got the unit out, taking a quick break to eat. I haven't seen much mentioned of those various bastard white clamps previously so let me just say...those came straight from the inner rings of Hades. I can't recall being more overwhelming irritated with an inanimate object before in my life.

 

Great DIY, saved me money and was hella easy to do thanks to the walk through. Thanks!

 

Just wanted to say that the fix went together well even though I'm no expert solder. I do have a few suggestions for those who are going to be tackling this DIY. I used my iPhone front camera to be able to see under the radio which did help a bit. I placed it face up under the radio so I had a virtual view of the plugs. I was able to see the connectors a bit better and was able to get them off without too much trouble. It does take some serious effort to get them off though.

Also, here is a photo of the mysterious "hidden bolt" that I was able to snap a small shot of with my iPhone. I used a ratchet with a 10" extension to remove it. Thanks again for all of the help in this posting. It's almost like a new car again ;-) now that I can actually control the temperature.

http://i1256.photobucket.com/albums/...radio-bolt.jpg

 

Hi,

I've listed some sub assembly parts for the ac heater control unit on EBAY. ie. The circuit board may be of value to someone who's first soldering attempt went horribly wrong.
Mod Edit: The sale of items belong in the Classifieds Forum. Also, EBay links to items ForSale are against RX8Club rules.
https://www.rx8club.com/faq.php?faq=..._section_rules

 

After swapping out the stock radio and several pulls of the new one to add something else, my A/C stopped working. This DIY saved me time and money. I already had the dash apart so this only took an extra 20 minutes to fix after an hour of searching. A sincere thank you for the write up.

 

Has anyone had to repeat this procedure? I thought I did a great job soldering two years ago and haven't had any trouble until the last month. Suddenly my control just decides to change settings without me touching it. It started during the last hot days of summer, jumping from a 0 to 1, 2, 3, or 4. Now that the weather has cooled, it rarely goes to 0, but jumps around between 1 and 8. It will often correct itself if I hit the on/off and scan up buttons again (or repeatedly). I haven't had time to pull it out, but I guess I'll have to try it again unless someone has another suggestion?

 

Does this also relate if I turn my dial to heat and it cools.. turn to cool goes to heat..??

 

Possibly, you would have to perform the A/C Temp. test.

1. Insert your key and turn it to AC.
2. Turn ON your radio, the radio have to be on for this test to work.
3. Simultaneously press and hold the POWER and SCAN UP buttons for at least three seconds.
4. Turn the control **** clockwise, the digital display should show all numbers from "0" through "16" as you adjust it.

A good indication that the control **** is broken will show in the test that the numbers intermittently jumps back to "0" or skips a number.

 

Took me about 4 hours, but I'm really bad at FYI.

Fixed the problem BUT I spent 30 minutes troubleshooting my LED and radio not coming out. The little screw tabbies will break and make sure everything is PUSHED in tight.

Whew.... I'm beginning to dislike car fixing in a time crunch but I should know that car issues are never quick fixes.

Thank you OP for this post! How did you know this was the issue?

 

Checked it, numbers arent working. I'll be using your tutorial. Thanks

 

Thanks To wingnut,it works great now

 

Much thanks to Wingnut, and DaveH for his additional input. Just completed this fix and all is well again.

 

Worked like a F*cking charm!

Thanks Wingnut!

 

Gonna do this today. Thanks guys! Mazda dealer wants too much to fix it. I got no money after I got this 8. Again guys thank you!

 

be VERY careful about:

- the jesus bolt, i actually dropped it and need to get around to replacing it (probably wont)
- putting the radio back together, all screws must be flush, otherwise no power to radio/LED. It's actually a common problem that isn't noted. (the ones that actually go into the plastic case itself, that was the cause of my error. even though it was cracked i shoved it back in and it worked)

 

I actually dropped that 10 mm bolt, as well(see picture below). Anyway, this is the first time I tackled this. My HVAC control have been broken since 2009 and the only reason I am pulling it out is because my CD player ate my CDs. Well, since the unit is out, I might as well fix the controls. I don't like soldering because of my shaky-hands, but I was able to do the trick.

 

Did this today. Heat works baking hot now Thanks Wingnut.

 

you saved me many cold drives to work thanks so much!

 

This post is the reason I joined this group and it will be the reason I stay! Didnt have any issues, just had to teach myself how to solder and now I have new tool to play with

 

I just now finished the job and after trying out 5 old soldering guns and finally buying a new one, it works! Just make sure you hand loosen and tighten the bolt near the steering column to avoid trouble. Thanks so much!

Posted From RX8Club.com Android App

 

Trying it out tomorrow, i'll keep you posted

 

guys... you all did get the stereo out...now could you give me a clue how can't i fit it in correctly.Look what's happening to me VID 20131213 172622 - YouTube

 

dude i'll be honest, i can't really tell what's going on here, you are getting stuck when forcing it back in?

 

yes... i need to press it real hard to get the display work

 

Your face plate screws might be loose... But I doubt that is the cause, do you remember the black covered wire that runs from the back of the radio to it's side and front? Make sure the wire that connects to it is firmly in place and the small rectangular male end forward is correctly connected to the faceplate. Sometimes you end up breaking the circuit board or may have bent those little prongs. I'll see if I can dig up mine, which I broke, and take a picture of it... BTW your sig-picture is too large, might consider resizing it?