Hi, guys, I am fairly new to this forum but have been a casual reader for a while now. Everyone seems like an indispensable source for good information so I wanted to see if anyone could help me out with this one:

The front defogger/defroster in my 2004 Cavalier LS Sport has never worked since I bought it used 3 years ago. I recently had it looked at and they said there was a cable that snapped under the dash that controls the vents. Everything blows fine it's just when I switch it to defrost, air keeps blowing out of the main vents.

What I need to know is if I take my dash off, how difficult is it going to be for me to get a replacement cable and reattach it? The guy also said if they fixed it, it was just snap again because it "gets pinched in the door" but he could rig it so that it wouldn't break again. He wanted $200 bucks to fix it and I just had a feeling I could do it cheaper. Any suggestions?

reach behind the hvac controls from underneath (infront of where the cup holders are) and feel for the cable, it should move in and out as you turn the knob, if it doesn't it could be snapped or just kinked


on my 03 it was just kinked to i couldn't get it to switch to defog, all I did was to turn the knob all the way to the left (i can't remember what the setting was now), which straightened out the cable, and forced the cable back into the tube as I turned the knob to the right

OK, I'm going to dig into this this weekend. You're right it could possibly just be bent because the dealer did not remove my dash to check. If it is snapped, does anyone know what part it is that I need to buy and if there is an aftermarket version of it? I doubt there is because I haven't seen anything like it at any of the local auto parts stores around here...

My guess is if it is snapped then it would be a pain in the ass process involving the removal of the whole dash...

though I would bet it's not snapped,


I actually took apart the HVAC before knowing I can just reach behind it from underneath and push the cable in... that was a huge waste of time involving taking the bezel out such and such

OK, I felt around back there and can feel no cable. It felt like there was a string connected to the temperature dial but nothing on the vent dial. I'm guessing that means it is snapped. I don't mind taking the dash off because I was going to change the lights in my HVAC anyway this weekend, but I don't know what kind of part I need to fix this problem.

***UPDATE***

I got down there and really looked behind the HVAC and there definitely is a cable there. There is an eyelet that has come loose from the dial but the only problem is that the cable, shielded by thinner strands of wire woven all around it, has snapped. The only thing holding the eyelet to the cable is this woven strand. There obviously isn't enough tension to move the cable back and forth when the dial is turned so that is why it isn't working. In lieu of replacing the entire cable I have molded steel-reinforced epoxy putty around the wire in a feeble attempt to fix it. I am waiting for it to cure now and I will soon know if that worked.