Chrysler Repair: passenger heating problem/emission fault: 2001 van, emission control system, evaporative emission control system

Question
Our 2001 town and country is giving off heat on the drivers side but it is freezing cold air coming in on the passenger side.   My husband has been trying to find a door to the outside that may be stuck open.   He has not been able to locate one from behind the glove compartment.  Also Our check engine light has been on and I got it scanned at Auto Zone.   The codes that were received determined a small leak exists in the evaporative emission control system (EECS) and a short circuit condition exists in the electrical curcuit fir the purge control valve in the EECS.    Does this have anything to do with the heating system?   Husband knows not what to do????So I am asking.  Any ideas?  Thanks for your time.

Answer
Hi Merri,
The problem is likely related to a door inside the HVAC unit that is under the dash. The temperature of the air is controlled by  a door that mixes incoming air that goes thru the heater core with air that by-passes the core. (During AC it is the same mixing technique only part of the air goes thru the AC cooling coils). That door is called the blend air door and there is a separate door for the driver side duct from the one for the passenger side (I assume that you do have separate controls for the two sides). There is an electromechanical actuator that moves the door. So the actuator for the passenger side is either not functioning properly, or the electrical control is faulty, or the door is mechanically bound up and not moving as it is driven by the actuator to do.
The best way to solve this is to copy and send you maybe a dozen or so pages from the shop manual (mine is a '98 but it no doubt applies to your later model). There are some self-tests you can do that might sort out exactly why the door is not adjusting properly. And there are drawings and instructions to identify the actuator and the door so your husband can take off the actuator and see if the door shaft is moving or not.
It costs me 10 cents per copy and I will be glad to do this copying and postal mail it to you on Monday. You can then send me back stamps or a check to cover my costs.
It is obviously not practical for me to try and type in all these instructions and I don't have a document scanner or a fast connection to the internet.
On the EECS, again, I can copy pages on that system and the circuit diagram page so he can check out the wires. The slight leak is probably a cracked or loose vacuum hose for the system. Look under the hood and you will find a sticker that shows the vacuum hoses routings and the various parts, just look for the leak detection pump and the purge valve to get a handle on what is involved. The valve is in the engine compartment and the pump is underneath the van so it will be a matter of tracing the hoses and finding the damaged hose connection and also similarly the electrical wire that may be damaged or disconnected. Depending upon his interest and skills he may want to try this himself. If not, let me know which if any of the manual materials you would like. I will then let you know the number of pages I believe would be helpful to him and let you know. Tell me which size engine you have, and the specific fault code numbers on the EECS if you have them. And also, let me know a postal mailing address to which to mail the pages.
Roland
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