[Bigfoot]

I have a 2015 USA model NV200 that I purchased new. I currently have about 70,000 miles on the van. I live in Florida so lots of heat and humidity throughout the year. Also, I've been driving for 46 years and have owned many different vehicles.


I have always felt that the air conditioner in my van was substandard. It works but I feel it should have worked better. I believe the temperature selector system/cable was defective from the start and here's why. When rotating the temp selector switch from hot to cold or the opposite, there always seemed to be a point about mid travel that had tension. Not quite a sticking point but a noticeable amount of extra tension when rotating the knob. Then one day not long ago, bam, the switch didn't work at all and there was no tension when rotating it back and forth. Unfortunately it was stuck in the heat position. So after a nasty afternoon ride home with the Florida heat and the vents bleeding hot air, I tore into it.


I took off the panel surrounding the ac control assembly and removed the radio so I had more room to work and a better view. The temp control cable had come out of its mounting hole which is on a plastic tab on the back of the rotary knob. The cable runs to the left and goes down behind the panels to the duct work near the floor to the right of the gas pedal. All the temp selector knob does is open or close a door/damper in the ducting. It is a straight mechanical setup.



The cable that had come loose is pretty stiff and has a sharp dogleg in the end of it that is supposed to keep it in place. The cable is fairly substantial and not easily manipulated. That said and factoring in the dogleg bend, I could not get the cable back in the hole and even if I did, whatever defect had been causing the sticking/tension point and ultimately caused the cable to come out of its hole would still be there and I'd likely have the cable come out of place again. Also, to even get the cable back in its correct position, I would have to do more disassembly to get the proper angle to reinstall the cable through the hole in the tab.


So, being hot, tired, and aggravated, I decided to put a bend in the end of the cable with some needlenose pliers to get it back through the hole. After attaching the cable and removing the interior panel next to the gas pedal so I could observe the cable as it actuated the damper, it seemed I had the temp selector working correctly again. (I was wrong!) I put everything back together and my ac wasn't as cold as it should be. Because I never have had my ac serviced and felt it was always substandard, I took my van to my local shop guy. I had him evac the system, refill the refrigerant, and check everything out. He checked for Nissan service bulletins as well. There were no SB's. The ac system was working at an optimal level. I had told him about the temp selector problem and what I had done so he checked the damper. Although it seemed I had a functioning temp switch, when turned all the way to the cool position, the damper was still open about an 1/8" allowing hot air to mix with the cool. As a side note, I had previously washed out the condenser coils with a garden hose just to insure they were dissipating heat properly. This is a good starting point when servicing any ac system and if its a typical residential split system, cleaning the evap coils can make a huge difference in cooling.


The temp selector cable is NOT available as a stand alone replacement part. You have to buy the entire HVAC control assembly which is $350 from Nissan! The other kicker, this part was readily available/in stock from the main Nissan parts warehouse here in Fl. Why??? I speculate that there is a problem Nissan knows about but won't publicly acknowledge or recall because this shouldn't be a normally in stock part and because my van has had this problem since it was new.


I had the mechanic insure that the damper was fully closed and told him I'd check vent temperatures before I make a decision on what to do next as I wanted to see what temps the ac was putting out with a damper verified closed and the ac working at max capacity. I picked the van up, brought along my infrared thermometer and started driving. Holy crap, my ac was colder than it ever had been!! After 3 or 4 minutes I started to check temps at the 4 dash vents. I was getting 30 +/- degrees from every vent reading.


I believe the damper has never fully closed off the duct and there was always a slight hot air bleed into the vent which caused the max cold ac setting to still seem a bit substandard. I am also convinced this is/was a problem in the initial manufacturing process. Without completely tearing the control system apart, I cannot tell what the problem actually is. Possibly some kind of pinching in the cable installation?



So---- I know my temp selector works with my rig job on the cable end but does not work properly and will not close the damper completely, so after closing it all the way manually to get max cooling, I cannot use the heat because it will not fully return to max cool with the cable actuator/temp control and we have plenty of hot weather to come. I can't bring myself to spend $350 to replace the whole hvac assembly plus either paying someone to install it or figuring it out myself so until the weather cools off, I will leave it as is and enjoy a ride that is cooler than it ever has been.


After it cools off, I will revisit the issue and try to either rig a new connection point at the back of the temp selector or possibly even run a whole new cable to a completely different location.Spending a bunch of money is the absolute last option I will consider. Whatever I do, the main thing will be to physically verify that the damper is closing all the way. This is where I screwed up last time. I was hot, tired and dirty at the end of the day and did not inspect it closely enough.



