Smart 451 HVAC Blower Replacement DIY How To

In today's episode we are looking at removing the #HVAC #blower #motor from a #smart #451 and taking it apart to attempt a #repair. Unfortunately the #DIY repair didn't work, so we end up #replacing the blower.
0:00 Intro
0:18 Descriptions of Issue
0:59 Blower Location / Removal
2:45 Repair
4:30 Test / Replacement
5:00 Extra Re/Re Instructions

[@monicahenderson5854]

My nephew was able to follow your directions and clean my old blower up with some kind of metal brush and a drill. I'd already bought the new blower from Amazon ( & forgot to send it back). His handy work lasted almost a year. Since I have a new one, I'm not even gonna futs around with trying to refurbish again. Wish me luck replacing it on my own.

[@PBGarage]

Awesome! Love to hear that the video helped you get it done once (and hopefully again).

[@benjaminniemczyk]

Excellent! The best part is the end when we see the assembly in all its glory. Super instructive!

[@PBGarage]

Glad it was helpful!

[@SaibaKeiosu]

i just found a brand new spare for less than a hundred bucks after Mercedes told me the whole job was going to be +300 thanks brother!

[@PBGarage]

Nice! Glad to be of help!

[@otonielflores3310]

Great video ....thanks.....just saved me 400$ .....and yes i clean the contacts and work perfectly again....had to cleaned it twice! ...thanks

[@PBGarage]

Awesome glad to hear it!

[@singlendhot8628]

Subscribed because of the 451 DIY videos. There's literally no one else who does these videos for the 451 so well done!

[@PBGarage]

Thanks for the feedback! Going to keep making these as long as I have 451s and I don’t plan on getting rid of them anytime soon.

[@singlendhot8628]

@@PBGarage Awesome! I'll spread the word!

[@ChrisBrown-ux8jn]

Traditionally the motor shaft with the commutator (the bit you cleaned with the little wire brush) can be be removed completely. Then placed in a lathe and the ridges gently turned down, we are only talking about 0.2mm. The brushes can usually easily take up the extra space. From your video the blackness of the copper commutator is usually because of faulty or worn brushes that are arcing to the commutator rather than smoothing running round it.

[@PBGarage]

I figure there’s probably other ways to tackle it but that’s as deep as I felt like going on it. Luckily replacements are still affordable.

[@joehendershott7255]

Thanks for this. Finally something that is easy to resolve on the Smart.

[@PBGarage]

I know, right!

[@PBGarage]

I was sitting there like “it can’t possibly be just this simple”

[@Advokitt]

Saved me a lot of trouble thank you for doing this video.

[@PBGarage]

Happy to help! It’s a pretty easy job when you know how to do it for sure. Way easier than I expected.

[@bquattrog]

A valiant effort trying to save that old motor, good video covering various options to fix this issue. I can't believe how easy that blower is to remove / install!

[@PBGarage]

So easy! Wish all cars were so simple!

[@spyder2001]

thanks for the video gave me a good idea of what to do! Can i just add that If you are in a right hand drive car it is not as straight forward. the wiring harness runs in such a way that there is not enough room to get it out. You need to follow the steps of removing the connector, then a small turn to the left to remove the motor - however: You also need to remove the 2 torx screws holding the fuse panel. shift the blower motor all the way left push the fuse panel as far right as you can pull the blower motor through the gap - takes some wiggling. To reinstall push the fuse panel out the way push the blower motor up into the gap - theres loads of room under the glovebox - then over the wiring then secure the fuse panel back to its bracket jiggle the motor back into the slot and turn it to the right till its secured push in the connector

[@PBGarage]

That’s great info thanks!

[@redwertens2283]

Big ups from Texas, brother

[@PBGarage]

Thanks man!

[@lucastoledo6719]

Please. Use google translator. "Muchas gracias por la ayuda. Me sirvio muchisimo este video. Ayer me dejo de funcionar el fan o blower y gracias a tu video me anime a resolverlo. Muchas gracias.

[@PBGarage]

Glad you fixed it!

[@user-qz3cc9ui3h]

Very helpful, thanks!

[@PBGarage]

Happy to help!

[@noclips.]

In my 2008 left hand drive, it was located on the driver's side above the accelerator. Everything else was the same. A good cleaning seems to have done the trick for now. Thanks for the clear and concise video!

[@PBGarage]

Thanks for the feedback!

[@osbornephoto1955]

Thanks for the video.

[@PBGarage]

Thanks for watching!

[@RaineeBC]

Thanks. I'm going to take mine out this weekend and either fix it, or replace it myself. I've also gotta replace the headlamp harness but I have to remove the housing to get to it I think. I learn as I go, thanks to videos like this. So thank you 😊

[@PBGarage]

How come you have to replace the headlight harness?

[@RaineeBC]

@@PBGarage it fried and melted when the bulb blew.

[@spenceraddeman9145]

Thank you

[@PBGarage]

Glad to be of some help!

[@lucastoledo6719]

Greetins from Argentina

[@PBGarage]

Hello from Canada!

[@booneylander]

The smart car is perfect for winter now, it’s hot, and blows!!! Great for those chilly nights! 😂

[@PBGarage]

Yeah!

