Air not blowing out of front vent
 

Today I turned on A/c and the vents would not blow air. I tried in heat mode also - no air from vents up front. The back vent works fine.
Any help??? It's really hot in Chicago todayl

Same thing just happened to me today... (in the M5 though) the blower stopped working, no air at all. After running a few errands with the windows down it starts working again. Not sure what the deal was, but I'd like to find out. If the wife had been driving I would have got an earfull!

Not 100% guarantee but sounds like FSR (Final Stage Resistor) going bad. This happens on mine only when the X5 has been under the sun (parked), once the inside temp goes down a little (from opening the window) vent is going again like normal.

I have tried it now for 2 days - no air out of front vents. This did happen last summer 1 day but has been fine ever since. Not sure which way to go Resistor is $138 and it may or may not be the problem

I'm 99% sure that your problem is the final stage blower resistor. The rear air vents have their own blower fan in the center console.

The blower resistor is under the passengers side of the dash, and can be changed in about 5-10 minutes. IF you use the search bar at the bottom of the page and type in blower resistor, there are numerous threads/posts about this, unfortunately it is a common problem. But the new one is an updated style and doesn't really fail. Just the original ones generally fail.

Final Stage resistor...Formal term is AC blower motor resistor..

Thanks guys - we will try that. The local dealer wants $138 for the resistor - Any other ideas?? Can't really wait for online purchase but might have to for the right price

Talk to morristown bmw, they should be able to get it for a lot cheaper :)

Thanks - I am in Chicago, did find it online for $75 so I will probably have to do that .

Hope it works.
Does anyone have a detailed description or photos of where and how to replace.

Try this link:

http://www.xoutpost.com/articles/x5/m...placement.html

It is not difficult, but I think 5-10 minutes is optimistic. 30-40 for a first-timer?

true... but not a hard job with the right resourses... like this site!

Thanks. I guess we have to try this first. I do not think it is the fan motor for some reason. If the range is 5-10 minutes seems like an easy fix, I has also been reading alot about how the new resistor is better than the old one. I wish I could find the part at a local place rather than the dealer but I am not going to pay twice the price for a part, will just have to wait it out until next week after I order the part.

This is a great site. Glad I joined.

Yep! the ol' dreaded final stage resistor - from what I've seen posted, I think we all have had to replace this sucker

You definitely have found THE website for all your X5 questions. Best of luck with your ride

I will keep everyone posted as to what the actual problems are once fixed. Between the final stage resistor and the hoses that need replacement the X5 has been needing some TLC lately. I hope that by next week we can get the SES light off for good as well as the ac working again. Thanks for all your input. Truly appreciated.

I will post any updates.

I changed my resistor but the fan is still not working. Any idea what else it can be?

After I bought my resistor for $100, I saw the exact same one on ebay for $50. :banghead:

There's lots of stuff on X5 world about what it may be. I am hoping its the resistor and call it a day. We will see. Actually my dealer wanted $138 for part - I ordered on EBay motors for $50. Thanks:thumbup:

Final stage blower motor resistor received today. However, it appears some of the prongs are bent. Is this how it is supposed to look?? Can they be bent back?? I have a call into co. I bought it from but they are gone for the day. Before I rip this whole thing apart I want to make sure the part is not bad.

The prongs are not supposed to be bent. I'd return it. I wouldnt try to bend them back either...

If it's just the long heat sink prongs that are bent, it depends on how bent. If they are just pushed together a bit at the ends, thats normal and you don't have to worry about it. I could tell you more if you post a quick pic.

Yes it is the big prong things. There are probably 3 or 4 near the sides that are slightly bent in. Should I try and straighten them? Do they go into little slots that match those prong things? Haven't pulled the old one out yet. Doing that tomorrow if I can use the new one the way it is.

Yeah, its just fine to use. There is nothing for the prongs to line up with, they're just heat sinks. You can try to straighten them if you want, its easy as they are aluminum. But you don't really have to worry about it... Good luck!

And you will see just how different they are from the old ones tomorrow...

Thanks - I will post when we are done with the work. Actually, not me, but when my boss is done with the work. Chicks not typically allowed in the garage except for part numbers, research and finding how to change something out on the X.
Have a great evening.

My final stage went out about 2 weeks ago in 100 degree Texas heat. Yummy! I talked with both the parts guy I trust and one of the Techs who has been working BMWs for over 10 years. The tech said he had never replaced a blower motor on an X5, but has replaced well over 50 of the final stages over the past 6 to 7 years on the X5s. Known problem with an improved replacement... @ a little over $ 100 a pop!

Final stage corrected my problem. The blower indicator was maxed out on the climate control and you could feel cool air without "push" because the fan just wasn't turning. The final stage is a little tight to get to, but is an easy fix. Good luck.

Hi Guys - OK hopefully this will be the final entry from me on this subject. Changed the final stage resistor today. Everything seems to be working great. Have only driven it a little while but it resolved the problem so far.

The posts on this site were SO very helpful. We followed the diagrams and it literally took about 15 minutes to change out. The old final stage resistor had a big crack thru the middle of it.

This is the best forum site. X5er's are truly a unique breed. Always willing to help a fellow X5er out. Also have a post on some error codes that were posted and changed out the 2 crankcase oil seperator hoses, that by the way, we totally desinigrated. 103,000 miles on the 01' probably was time. Changed out spark plugs too while in there. So far so good on the error codes being gone. We will see

Thanks again!!!!!!!!!!1:thumbup: :D

yes blowr resister it is... located on lower passenger side..

I think mine just gave up today. nothing coming out of the vents in the front. I'm waiting for a price quote from Morristown for the resistor. Hope this would fix my problem. it started with turn on the car it don't work. then i shut off my car and start again it would come back. or it don't work then it comes back on by itself. yesterday and today nothing at all in the front.

Just got a fast quote from morristown. Mike is great! got back to me like in seconds. Now I have to wait for my part to arrive and replace it to see if it work!

Sounds like thats it though, you should have the ac vents back in no time now.

As of today's date, everything has been fine with the original post from September. You guys on this site are great.

THANKS !!!!!

Hope I can handle replacing it by myself. :eek:

**UPDATE**

YES! Presto, change-o, it's working now. I've manage to change it myself. didn't have to take the glove box off or the plastic vent. I guess my hand is small enough to reach in to remove the FSR. :boogie: took me half hour to do.

i've been reading a lot about the rear console having it's own blower. i have both dials - fan and hot/cold - however, i'm pretty certain that it's controlled from the front with damper controls as it never goes on separate from the front system. Anyone else NOT have a rear fan?

Same problem here. Sure enough, I bought a FSR on eBay for about $50...just replaced it tonight and it works perfectly! It took me about 45 minutes start to finish. That baby is waaaaaaay back there - I had a hard time reaching it with my bear paws. Thanks for the forum!

Glad to hear you got your's up and running too! Guess I was lucky I have small hands hehehe.