Chrysler Repair: 97 Chrysler Town & Country climate control panel, dodge caravans, climate controls

Question
Hi Roland,

I'm hoping you can help me out. I need to replace the Heater A/C control panel on my '97 Chrysler Town & Country. It has a wood grain finish and wraps around the radio with dual sliding climate controls and rear a/c control. The part number on the back is P4677366. I've been shopping for a used one since the dealer price for a new unit is ridiculous. I've been quoted as low as $15 for the unit at some used parts suppliers in my state, but unfortunately they haven't had the exact unit in stock. I'm wondering if you could point me in the right direction of an honest, used parts supplier who might be able to help me find this?

The other question I have is whether or not any similar units might have interchangeable parts? For instance I did find some units with the identical climate controls, but they were from Dodge Caravans and had black fronts instead of the wood grain. The part numbers on the back were different, but I was tempted to try one out and just replace the plastic black bevel with the wood grain from my unit.

Do you know if there are other units that would be compatible? As I said I looked at some that both the front and back of the units were virtually identical to mine, except that some were black while mine is wood grain. I have even seen one that was identical looking in all ways, but it still had a different part number on the electrical unit on the back. Would any of these work, or do I have to have exactly the same P4677366 part number?

I truly appreciate any help you can give me.

Thanks and God Bless.

-Mike Iacopucci


Answer
Hi Mike,
I would not be finicky about the part number if the unit was from a van of the same age and identical type of controls/wiring colors. I have always found that a pull-it-yourself sort of yard is a good place to go because you can check out the wiring colors on the plugs into the back of the unit. If those match up it should work. There is very little change in the units once they are in production so surface appearances are probably the main reasons for the different numbers. Try to stay within the same model year and of course identical layout of the controls themselves on the panel.
Roland