[@jackwilliams9114]

I cleaned my blower motor. It worked for maybe a month then stopped working in the hottest part of the summer. I put a new one in. Even one day in the hot Texas summer was one day too many.

[@PBGarage]

Oh I bet under that hot sun.

[@alexx.c]

I was able to just clean mine out a few years ago. The grooves weren’t as deep as yours and the brushes were still making contact. Video up on my channel. They can be cleaned

[@PBGarage]

Nice!

[@tonimarine6270]

Thank you for the video!! I’ve replaced my blower motor, resistor and all 3 relays in the fuse box, but my blower motor still is not working. Fuses and grounds are good. Any ideas of something I may have missed?

[@PBGarage]

I would start tracing back the power feeds and see where the issue is. Check voltage at the motor. If no power, check at the resistor connections, dash switch, relays, fuses. Somewhere you’re going to find when the power “stops” and that will tell you your issue.

[@Electrowave]

My blower works intermittently at the moment, I didn't realise it's so easy to remove! I've read that the brushes can be changed/replaced, does that look possible?

[@PBGarage]

Definitely looks possible, and I’ve read of people doing it. I didn’t have any extra brushes for it. A cheap replacement blower is 80CAD on Rockauto so if this one lets go I would be tempted to just replace the whole thing for new anyway.

[@Zeezu70]

@pbgarage I'm looking for the wiring connector to the blower motor - I think a mechanic broke it and decided to "fix" it with two individual female connectors without informing me. The motor worked for a time, then intermittently, then quit - But I don't trust the wiring "fix" and would like to connect the proper wiring connector to the blower. Do you (or anyone) know where I can source that connector? Thanks! PS. I bench tested the blower by connecting it to a battery and it ran fine (so did my spare blower) but neither blower works when installed.

[@PBGarage]

Hey saw your email thanks for getting hold of us hope you can get hold of that connector!

[@MrMr123]

How do you depin the Fuel Pump Harness? Any idea, I put a new harness in and to an infrared camera on it and the ground was like 12º hotter than the (+)... I'm thinking the factory crimp on the connector is loose so I want to put new pins into the harness

[@PBGarage]

That’s a tricky one, I’ve never actually had a fuel pump out on a 451.

[@PBGarage]

Sounds like some other equipment could be grounded through that same pin though. Might be worth checking the condition of the other chassis grounds specifically on the rear subframe and the engine.

[@The-BCC]

Nice video write up. I’m currently as to how all the air flows through everything? Can you make a video showing that since you have the whole air system sitting there please? When the fan is on full blaster it gets quite noisy so I’ve that about getting in there and seeing if there can be some insulation/sound deadening material could be used on areas to lessen all the rackety noise. Lol

[@PBGarage]

The whole setup is quite small and tight, I don’t think you’d be able to insulate anything and still have it fit under the dash, or without severely limiting air flow. Might be easier to upgrade the stereo so you drown it out lol

[@paulbourque6681]

Great video! I need to replace the Blower Motor Resistor in my Smart 450, do you know where the blower resistor is located? thx!

[@PBGarage]

Shoot I’m not sure but I’ve got a 450 kicking around, I’ll have a peek.

[@paulbourque6681]

I found it, under the drivers dashboard, right by the blower motor.@@PBGarage

[@PBGarage]

@paulbourque6681 nice! Noted for future!

[@alihanpakkan]

Harika bu sayede arabamı tamir edebildim 🤌🏼

[@PBGarage]

Great!

[@csmoothsk8ter17]

I got the plug out but the assembly is tight, can't turn it. Guess I need to go find a male neighbor with some muscles to turn it and pull it out😢

[@PBGarage]

Mine was definitely in there pretty tight too.

[@AriannaGi]

That's how I am feeling about my transmission fluid plug 😭

[@PBGarage]

Get some heat on it if you can!

[@AriannaGi]

My issue is I can't turn it back in 😅🤣

[@ImTrimax]

Im from the UK and i couldn't see the blower on either side on my 2008 Smart Brabus 451 am I missing something here?

[@PBGarage]

I’m not familiar with RHD 451s but I can’t imagine they’d put it somewhere drastically different, is it possible they have some cladding in the passenger footwell covering where the blower is?

[@ImTrimax]

@@PBGarage It was hidden behind the main wiring harness on the passenger side. It's alot harder to get to and requires pulling out the passenger carpet and foam underneath. Worth noting for anyone who is watching from the UK!

[@JohnSmith-hr6wr]

I had my blower and ac on full for 10 mins and recirculating on to run a an ac cleaning spray. When it finished motor made a noise but no air blowing. Left things to cool down and I have removed the blower assembly (tricky as RHD). Low and behold, no turbine ! Just the LHS disk attached to the motor. This would be explain motor noise but no air. I cant feel anything inside the cavity, but spotted hat appears to be a blade in the footwell. Any ideas on how to get right into the airflow system?

[@JohnSmith-hr6wr]

(Update) I removed the cabin air filter and extracted the broken fan blades.

[@wilbobagins]

RHD drive cars are a nightmare for this job, the main forward wiring harness goes through the bulkhead right in front of the motor and severly restricts access