Temp Control Door

[LawrenceJr03]

1997 Lincoln Town Car, I have a weird clicking sound in the dash behind the radio. It has affected my heat and Air Conditioning. Even when I turn the control to Off, it stays on, clicking sounds like a plastic door opening and closing. Might be Temp Control, or Temp Control Door ?????? Where is it, and how to get to it. Hate to year the dash apart and find the problem isn't there. Any help appreciated. Thank you !

[action]

Likely it is a gear driven air door motor.

You might turn on the system and shift between defrost and floor while blower is on high. If the air changes direction as commanded, then change temp from cold with AC to hot with hear.

There is at least one door motor in that HVAC system and is controlled electronically. However the motor inside engages a plastic gear. (actually a couple of plastic gears) Rather common for a gear to strip and the motor is on a mission to change the position of the door. Earlier motors were not that good and had a higher failure rate.
Some are easier to get to than others. (via glove) You tube can be your friend for finding a vid on how to RnR. Or get a shop manual.
My 06 Navigator has at least 3. Two in front and one in the rear. I replaced the rear one a couple of months ago. About $20 for the part and spent 45 minutes doing it.

First you want to diagnose the situation before getting invested in parts replacement.

Action

[LithiumCobalt]

It’s the blend door actuator. A PITA to repair. Replace with a Motorcraft part only. The generic junk will not last as long and you’ll have to replace it again. Over at LincolnsOnline, they have a tech section with a couple of write-ups on how to replace the part at home. It looks scarier than it is. I did my first one back in 2008 on one of my 96’s and it took me about four hours start to finish. Not particularly hard, just time consuming. If you have to pay someone else to do it, expect to fork out several hundred dollars for labor.