# 2019 Qashqai heat/ac fan fluctuates



## tracy1958ross (6 mo ago)

I have a 2019 Qashqai and when the AC/heater fan is on it starts out blowing well at basically any setting as soon as you start the car. After approximately 1 minutes it slows right down to nothing and even fluctuates in the amount it blows no matter what the setting is. You can feel the cold air coming from the vents with your hand by them but when you turn the dial it doesn't increase the fan speed. Will a faulty fan blower relay switch cause it to work intermittently like this? Any idea what we should be looking at? It only has 27000 km and is just off the 3 year warranty by 1 1/2 months.


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## VStar650CL (Nov 12, 2020)

If it's an Auto system then it sounds like a bad VBC (blower resistor). The Rogues and Qashqais with Auto systems have a 2-stage VBC, and the behavior you're seeing sounds like the low-range FET works but the high-range FET is blown.

Since you're only just past warranty, you might want to approach the dealer about a "goodwill" repair where Nissan covers some or all of the bill. Most commonly they'll either split the bill with you or buy the part and you cover the labor. For obvious reasons Service Managers prefer the latter, but if you've been a regular service customer, there's a good chance the SM will recommend 100% to Nissan. With relatively inexpensive items, the FOM will generally authorize whatever the SM recommends.


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## VStar650CL (Nov 12, 2020)

Is it an Auto system, or Manual? What the problem could be depends a lot on that. If it's Auto, there's a good chance your problem is the same as the OP's. The 2-stage VBC's can do really weird stuff when the one of the driver FET's inside starts to go bad and overheat but hasn't yet failed completely. If the problem is the Blower Relay, you can diagnose it very easily with a voltmeter or test lamp. The relay is upstream from the two blower fuses in the fusebox, so if the relay has high resistance it will show up as low voltage (or a dim test lamp) when checked at the fuses. The relay is on the back of the fusebox and kind of a PITA to access, you need to pop the lower dash panel just to see it.


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## tracy1958ross (6 mo ago)

VStar650CL said:


> If it's an Auto system then it sounds like a bad VBC (blower resistor). The Rogues and Qashqais with Auto systems have a 2-stage VBC, and the behavior you're seeing sounds like the low-range FET works but the high-range FET is blown.
> 
> Since you're only just past warranty, you might want to approach the dealer about a "goodwill" repair where Nissan covers some or all of the bill. Most commonly they'll either split the bill with you or buy the part and you cover the labor. For obvious reasons Service Managers prefer the latter, but if you've been a regular service customer, there's a good chance the SM will recommend 100% to Nissan. With relatively inexpensive items, the FOM will generally authorize whatever the SM recommends.


Took it in this week and the dealer did a diagnostic free of charge. Blower resistor needs replacing but is on back order. They are submitting a goodwill claim in to Nissan and I hope to hear back from them at some point. Thanks for your advice!!


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## VStar650CL (Nov 12, 2020)

tracy1958ross said:


> Took it in this week and the dealer did a diagnostic free of charge. Blower resistor needs replacing but is on back order. They are submitting a goodwill claim in to Nissan and I hope to hear back from them at some point. Thanks for your advice!!


You're most welcome, happy to help.


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## Joseph_David_2312 (4 mo ago)

With your palm near the vents, you can feel chilly air coming from them, but turning the dial does not raise the fan speed.


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