, and later got the end of production model 2002 which did 120 k miles with ease.. Off the legal eagle bit and let's get to Chrysler which in my book is now a "Foreign Owned Corporation" and qualifies as a transplant, no longer a "Big 3" entity.. A near-broke Italian Fiat owns 60% and the other 40% is UAW and Canadian owned.. UAW was handed a gift by the WH lawyers and Canada fits the left-hand template very well.. Having had 51 Big 3 cars +2 Porsches, my choice for an American company narrows down to Ford.. They have not been corrupted as yet..Waiting for the next economic downturn before the 2013 models arrive..

You are not worried because you have solar with cheap coal power backup. We have eco nuts to the max, blocking every bit of progress both good and bad. It is not the same old thing. It gets worse every time I turn around. Some nut is laying in front of a project. And I as a tax payer and utility payer am getting screwed. All for the myth that man is causing the climate to change. Right now my thought is I hope the Indians shoot that pair of eagles when they fly over the Rez and use them for a dream catcher.