heater blower replacement HELP!!!!!

[Phil & Judy Rose]

Anybody out there _not_ watching football today???

I'm not. :-(

I'm partway through the agony of trying to replace the heater blower in my
'91 200q. I've gotten to the point of trying to  separate the blower box
from the firewall, but it seems to be held firmly in place with a pretty
damn strong gasket/adhesive. And exactly _where_ can I apply leverage?
People talk about using screwdrivers? Huh?

Here's the background:
The strap around the blower box has been removed.
The round duct from the A/C has been pushed into the blower box.
I've left the heat-exchanger hoses in place since no heat-exchanger work is
contemplated.
I've removed the driver's and passenger interior side panels, but don't see
where I'm supposed to do anything useful (supposedly involving some
ductwork?) from within the car.
The driver's kick panel hasn't yet been removed, but I wonder if I'll need
to do that-- do I? I remember what a chore that panel was to get free.

Anyway, several write-ups (including ones from Al Powell and associates and
Steve Buchholz) lead me to expect that I should be able, with effort,  to
loosen the gasketing between the blower box and the firewall, and then by
just applying steady  force I'll manage to lever/pull the box completely
free. (HOW?) Trouble is I don't see a way to get at the base of the blower
with any tool that could apply leverage (and not damage the aluminum A/C
tubing in the process. The only part of the blower-box gasket that seems to
be accessible is along the very top edge. That gasket and its adhesive
doesn't seem eager to let go.

So, what trick(s) am I missing (never mind steak knives)?  What's the best
tool/way to pry up on the blower box. Using a Wonder Bar was suggested by a
friend, (but mine's gone missing). Is my problem the fact that the interior
duct connections must be pulled free _before_ the blower box is able to
loosen at all?

Phil


Phil Rose				Rochester, NY
'91 200q				mailto:pjrose at frontiernet.net