If you suspect you may have a similar problem, here is the quickest way to find out. Get an IR thermometer and first check your vent temps while cruising down the road with the ac set to max. ( I should have done this before anything as this would have given me some valuable info.) Now you have some starting point data. If you are not getting at least +- 35 degrees at your vents, you most likely have a problem and should probably have your ac system checked to verify it is operating up to full capacity. Next, remove the body panel that goes down beside the gas pedal. It is easy to pop off/on and will expose the cable and damper that is almost at floor level. Don't pry off any interior panels with metal tools, screw drivers, etc. as there is a good chance you will damage them. You can pick up a set of plastic pry tools for $10 to $20 at most any auto parts store. Now visually and physically check the damper position. It only takes a small amount of movement to cause a slight gap allowing hot air to affect your cold setting. Manually close the damper so you have max cold ac temps and make a run down the road and measure vent temps again. Also, I checked all my temps when the outside temperature was mid 90's and humidity very high.This obviously isn't a permanent fix. If you find you have the same problem be prepared to spend 5 to 6 hundred bucks to fix it at a shop.



I would like to hear of anybody who has encountered this hvac problem. I just don't think I'm the only one who has this problem. Or am I ?? As far as a permanent repair, I'll be addressing this when what we call winter in Florida actually arrives. I'll shoot for a follow up post then. If you

are an automotive hvac pro, please feel free to chime in and critique this post or provide any other pertinent info. Constructive/instructive criticism or opinions always welcome.

 

[Jethro1999]

Thanks for this info. Just bought a 2014 with a"sticky" dial. Hoping to fix before it comes completely disconnected like yours.

 

[mike d]

I have a 2015 USA model NV200 that I purchased new. I currently have about 70,000 miles on the van. I live in Florida so lots of heat and humidity throughout the year. Also, I've been driving for 46 years and have owned many different vehicles.


I have always felt that the air conditioner in my van was substandard. It works but I feel it should have worked better. I believe the temperature selector system/cable was defective from the start and here's why. When rotating the temp selector switch from hot to cold or the opposite, there always seemed to be a point about mid travel that had tension. Not quite a sticking point but a noticeable amount of extra tension when rotating the knob. Then one day not long ago, bam, the switch didn't work at all and there was no tension when rotating it back and forth. Unfortunately it was stuck in the heat position. So after a nasty afternoon ride home with the Florida heat and the vents bleeding hot air, I tore into it.


I took off the panel surrounding the ac control assembly and removed the radio so I had more room to work and a better view. The temp control cable had come out of its mounting hole which is on a plastic tab on the back of the rotary knob. The cable runs to the left and goes down behind the panels to the duct work near the floor to the right of the gas pedal. All the temp selector knob does is open or close a door/damper in the ducting. It is a straight mechanical setup.



The cable that had come loose is pretty stiff and has a sharp dogleg in the end of it that is supposed to keep it in place. The cable is fairly substantial and not easily manipulated. That said and factoring in the dogleg bend, I could not get the cable back in the hole and even if I did, whatever defect had been causing the sticking/tension point and ultimately caused the cable to come out of its hole would still be there and I'd likely have the cable come out of place again. Also, to even get the cable back in its correct position, I would have to do more disassembly to get the proper angle to reinstall the cable through the hole in the tab.


So, being hot, tired, and aggravated, I decided to put a bend in the end of the cable with some needlenose pliers to get it back through the hole. After attaching the cable and removing the interior panel next to the gas pedal so I could observe the cable as it actuated the damper, it seemed I had the temp selector working correctly again. (I was wrong!) I put everything back together and my ac wasn't as cold as it should be. Because I never have had my ac serviced and felt it was always substandard, I took my van to my local shop guy. I had him evac the system, refill the refrigerant, and check everything out. He checked for Nissan service bulletins as well. There were no SB's. The ac system was working at an optimal level. I had told him about the temp selector problem and what I had done so he checked the damper. Although it seemed I had a functioning temp switch, when turned all the way to the cool position, the damper was still open about an 1/8" allowing hot air to mix with the cool. As a side note, I had previously washed out the condenser coils with a garden hose just to insure they were dissipating heat properly. This is a good starting point when servicing any ac system and if its a typical residential split system, cleaning the evap coils can make a huge difference in cooling.


The temp selector cable is NOT available as a stand alone replacement part. You have to buy the entire HVAC control assembly which is $350 from Nissan! The other kicker, this part was readily available/in stock from the main Nissan parts warehouse here in Fl. Why??? I speculate that there is a problem Nissan knows about but won't publicly acknowledge or recall because this shouldn't be a normally in stock part and because my van has had this problem since it was new.


I had the mechanic insure that the damper was fully closed and told him I'd check vent temperatures before I make a decision on what to do next as I wanted to see what temps the ac was putting out with a damper verified closed and the ac working at max capacity. I picked the van up, brought along my infrared thermometer and started driving. Holy crap, my ac was colder than it ever had been!! After 3 or 4 minutes I started to check temps at the 4 dash vents. I was getting 30 +/- degrees from every vent reading.


