2012 GMS Terrain - I have no air coming from the front cabin vents,

Asked by awclifton1 Aug 14, 2015 at 07:54 AM about the 2012 GMC Terrain SLT1 AWD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

Fan works fine, air is cold, just not coming form front vents

10 Answers

50,765

Have you checked your controls to see if your vent system is on defrost, floor vent, floor/dash vents or just dash vents? Defrost only will divert all the air to the windshield. Floor will not sent any air to the dash vents or just a whisper of air. That is what you need to check first.

25 people found this helpful.
785

I have the same issue 2012 terrain no air coming out of vents replaced filter and even the blend door actuator still same issue-- air and ac blow fine from bottom but not out of vents checked all my fuses they ok has to be some actuator that controls redirects air to vents...HELP

68 people found this helpful.
50,765

On the dash there is a symbol of a person in a chair. There is an ^ and one that points down. If the actuator is not working, than perhaps this switch is inoperative. If you push the arrow a symbol will pop up on the center screen and who a person in a seat with the air flow direction being forced on to him/her. If the flow points only to the head, and no air comes out the top vents, than perhaps the actuator or circuit board running it is bad. If the windshield vent works and the flow to the floor works, but when the flow to the floor and top of the person does not cause flow from the dash OR just the ^ pointing to the top of the person does not send air from the dash, it could be the actuator or door flap not working or the circuit board malfunctioning.

13 people found this helpful.
50,765

tenspeed, another very good guru posted a schematic of the system. The actuaors are run by vacuum lines so you may have a hose lose or a hole in the air lines. That will stop the actuator doors from operating correctly. See if that may be an issue. Thanks tenspeed. Here's a basic HVAC flow diagram that might help.

25 people found this helpful.
785

Hello Califcarson, thank you for your post No matter what function I select the air just keeps coming from the floor the ac works fine because it freezes my feet when I select ac, so is my blend air because I can control the temp- but it just keeps coming from the floor- the vents them selves are manual control by passenger but just can get air to come out of vents or defrost- I download your schematic but its too small for me to read even when I zoom the pic the resolution is to low so I can not zoom it in to see... do you know what the control actuator is called and where its located? so one of two things is happening either the motor that flips the door from bottom to top is not working or it is not getting signal to flip I put my autolink AL619 to see if car has any error codes but it don't thanks again

10 people found this helpful.
50,765

On the schematic, I open word and slide it to the word page. I then can click on the picture and move it to open it further. See if that helps. If what tensed has shown, there are no electric motors, only phunatic actuators that control the movement of the doors. So there may be a hose lose, off or has a hole in it. I am not sure about taking apart the dash. I'd try an auto air conditioning shop for an estimate and diaganoise before removing screws and such.

3 people found this helpful.
10

Check your air filters because dirty filters can be one of the reason. Also check whether the vent properly. Or else call a technician for repair. http://www.airdexinc.com/about-airdex/service-area/

1 people found this helpful.
40

For sure check the cabin air filter. I just had the exact same problem. My filter was filthy, so i bought a new one for $11, changed it out, and everything is working great again. The filter should be located behind the passenger glove box. Instructions in the user manual are very easy to follow.

4 people found this helpful.
100

for those people who have a problem with the vents not working the problem is the module directly above the gas pedal it is malfunctioning and it is not hard to replace remove the two panels under the steering column and the metal plate you will see a computer by the gas pedal remove the two bolts which are 10 millimeter pull the computer down then remove plate computer was attached to 3 bolts pull plate down then remove module easy to do at the parts store you can use the blind door module same one I just replaced mine that’s how I know yours truly Robert r

9 people found this helpful.
210

Same as above. I created a video explaining what I did. Summary - passenger side actuator is for temp control. Drivers side actuator controls direction of air flow. Might be a little rough and tight to get to the drivers side actuator but once it gets done, you'll be SOOO relieved it's working. (PS - here's my video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KY8-B5GFRus&t=2s )

21 people found this helpful.

Your Answer:

Terrain

Looking for a Used Terrain in your area?

CarGurus has 25,958 nationwide Terrain listings starting at $1,450.

ZIP:

Own this car?

Share your experience with others.

2012 GMC Terrain

Review another car

CarGurus Experts

  • #1
    Richard Schroer
    Reputation
    7,530
  • #2
    John Carson
    Reputation
    3,660
  • #3
    GuruNSHPJ
    Reputation
    1,810
View All

Know more, shop wisely

Search

Related Models For Sale

Used GMC Acadia
1,039 Great Deals out of 15,417 listings starting at $1,300
Used Chevrolet Equinox
2,709 Great Deals out of 50,735 listings starting at $900
Used Chevrolet Traverse
883 Great Deals out of 17,933 listings starting at $750
Used Ford Explorer
2,240 Great Deals out of 62,889 listings starting at $725
Used Toyota RAV4
1,965 Great Deals out of 29,210 listings starting at $1,450
Used GMC Yukon
665 Great Deals out of 11,662 listings starting at $1,499
Used Jeep Grand Cherokee
2,577 Great Deals out of 51,655 listings starting at $950
Used Honda CR-V
2,035 Great Deals out of 41,716 listings starting at $1,050
Used GMC Sierra 1500
1,939 Great Deals out of 67,128 listings starting at $875
Used Ford Escape
2,375 Great Deals out of 46,065 listings starting at $750
Used Ford Edge
1,598 Great Deals out of 41,758 listings starting at $1,185
Used Toyota Highlander
1,322 Great Deals out of 18,994 listings starting at $1,000
Used Nissan Rogue
2,092 Great Deals out of 56,577 listings starting at $900
Used Chevrolet Tahoe
1,080 Great Deals out of 21,863 listings starting at $1,000

Used Cars for Sale

2024 GMC Terrain For Sale
22 Great Deals out of 13,678 listings starting at $21,595
2023 GMC Terrain For Sale
205 Great Deals out of 2,248 listings starting at $20,937
2022 GMC Terrain For Sale
130 Great Deals out of 1,472 listings starting at $17,995
2021 GMC Terrain For Sale
136 Great Deals out of 1,984 listings starting at $15,989
2020 GMC Terrain For Sale
137 Great Deals out of 1,800 listings starting at $12,995

Content submitted by Users is not endorsed by CarGurus, does not express the opinions of CarGurus, and should not be considered reviewed, screened, or approved by CarGurus. Please refer to CarGurus Terms of Use. Content will be removed if CarGurus becomes aware that it violates our policies.