I've developed a subtle "baseball card in spokes" sound from my A/C blower fan. I want to remove the blower to inspect for debris or loose parts, but the way its spelled out in the service manual is to evacuate the refrigerant and then disconnect the A/C lines as the evaporator is part of the blower assembly. Can I inspect/repair/replace just the blower motor without having to deal with A/C lines/evaporator/refrigerant?

 

Can't you just pull the fan's fuse or a connector and check for loss of fan noise?

 

The sound is coming from the dash on the passenger side, and it goes away when the fan is turned off with the A/C controls so I'm pretty sure the problem is there.

 

So it's the blower motor in the dash, not the fan cooling the A/C condenser? Have you replaced the cabin filter? Maybe, a leaf or paper or something got stuck in the area where the filter lies?

 

I can't remember if it was the S or another of our cars, but on one when you remove the cabin air filter (under the exterior dash cowling) you could see down to the blower. There's a chance you can just pull that filter out and reach down there to clear whatever debris got inside, which is the most likely cause.

 

Yes you can pop the fan motor right out and check for debris.

Improperly latched cabin filter rearward mounting tab is most likely the cause for debris entry.