Yep, the whole thing has to come off. One good thing is that it is not
too complicated (it IS a big pain though). The biggest pain is dropping the
steering column (You have to do this in order to get the dash out). The
sheer bolts will have to be replaced. Getting them off is pretty simple with
a small pair of vice grips.
     If yours is anything like mine you will end up putting in the new
housing you have. When I attempted to take out the old housing I busted most
of the plastic mounts; when I attempted to split the housing to get to the
motor I finished the housing off. I have to admit that, because I DID have
the extra housing,  I was not too careful taking things apart.
     I still have the old (shot) housing here. I was going to throw it away
but let me know if you want me to hang on to it for a while until you finish
your job. The only thing useful in it is the Heat Exchanger and maby the
flaps but if you need any of these you can have them for the price of
shipping.

jliasse@msn.com

also an 83.5 Westy

-----Original Message-----
From: Forhan, Thomas <Thomas.Forhan@MAIL.HOUSE.GOV>
To: vanagon@VANAGON.COM <vanagon@VANAGON.COM>
Date: Tuesday, December 01, 1998 2:39 PM
Subject: 83.5: R+R front heater box/fan housing

>My 9 pax needs a new fan motor, replacement of the flapper valve cables,
>and while I'm at it, a nice cleaning with Lysol to remove the heavy mouse
>smell.
>The Bentley shows how to disassemble the housing (actually, I might replace
>it with another one that's hanging around here), but its not clear how to
>get it out in the first place. Do I have to remove the entire dash?
>
>Thanks
>
>Tom F.