I believe the damper has never fully closed off the duct and there was always a slight hot air bleed into the vent which caused the max cold ac setting to still seem a bit substandard. I am also convinced this is/was a problem in the initial manufacturing process. Without completely tearing the control system apart, I cannot tell what the problem actually is. Possibly some kind of pinching in the cable installation?



So---- I know my temp selector works with my rig job on the cable end but does not work properly and will not close the damper completely, so after closing it all the way manually to get max cooling, I cannot use the heat because it will not fully return to max cool with the cable actuator/temp control and we have plenty of hot weather to come. I can't bring myself to spend $350 to replace the whole hvac assembly plus either paying someone to install it or figuring it out myself so until the weather cools off, I will leave it as is and enjoy a ride that is cooler than it ever has been.


After it cools off, I will revisit the issue and try to either rig a new connection point at the back of the temp selector or possibly even run a whole new cable to a completely different location.Spending a bunch of money is the absolute last option I will consider. Whatever I do, the main thing will be to physically verify that the damper is closing all the way. This is where I screwed up last time. I was hot, tired and dirty at the end of the day and did not inspect it closely enough.



If you suspect you may have a similar problem, here is the quickest way to find out. Get an IR thermometer and first check your vent temps while cruising down the road with the ac set to max. ( I should have done this before anything as this would have given me some valuable info.) Now you have some starting point data. If you are not getting at least +- 35 degrees at your vents, you most likely have a problem and should probably have your ac system checked to verify it is operating up to full capacity. Next, remove the body panel that goes down beside the gas pedal. It is easy to pop off/on and will expose the cable and damper that is almost at floor level. Don't pry off any interior panels with metal tools, screw drivers, etc. as there is a good chance you will damage them. You can pick up a set of plastic pry tools for $10 to $20 at most any auto parts store. Now visually and physically check the damper position. It only takes a small amount of movement to cause a slight gap allowing hot air to affect your cold setting. Manually close the damper so you have max cold ac temps and make a run down the road and measure vent temps again. Also, I checked all my temps when the outside temperature was mid 90's and humidity very high.This obviously isn't a permanent fix. If you find you have the same problem be prepared to spend 5 to 6 hundred bucks to fix it at a shop.



I would like to hear of anybody who has encountered this hvac problem. I just don't think I'm the only one who has this problem. Or am I ?? As far as a permanent repair, I'll be addressing this when what we call winter in Florida actually arrives. I'll shoot for a follow up post then. If you

are an automotive hvac pro, please feel free to chime in and critique this post or provide any other pertinent info. Constructive/instructive criticism or opinions always welcome.

I have the exact same problem with mine. Warranty went out 2 months ago so they want over $800. I'm mad about this because like you say all of these vans heater knobs feel like they are about to bust from day one.
Like you say, this should definitely be a recall!!

 

[Ariojas]

I have a 2015 USA model NV200 that I purchased new. I currently have about 70,000 miles on the van. I live in Florida so lots of heat and humidity throughout the year. Also, I've been driving for 46 years and have owned many different vehicles.


I have always felt that the air conditioner in my van was substandard. It works but I feel it should have worked better. I believe the temperature selector system/cable was defective from the start and here's why. When rotating the temp selector switch from hot to cold or the opposite, there always seemed to be a point about mid travel that had tension. Not quite a sticking point but a noticeable amount of extra tension when rotating the knob. Then one day not long ago, bam, the switch didn't work at all and there was no tension when rotating it back and forth. Unfortunately it was stuck in the heat position. So after a nasty afternoon ride home with the Florida heat and the vents bleeding hot air, I tore into it.


I took off the panel surrounding the ac control assembly and removed the radio so I had more room to work and a better view. The temp control cable had come out of its mounting hole which is on a plastic tab on the back of the rotary knob. The cable runs to the left and goes down behind the panels to the duct work near the floor to the right of the gas pedal. All the temp selector knob does is open or close a door/damper in the ducting. It is a straight mechanical setup.



The cable that had come loose is pretty stiff and has a sharp dogleg in the end of it that is supposed to keep it in place. The cable is fairly substantial and not easily manipulated. That said and factoring in the dogleg bend, I could not get the cable back in the hole and even if I did, whatever defect had been causing the sticking/tension point and ultimately caused the cable to come out of its hole would still be there and I'd likely have the cable come out of place again. Also, to even get the cable back in its correct position, I would have to do more disassembly to get the proper angle to reinstall the cable through the hole in the tab.


