AC Vent Louvres Misalignment (Solved)

[Zchrist88]

I knew my A/C vents were toast prior to pulling my dash apart - louvres misaligned and unable to be positioned, flopping up and down, and dirty (hooray no cabin air filter). Since I couldn’t find a new LHD driver side replacement vent for a 94 (or older, our dashes are special), I was forced to make my own solution.

This will work on any 80 series vent where the louvres do not align.

What you’ll need:

• Zip tie(s) - I used Steelgrip 8 inch resealable cable ties (3004720) *the wider the zip tie, the more restriction the louvres will have*
• Scissors
• Pick - or something sharp to make a point
• Power drill
• 6/34 drill bit

*Warning*: The plastic is brittle, be careful and take your time.

1. Remove upper dash
2. Remove vents from upper dash

The vents became misaligned because a really thin piece of plastic strip that sits atop the louvres more or less disintegrated over time.

1. Break away those remaining bits of the plastic strip.
   
2. Align a zip tie against the top or bottom of the vent and mark the center - that’s where you’re going to drill your holes in the zip tie
   
3. Depress the hole locations with a pick so the bit seats in the center
4. Drill said holes - I found that a 5/64 bit was the happy place for the little posts on the louvres. This is an example of what it will look like before installation.
   
5. Once the holes are drilled, you just line them up with posts and pop them on with a screw driver or the pick for leverage.
   

I went through about 3 zip ties before I was happy with the alignment.

Also, if your vents are flopping (up and down), they can easily be fixed with Outsane’s vent bushing thing. You’ll need one for each vent, I think… actually, check your own vents before you buy extras.
Vent bushing thing - https://solvefunction.com/shop/ols/products/vent-bushing-thing

I think there were some other solutions here that mentioned super glue - didn’t want to go that route, maybe it’s easier? Anyways, hope this was helpful since this seems like a common issue.