[Vwdiesel] A2 A/C blower bearings

[Sandy Cameron]

This is about the A/C blower in cars with A/C and does not apply to the
blower in non-A/C cars, where the blower motor is vertical.

I have not heard anyone here complain about bearing life in this blower
motor, but I have worn out a few.

They are cheesy sleeve bearings, too small, and I'm not sure what they are
made of, but it's sure not bronze or brass. Either steel, or some hard white
alloy. and further, the shaft is horizontal, and gravity enters the picture.

Anyway, notwithstanding I lube them once a year, they still seem give out
quickly.

And the sucker is EXPENSIVE ($200) to replace.

So the thrrrrifty Scott (read cheapskate) looked at the motor for a while,
for another work-around trick.

After I studied it for a while I noticed the bearing wear was mainly
vectored downward by gravity, with a small bit of horizontal bias,
presumably reaction from blowing the air sideways.

I looked for an easy way to rotate the bearings 180 degrees to alow the
shaft to work on fresh material. On a VW part? you've got to be kidding!

I studied it a bit more, and realized I could rotate the body of the motor
180 degrees in its plastic carrier barrel, so I did. Had to "relieve" the
terminal holes a bit to get them to line up, as they are off center, then
re-assembled and installed, the motor, now "Upside-down", and the shaft
running on virgin bearing surface. (I call these, "saddle" bearings :^)

Has been running fine for over a year, and theoretically, I should get about
double the mileage from it.

It's a darn shame that the bearings wear out so soon, and the brushes are
like new.

Planned obsolescence?

Just another challenge.

Sandy