Pieces of a foam blowing from the air vents
 

'01 986. I have pieces of disintegrating dark gray foam insulation blowing from my dash air vents. Where is it coming from and what should I do about it?

It is coming off of the airbox doors behind the center of the dash. It's a common issue and if you do a search on this forum you'll find lots of posts and instructions on the repair. Its not hard to fix.

Check out the post from Patssle on 11-9-2018 the instructions are in there.
Or the post on 12-8-2019 from 78F350

Whatever you do: Do not drive the car until every last bit of foam has been removed. If the foam makes it into the intake, you're done.

Do the repair, and then drive it like you stole it.

Drive it and ignore it. My 98 has been shooting tiny foam at me for years...lol. I carry a small tweezers in the arm rest for those bits that get caught by the plastic vent louvers. I'm sure no damage can be done. There's no way the foam could make its way to the intake. As others have said, there are threads to read IF you want to take things apart and make it a DIY project....but for me and my 98' w/87,000 miles a tiny piece flying out is to be ignored.....DRIVE ON!!

When the foam is gone completely (like mine was), your heat doesnt work too well or at all.

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Same with A/C, you pretty much end up getting mostly unheated/uncooled outside air. Or combined heated & cooled air at the same time without the ability to control the blend.

I'm pretty sure Starter was being more than a bit sarcastic there. ;)

I find it absolutely disgusting that someone could have a known deficiency with their 986 and not only flaunt the fact that they are doing nothing about it, but also encourage others to do so. Shame on you Rob175. Shame on you.
:ah:

Actually the foam that is blowing out is so thin it resembles cellophane not foam since there is no thickness to it. Perhaps it's the first layer of clear that covers the foam itself?? Perhaps others who have done the fix can tell me. Honestly it looks more like clear cellophane very translucent in fact almost transparent. BTW.......heater and AC work perfectly blowing very hot and very cold when needed over the last 15 years of ownership. Obviously, it's always best to "fix" any and all issues....but I wait till I have to on items that don't affect much. (....and since mine is a "summer driver" I seldom use either heat or AC.......just top down fun.)

I'd get in there and get it sorted. John (78F350) has a good trick to make it easier to get too and fix, from the radio compartment. For some reason I can't find the thread/reference but I'm sure he'll let us know soon. Not to go all apocalyptic on ya but I can't imagine for a minute that breathing those chemically made micro-size particles floating around in that small cabin is a good thing for your well being. Consider fixing this soon if this is freely blowing out of the system.

Oh great, I'm about to go for a 400 mile drive in one of my '99s that I've been meaning to fix for about a year now. I'm going to have to wear my 3M painting mask for the whole trip.

Just messing with you Rob, but it's not that hard to fix.
Start at Post #57 when you're ready: http://986forum.com/forums/performance-technical-chat/42802-interior-vent-debris-2.html

:cheers:

Mine blows foam from time to time, but I havent fixed it yet. I found just reducing the fan speed to no more than 2 or 3 not using the auto setting keeps it from blowing bits. My heating and air still works and the cabin is small so dont really need high speed air.

Perhaps I gave some the impression that tiny bits come flying out "regularly" ...they don't. Possibly because as a summer driver with the top down 95% of the time I seldom adjust the fan speed any higher than the second mark up from the bottom. IOver a summer I might have 3-5 tiny bits either caught by the plastic vents of laying on the floor mats.........so to me, it's no big deal.

Mine too. When I loose the function I will fix it, and replace my double din receiver while I’m in there. Just not motivated to tackle that one just yet.

So here is an 'over-thinking it a bit' question that comes to mind. If we do the radio access hack to repair our blend doors with tape, are we obligated to disclose this non OEM hack/repair when we sell our vehicles? :eek: It won't show up on a Carfax report or during a proper PPI. You know how particular Porsche owners can be.

Of course, advertise it with "Upgraded Blend Doors". Anyone who hasn't done this or the original 'Meir fix' has a lesser car.
;)

I have successfully fixed this on 2 cars, one this past weekend while swapping out a heater core for a friend. Minus the prep work to R&R the heater core, Repairing the flap door took less than an hour.

I saw this method online years ago and it works well. While the heater core is out, you can clearly see the flap door and all the foam bits just waiting to blow through your vents, easily removed by hand or with a shop vac.

If you follow the heater flap door to it’s top pivot point you will a circular area that houses a plastic bushing connector the flap door. Carefully cut the top off as close to the top as you can. I used a short hacksaw blade and a strong utility knife. Be careful! You can then pull the bushing from the top releasing said flap door after the next step.

Move into the cabin and pull the foam cover down from under the dash on the passengers side. Towards the center console you will see the actuator that opens and closes the flap. It’s easy to see as it has a pink actuator arm. Now there are a couple of ways to handle this. You can remove the actuator or separated the joints and arms. You’ll understand when you see it. At the of the arm is where the lower pivot bushing is. No need to remove the small bolt, just wiggle it down and it will come out.

Go back to the top by the heater core and pull out the top bushing. The flap door can then be pulled through the area where the heater core sits.

I wrapped the flap door on each side in thin but strong aluminum duct tape with a continuous piece trimming as necessary.

Reassembly is the reverse. This is where it can get a little tedious. You have to align the flap and the bushings. An extra set of hands is helpful, but I managed on my own. Put the top one in first then the bottom. Button everything back up.

The heater is nice and toasty. Made a huge difference.

I don’t have too many pics as I just didn’t think of it, but it’s not too difficult.

How long should I plan for this behind- the- radio approach to take me?

Im trying to weight the cost/ benefit.

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You'll fret about it longer than it will take! All in all, I'd say less than an hour, including R/R of the radio.

I used an oscillating tool to cut the flap and a decent quality duct tape to cover the flaps. The tape takes a little playing with to get it in place. I cut multiple pieces for each flap. There may be a better choice for covering material but doing any of them will be a huge improvement in heater performance.

I also used the same duct tape to reseal the flap I'd initially cut. I done this procedure in a 986 and 996 and appreciate the original post that let us all in on the secret!

Disclaimer: I live in NW FL...our winters are mild, yet we do need heat in our cars off and on for a few months. I can't say for sure the heater is effective as it was when new, or repaired by other methods. I can say it sure is good enough for temperatures down to freezing.

For those that have done the flap from the radio access, what about using an automotive panel adhesive to reseal the housing? The problem with duct tape is it degrades over time as well. Same issue with using duct tape on the flap itself. Particularly with heat. Would there be a better more permanent solution?