[quantumchicken]

I have a 95 YJ Rio Grande. The air vents in the front do not work. However, the jeep does blow air through the defrost vents and through the vents near where your feet sit. I can adjust the temp to blow regular non-cooled air or hot air. I just can't get air to blow through the front vents, no matter what the switch settings are at.

Anyone have any idea what might cause this?

 

[harcosparky]

The Blower Motor DOES NOT run when in the VENT position.

VENT just opens up air flow from the vent on the cowl into the cabin.

Good explanation here ..... Thanks to Wrangler Haven

http://www.wranglerforum.com/f218/yj-heating-system-explained-68618.html

Here is the explanation from that thread .......

Moving the slider into the Vent position does a number of things all at once. It shuts off the blower motor.It opens the passenger Vent Gate for the first time. And it opens the left Cowl Gate for the first time. The Defroster Gate remains unchanged and the Blend Gate (although it can be moved) serves no purpose since there is no airflow past the passenger Vent Gate. When this gate opens it blocks 99% of the airflow into the blower motor and the rest of the system.
The left Cowl Gate (the most difficult to see since it's deep within the dash above and behind the speedometer) allows fresh air directly into the cab bypassing the entire system.
It should also be noted that the right Cowl Gate defaults to the open position when the vacuum motor, which controls it, looses vacuum. This happens hours after the engine is shut down regardless of the dash slider positions. This typically is not a problem even in the rain as long as the Cowl drain tube remains clear. Should the drain tube become clogged, the Cowl can partially fill with water which can seep past both Cowl Gates. The Cowl drain tube is located within the engine compartment to the right of the battery.

 

[Luckymac]

Check out the sticky at the top of this page.
What I have found most often as a cause of a non-functioning heater/vent system is either the cables are corroded and need lubrication, or the plastic clips that attach the cable ends to the control panel and at the functioning end of the cable are broken.
Good Luck, L.M.

 

[DREDnot]

I have a 95 YJ Rio Grande. The air vents in the front do not work. I just can't get air to blow through the front vents, no matter what the switch settings are at.

If you are talking about the "vents" at either side of the dash, those are speaker grilles. The YJ doesn't have dash vents like the TJs.
All it has are the defrost vents, the heat vents by your feet, and that Diagonal slat "VENT" door under and to the right of the glove box.

When you put the HVAC control to the VENT position, that Vent door should open and air flows in through the grille in front of the windshield. It only blows while you are moving. The fan doesn't help it move. The fan only blows to your feet and windshield.

If you have A/C, you have a strip of vents in an added underdash box. It has two knobs that control fan and temp. It is not connected to the dash operated system at all

 

[DryCreek]

I wish that there were some way to replumb the HVAC on these things so that you could recirculate the air. I bet the cab would warm up a lot quicker!