So, being hot, tired, and aggravated, I decided to put a bend in the end of the cable with some needlenose pliers to get it back through the hole. After attaching the cable and removing the interior panel next to the gas pedal so I could observe the cable as it actuated the damper, it seemed I had the temp selector working correctly again. (I was wrong!) I put everything back together and my ac wasn't as cold as it should be. Because I never have had my ac serviced and felt it was always substandard, I took my van to my local shop guy. I had him evac the system, refill the refrigerant, and check everything out. He checked for Nissan service bulletins as well. There were no SB's. The ac system was working at an optimal level. I had told him about the temp selector problem and what I had done so he checked the damper. Although it seemed I had a functioning temp switch, when turned all the way to the cool position, the damper was still open about an 1/8" allowing hot air to mix with the cool. As a side note, I had previously washed out the condenser coils with a garden hose just to insure they were dissipating heat properly. This is a good starting point when servicing any ac system and if its a typical residential split system, cleaning the evap coils can make a huge difference in cooling.


The temp selector cable is NOT available as a stand alone replacement part. You have to buy the entire HVAC control assembly which is $350 from Nissan! The other kicker, this part was readily available/in stock from the main Nissan parts warehouse here in Fl. Why??? I speculate that there is a problem Nissan knows about but won't publicly acknowledge or recall because this shouldn't be a normally in stock part and because my van has had this problem since it was new.


I had the mechanic insure that the damper was fully closed and told him I'd check vent temperatures before I make a decision on what to do next as I wanted to see what temps the ac was putting out with a damper verified closed and the ac working at max capacity. I picked the van up, brought along my infrared thermometer and started driving. Holy crap, my ac was colder than it ever had been!! After 3 or 4 minutes I started to check temps at the 4 dash vents. I was getting 30 +/- degrees from every vent reading.


I believe the damper has never fully closed off the duct and there was always a slight hot air bleed into the vent which caused the max cold ac setting to still seem a bit substandard. I am also convinced this is/was a problem in the initial manufacturing process. Without completely tearing the control system apart, I cannot tell what the problem actually is. Possibly some kind of pinching in the cable installation?



So---- I know my temp selector works with my rig job on the cable end but does not work properly and will not close the damper completely, so after closing it all the way manually to get max cooling, I cannot use the heat because it will not fully return to max cool with the cable actuator/temp control and we have plenty of hot weather to come. I can't bring myself to spend $350 to replace the whole hvac assembly plus either paying someone to install it or figuring it out myself so until the weather cools off, I will leave it as is and enjoy a ride that is cooler than it ever has been.


After it cools off, I will revisit the issue and try to either rig a new connection point at the back of the temp selector or possibly even run a whole new cable to a completely different location.Spending a bunch of money is the absolute last option I will consider. Whatever I do, the main thing will be to physically verify that the damper is closing all the way. This is where I screwed up last time. I was hot, tired and dirty at the end of the day and did not inspect it closely enough.



If you suspect you may have a similar problem, here is the quickest way to find out. Get an IR thermometer and first check your vent temps while cruising down the road with the ac set to max. ( I should have done this before anything as this would have given me some valuable info.) Now you have some starting point data. If you are not getting at least +- 35 degrees at your vents, you most likely have a problem and should probably have your ac system checked to verify it is operating up to full capacity. Next, remove the body panel that goes down beside the gas pedal. It is easy to pop off/on and will expose the cable and damper that is almost at floor level. Don't pry off any interior panels with metal tools, screw drivers, etc. as there is a good chance you will damage them. You can pick up a set of plastic pry tools for $10 to $20 at most any auto parts store. Now visually and physically check the damper position. It only takes a small amount of movement to cause a slight gap allowing hot air to affect your cold setting. Manually close the damper so you have max cold ac temps and make a run down the road and measure vent temps again. Also, I checked all my temps when the outside temperature was mid 90's and humidity very high.This obviously isn't a permanent fix. If you find you have the same problem be prepared to spend 5 to 6 hundred bucks to fix it at a shop.



I would like to hear of anybody who has encountered this hvac problem. I just don't think I'm the only one who has this problem. Or am I ?? As far as a permanent repair, I'll be addressing this when what we call winter in Florida actually arrives. I'll shoot for a follow up post then. If you

are an automotive hvac pro, please feel free to chime in and critique this post or provide any other pertinent info. Constructive/instructive criticism or opinions always welcome.

Im going through the same situation on my 2015 Chevy City Express van which has mostly Nissan parts with Chevy badges. I took apart the cover and just pulled the cable with channel locks for heat and pushed in for cold air. Now the dampner wont close because I pulled it too much and its getting cold and I need solutions. **** sucks

 

[Fummins]

I'll try to get one in the shop sometime this week

 

[ACGUY71]

I have a 2015 USA model NV200 that I purchased new. I currently have about 70,000 miles on the van. I live in Florida so lots of heat and humidity throughout the year. Also, I've been driving for 46 years and have owned many different vehicles.


