I agree that the passenger side blend actuator is by far the easiest of the three. You don't even need to remove the glove box. Just pull down on the back of the box when opening it to release the two tabs at the top back, and allow it to swing all the way down toward the floor. After you do that, the blend actuator on the passenger side is readily accessible.

IMO, it's almost a toss-up between the other two as to which is the bigger PITA (both are hell and replacing either will result in multiple abrasions and lacerations). But I think I prefer replacing the recirc actuator way over by the right A-pillar than the left side blend actuator, because I'm small and have small hands.

 

Durn little people. LOL If your hands are small enough I can see how the recirc would be easier.

I have big hands so the LH side blend actuator was easier. I've done both and they both had me speaking furrin language.

 

^ Some guy over on the Taurus forum researched and sourced some brass/metal gears from Hobby Lobby or the likes and rebuilt his bda's.

 

Hmm. I wonder if those actuators use the same gear train. The actuators in my 2001 Mustang are different and use a 3-wire connection, but I've never looked inside one. Those are 20 years old and still working fine.

In any event, so far, so good on the gears from BlendDoor.com, but they haven't been in service long enough to comment on longevity.

 

^ In my experience, the reset/fuse trick has only worked for the mode (vent) actuator.

 

The passenger side mode and blend actuators are fairly easy to access through the empty glovebox hole. Just pull the glovebox out and put it in the back seat to do these.
The Driver side is not awful but you have to take the knee panel off the bottom of the dash.
Recirc is a colossal PITA. If you don't need recirc just set the door and unplug the drive motor.

 

My first replacements were AC Delco. After they went south I used Dorman. It’s been about 6 months and that’s about a month longer than the AC Delco lasted on mine. I think it’s blind luck if any of them last very long.

 

I am so glad I have so far been able to get by with the reset/fuse trick and just dealing with the occasional hvac weirdness. Tried once to replace an actuator and ended up giving up as my 6 foot 4 inch self is very tough to cram under the passenger dash. With my car being 5 years old now, I expect my luck with the actuators to run out any day now though.

 

I'm hearing the things turn and grind it seems now a days. I guess it's just a matter of time before it happens.

 

I wish I had known earlier about the rebuild. I’ve replaced the passenger side twice, the driver side once and the mode actuator once. My car is a 2012 with 156,000 mi so I guess that isn’t too bad. I think I’ll order the rebuild kit ahead of the next failure. They’re all a PITA in my opinion.

 

Quick question. I have a 2018 and had a 2017. Both do/did a crappy job of recirculating the air in the cabin and not letting outside air/odors in. Is what is described in this thread a fix for my problem? Thanks in advance.

 

If the cabin filter in your Impala is the same as mine, the GM replacement is a paper-only filter. As such, it's not really designed to scrub odors, just particulates. However, there are other brands available that incorporate activated charcoal and/or baking soda layers, which will help in minimizing odors. You might try one of those.

 

I had to replace the recirc actuator on the 2011 Impala I used to have. The driver side one was going out when the car got hit and totaled by a drunk driver and thus was spared the pain of trying to replace that one. Replacement actuators were pretty cheap on eBay. I think I paid like $8 or $10 for one with free shipping.

 

I had 2 replaced My mechanic only charged me 40 $ each I bought GM PARTS

 

They all do dual control is worthless money grabber my old 2007 single control worked better I’m waiting for # 3 under steering column area to go hardest one to fix

 

2009 impala LT

 

I bought the AC Delco actuators from RockAuto for my 2011 LT. I haven't had any issues with them and I installed them a couple of years ago. I keep hearing people have issues even after replacing the actuators but I've been finding out that they buy the cheap aftermarket actuators that are around $10 which don't last.

 

Good info on actuators...thank you!