I have always felt that the air conditioner in my van was substandard. It works but I feel it should have worked better. I believe the temperature selector system/cable was defective from the start and here's why. When rotating the temp selector switch from hot to cold or the opposite, there always seemed to be a point about mid travel that had tension. Not quite a sticking point but a noticeable amount of extra tension when rotating the knob. Then one day not long ago, bam, the switch didn't work at all and there was no tension when rotating it back and forth. Unfortunately it was stuck in the heat position. So after a nasty afternoon ride home with the Florida heat and the vents bleeding hot air, I tore into it.


I took off the panel surrounding the ac control assembly and removed the radio so I had more room to work and a better view. The temp control cable had come out of its mounting hole which is on a plastic tab on the back of the rotary knob. The cable runs to the left and goes down behind the panels to the duct work near the floor to the right of the gas pedal. All the temp selector knob does is open or close a door/damper in the ducting. It is a straight mechanical setup.



The cable that had come loose is pretty stiff and has a sharp dogleg in the end of it that is supposed to keep it in place. The cable is fairly substantial and not easily manipulated. That said and factoring in the dogleg bend, I could not get the cable back in the hole and even if I did, whatever defect had been causing the sticking/tension point and ultimately caused the cable to come out of its hole would still be there and I'd likely have the cable come out of place again. Also, to even get the cable back in its correct position, I would have to do more disassembly to get the proper angle to reinstall the cable through the hole in the tab.


So, being hot, tired, and aggravated, I decided to put a bend in the end of the cable with some needlenose pliers to get it back through the hole. After attaching the cable and removing the interior panel next to the gas pedal so I could observe the cable as it actuated the damper, it seemed I had the temp selector working correctly again. (I was wrong!) I put everything back together and my ac wasn't as cold as it should be. Because I never have had my ac serviced and felt it was always substandard, I took my van to my local shop guy. I had him evac the system, refill the refrigerant, and check everything out. He checked for Nissan service bulletins as well. There were no SB's. The ac system was working at an optimal level. I had told him about the temp selector problem and what I had done so he checked the damper. Although it seemed I had a functioning temp switch, when turned all the way to the cool position, the damper was still open about an 1/8" allowing hot air to mix with the cool. As a side note, I had previously washed out the condenser coils with a garden hose just to insure they were dissipating heat properly. This is a good starting point when servicing any ac system and if its a typical residential split system, cleaning the evap coils can make a huge difference in cooling.


The temp selector cable is NOT available as a stand alone replacement part. You have to buy the entire HVAC control assembly which is $350 from Nissan! The other kicker, this part was readily available/in stock from the main Nissan parts warehouse here in Fl. Why??? I speculate that there is a problem Nissan knows about but won't publicly acknowledge or recall because this shouldn't be a normally in stock part and because my van has had this problem since it was new.


I had the mechanic insure that the damper was fully closed and told him I'd check vent temperatures before I make a decision on what to do next as I wanted to see what temps the ac was putting out with a damper verified closed and the ac working at max capacity. I picked the van up, brought along my infrared thermometer and started driving. Holy crap, my ac was colder than it ever had been!! After 3 or 4 minutes I started to check temps at the 4 dash vents. I was getting 30 +/- degrees from every vent reading.


I believe the damper has never fully closed off the duct and there was always a slight hot air bleed into the vent which caused the max cold ac setting to still seem a bit substandard. I am also convinced this is/was a problem in the initial manufacturing process. Without completely tearing the control system apart, I cannot tell what the problem actually is. Possibly some kind of pinching in the cable installation?



So---- I know my temp selector works with my rig job on the cable end but does not work properly and will not close the damper completely, so after closing it all the way manually to get max cooling, I cannot use the heat because it will not fully return to max cool with the cable actuator/temp control and we have plenty of hot weather to come. I can't bring myself to spend $350 to replace the whole hvac assembly plus either paying someone to install it or figuring it out myself so until the weather cools off, I will leave it as is and enjoy a ride that is cooler than it ever has been.


After it cools off, I will revisit the issue and try to either rig a new connection point at the back of the temp selector or possibly even run a whole new cable to a completely different location.Spending a bunch of money is the absolute last option I will consider. Whatever I do, the main thing will be to physically verify that the damper is closing all the way. This is where I screwed up last time. I was hot, tired and dirty at the end of the day and did not inspect it closely enough.



If you suspect you may have a similar problem, here is the quickest way to find out. Get an IR thermometer and first check your vent temps while cruising down the road with the ac set to max. ( I should have done this before anything as this would have given me some valuable info.) Now you have some starting point data. If you are not getting at least +- 35 degrees at your vents, you most likely have a problem and should probably have your ac system checked to verify it is operating up to full capacity. Next, remove the body panel that goes down beside the gas pedal. It is easy to pop off/on and will expose the cable and damper that is almost at floor level. Don't pry off any interior panels with metal tools, screw drivers, etc. as there is a good chance you will damage them. You can pick up a set of plastic pry tools for $10 to $20 at most any auto parts store. Now visually and physically check the damper position. It only takes a small amount of movement to cause a slight gap allowing hot air to affect your cold setting. Manually close the damper so you have max cold ac temps and make a run down the road and measure vent temps again. Also, I checked all my temps when the outside temperature was mid 90's and humidity very high.This obviously isn't a permanent fix. If you find you have the same problem be prepared to spend 5 to 6 hundred bucks to fix it at a shop.



I would like to hear of anybody who has encountered this hvac problem. I just don't think I'm the only one who has this problem. Or am I ?? As far as a permanent repair, I'll be addressing this when what we call winter in Florida actually arrives. I'll shoot for a follow up post then. If you

are an automotive hvac pro, please feel free to chime in and critique this post or provide any other pertinent info. Constructive/instructive criticism or opinions always welcome.

 

[ACGUY71]

NOT AN AUTO PRO.... but 23 yrs in the commercial industry, I'm ok. this nv heater door is the most mickey mouse setup ever. what I ended up doing after a "new"
control breaking a second time in 105,000 miles was to just put a choke cable down on the door. it's a troy built choke cable from amazon. this opens the door for heat "pull" and when you don't want it hot, just push it back in. I did cut the cable to length. mated it with cable locks "also amazon" and fixed this abortion of a nissan mess with 12.00 worth of parts. now, before you judge me, is it rigged? yes, but in my opinion, it was rigged from the factory. how expensive is a **** actuator?? also, there really should not be heat load (radiator fluid) going through the coil when you are running the a/c. I mean cmon.... heat load is heat load. I may put a shut off on the heater hose coming in to the heater core.?? it's california, we get about 1 month of winter here, and 11 months of summer. this little repair is not the best, but hey, I am not spending any money on another control. before I do that, I'll install sojoy seat heaters and call it a day. just my 2 cents.
note, i drilled 1/2" hole under cigarette lighter for straight forward control of the heater damper door. works good, and believe it or not, it's still "stiff" in the center location, just like when the thing was built.....

 

[Central Air]

NOT AN AUTO PRO.... but 23 yrs in the commercial industry, I'm ok. this nv heater door is the most mickey mouse setup ever. what I ended up doing after a "new"
control breaking a second time in 105,000 miles was to just put a choke cable down on the door. it's a troy built choke cable from amazon. this opens the door for heat "pull" and when you don't want it hot, just push it back in. I did cut the cable to length. mated it with cable locks "also amazon" and fixed this abortion of a nissan mess with 12.00 worth of parts. now, before you judge me, is it rigged? yes, but in my opinion, it was rigged from the factory. how expensive is a **** actuator?? also, there really should not be heat load (radiator fluid) going through the coil when you are running the a/c. I mean cmon.... heat load is heat load. I may put a shut off on the heater hose coming in to the heater core.?? it's california, we get about 1 month of winter here, and 11 months of summer. this little repair is not the best, but hey, I am not spending any money on another control. before I do that, I'll install sojoy seat heaters and call it a day. just my 2 cents.
note, i drilled 1/2" hole under cigarette lighter for straight forward control of the heater damper door. works good, and believe it or not, it's still "stiff" in the center location, just like when the thing was built.....

 

[Central Air]

I would have to agree 👍 I’m having the same problem with my 2015 NV 200 it is cheaply made and not practical. Manufacture should’ve recalled It right from the start years ago.
They should’ve Engineer it with electronic controls instead.Such a pain in the ass problem to fix Idiots.

 

[Central Air]

Folks come to find out The hot and cold Control dial Knob to the right on your HVAC control panel is not communicating properly with the hot and cold Manual valve actuator driven by a stupid manual cable down below.
So next to gas pedal Center consul Beneath the dashboard right panel At the floor level that you can remove and with a flat screwdriver push down from the left side of the black plastic sprocket which is adjacent to a Smaller White Plastic gear attached to the left of it until it stops & you’ll instantly start getting ice cold air conditioning. That’s If your AC has potential and it works properly & vice versa for heating mode.
I’ll try to download some images so you’ll see what I’m talking about. Forget the cold and hot dial knob up in the control panel just do it as I described above and you’ll get solutions for either mode Until you’re able to fix this Problem and be able to use your control dial knob on your dashboard With ease.

Extra Improvement info:
Folks don’t forget to remove and clean or replace your cabin filter besides you need to inspect and clean your evap coil if necessary from any debris buildup for Much better airflow and efficiency. Iam an HVAC tech and I understand how these things work when Air filters and coils are thoroughly cleaned which mine was in a terrible shape now I get ice cold Max air with plenty of air sweeping through the air vents. Here in wild West crazy Arizona Deset triple digit constant heat 😱 cant do without good AC System Blowing at you.
Give it a try 🤞

 

[Fummins]

I have had a 2016 and a 2017 with this exact same problem. With all the linkages disconnected the blend door gear/shaft has a stiff spot about dead center and seems to be harder to move to the hot position than the cold. The end of the blend door(shaft/gear) turns relatively easy by hand with just a slight hard spot in the center.

I've been manually swapping these things between hot and cold and now the boss wants it fixed properly to keep the drivers happy. We only have a few months of nice(hot) weather then the rest is cool enough that heat is a nice thing.

I want to go the choke cable route but I don't think the boss would go for that quite yet.

I wonder why Nissan used a twisted multi-strand cable instead of a solid one that'd probably be more suitable for a push/pull application?

We have some Mitsubishi cars that use solid cable controls, I may try to rob a cable from my parts stash and try one an Nv200.

Edit: I just found this video

ANOTHER EDIT: This video doesn't explain the problem that I'm seeing. The gears are perfectly fine. The issue is is dirt and junk built up inside the actual box.

 

[OakleyJac]

I have had a 2016 and a 2017 with this exact same problem. With all the linkages disconnected the blend door gear/shaft has a stiff spot about dead center and seems to be harder to move to the hot position than the cold. The end of the blend door(shaft/gear) turns relatively easy by hand with just a slight hard spot in the center.

I've been manually swapping these things between hot and cold and now the boss wants it fixed properly to keep the drivers happy. We only have a few months of nice(hot) weather then the rest is cool enough that heat is a nice thing.

I want to go the choke cable route but I don't think the boss would go for that quite yet.

I wonder why Nissan used a twisted multi-strand cable instead of a solid one that'd probably be more suitable for a push/pull application?

We have some Mitsubishi cars that use solid cable controls, I may try to rob a cable from my parts stash and try one an Nv200.

Edit: I just found this video

Great idea Fummins!! Any way you can update when you’ve tried the rod. I’m faced with the same issue on my 2017 …ugh

 

[Fummins]

I looked at the one van yesterday. It's been parked until this issue is resolved(gong show politics at work). I came to the conclusion that the flapper/door inside the heater box is the issue.
I looked at a 2015 (Previously thought it was a 2016) with this problem. When I turn the white gear(shaft) that controls the hot/cold on the driver's side of the heater box with the lever that joins the cable to the flapper removed, it has some resistance while turning it both directions. I pulled up a 2018 Nv200 and did the same test. The gear has slight resistance in one direction(the way the cable would be pulling) and zero resistance when let go, in fact the gear(/flapper/blend door) wanted to spin back the opposite direction all on it's own.

My money is something is broken or damaged inside the heater box requiring a replacement. I looked on a Nissan parts site and they only seem to sell the heater box as a complete assembly. So my work is gonna have to either pay me to replace 2 heater boxes on two of these vans or jerry rig a choke cable in there like Central Air did.

 

[Fummins]

I finally started tearing apart this van. It took quite a few hours to get the dash out. Whoever designed this thing never considered the fact that things break and the dash may have to be removed at some time.

It appears as though the entire dash and heater box are designed to be removed together. I wish I had known that ahead of time. Instead, I tore into it blind, removing 932 screws that hold the dash cover to the steel frame, then more screws holding parts of the heater box to the frame and dash cover. I was able(kinda forced to) leave the steering column bolted to the dash frame. Since I decided to remove the dash and leave the heater box in place(for the time being) I had to undo a few pita connectors from the heater box. There is one plug that's tucked between the heater box and the firewall. I fought with it for a while then ended up just cutting the wires. I'll fix them later... Oh, and in order to remove the dash structure, I had to remove the driver's door. There is one bolt that is impossible to get to otherwise that bolts from the door pillar into the side of the dash. There are 2 more bolts hidden behind the black trim between the fender and the little window above the fender. Only on the driver's side, the passenger side only has 2 bolts that can be removed from the inside of the dash(pointing forwards).

I'll add some pics later.

I can finally see the heater box. I'm going to have to remove it completely in order to inspect the hot/cold flapper that's the actual problem. I should have it out tomorrow sometime. I'm waiting for an ac tech to come by and evacuate the system.

 

[Fummins]

I got the heater/ac/hvac box out of this van finally. I don't see anything obviously worn or broken. The gear that is binding up is connected to a shaft that I thought was directly connected to the flapper. It's not. Instead, it's just a shaft with two gears on each end inside the heater box. The flapper itself slides along a grove in the box and has teeth along the two edges that mesh with the shaft(that is difficult to turn).
The inside of this heater box is filthy. Full of dirt, sand, and who knows what else. There was not a cabin air filter in this thing. I don't recall if I removed it at some point or if it just never came with one from new? I'm thinking the latter.
I'm gonna end up blowing and trying to clean this thing out as best I can, lube up the track where the door/flapper moves and see if I can get it to slide on it's own like the other one I tested.

Suppossedly Nissan is claiming the heater box is different for this 2015 than it is for other years. And it's an obosolete part that they have no idea if they'll ever sell us one. I call bs and would bet money a box from a newer model would fit just fine. It's a heater box....EDIT:turns out there was a communication error between super chief and the dealer. They were somehow looking up a box for who knows what vehicle, the 2015 IS in fact the same as a 2017.

I'll try to post some pics later along with a video I took before tearing into this thing that shows how that shaft/gear/flapper should be functioning compared to this one that sticks and messes up the heater control cable.

 

[ChevyNV200]

Good on you @Fummins for still working on these vans and now moderating this forum!
I don't think you moved from Alberta to the UK, did you?!!

It's been years since our company dumped the NV200's and my field and fleet mgmnt days are ancient history.
I'm now a part time, "work" at home, "manager/administrator/report and email writer" for the company!

After the failed NV200 experiment, our company went back to Dodge Caravans and then to the much larger mid-size Ford Transits.
Going to much larger Ford Transit vans made zero sense but not my concern.

I don't see many NV200's around Calgary anymore. Most of the ones I see are older beat up trashed ones.
I still laugh when I see various sized tires on the older ones!
I remember all the time I spent monkeying around with tires on my company NV200 years ago...

I still wrench in my garage but on Dodge/Ram Cummins and Duramax's, mostly ECM programming.

 

[Fummins]

Good on you @Fummins for still working on these vans and now moderating this forum!
I don't think you moved from Alberta to the UK, did you?!!

It's been years since our company dumped the NV200's and my field and fleet mgmnt days are ancient history.
I'm now a part time, "work" at home, "manager/administrator/report and email writer" for the company!

After the failed NV200 experiment, our company went back to Dodge Caravans and then to the much larger mid-size Ford Transits.
Going to much larger Ford Transit vans made zero sense but not my concern.

I don't see many NV200's around Calgary anymore. Most of the ones I see are older beat up trashed ones.
I still laugh when I see various sized tires on the older ones!
I remember all the time I spent monkeying around with tires on my company NV200 years ago...

I still wrench in my garage but on Dodge/Ram Cummins and Duramax's, mostly ECM programming.

No I don’t know how that happened. I got asked to mod. I have no idea what I’m doing lol

I’m still in Edmonton maintaining a fleet of almost 60 by myself. Since they quit selling the Nv200’s work is thinking of getting the Ferd transit connect instead. But rumor is those are going to be extinct soon. I’m not a ford fan.
I don’t know if I’ll be at the same company a year from now. I like the job, hate the bs that goes with it lately.

I do some work at home too. But I don’t charge enough to make it worthwhile. I haven’t worked on many diesels other than the ones I own(ed). I have an old greasy 05 6spd dodge dually currently.

 

[Fummins]

Here’s some pics

 

[Fummins]

Hey guys, Here is a quick solution to the problem if your temperature selector system/cable is defective on your Nissan NV200 or Chevy City Express. Nissan definitely should do recall and fix the issue

I posted this video back in July and that is not the problem that I'm seeing.

The gears on the outside of the heater housing are fine on the two van's that I've been dealing with for the last year or so. That might be a problem for some but I don't believe that's the actual cause of the problem. It's more of a side effect that happens once the blend door starts to stiffen up.
I've almost got this one that I've been posting about back together. I've already tested it and it works great as of now. One thing I should note is this van I'm fixing did not have a cabin filter in it so I'm thinking that was a major factor. Also the evaporator core is rotting out so I replaced that while I had it all torn apart. Cheap and plentiful from Rock Auto, basically unattainable locally...

 

[joeydillon.45]

I have been dealing with this same issue. I was replacing my control similar to the "choke" cable setup, but am realizing you could also install a straight shaft down to the white lever that the cable connects to, with a little modification. And do the push pull. But mine is so stiff in the center, I don't think the plastic lever is going to continue to hold. I have found though, that if I twist the gear that the goes into the heater core, with the black plastic gear/lever off, and keep it centered while I twist it, the stiffness is almost gone. It is when the black lever/gear prys against it to turn it that it pushes it off center as it tries to spin it, (worn bushing or just crap design), and this causes serious drag and resistance. It needs like a couple idler gears on the opposite sides of the black gear/lever to hold it centered and this would sure help. I am contemplating just doing a shaft straight off it to the kick panel (just to the right of the gas pedal). I could reach down and twist it like a wing nut with equal pressure on on both sides as I twist instead of a lever prying on just one side. Hope that all made sense.