Well, I stripped it and cleaned it again, and its still clicking. Definitely this motor as I can feel it when its doing it.

Only thing I can think of now is that the spring is weaker than it should be, so thats next, Ill keep this tread updated, it might be useful to someone in the future

How did you get on with this in the end John? It's definitely this part that's the problem, but I've taken it apart and cleaned it up, no joy, ordered a second hand used part for a fiver to see if it made a difference, and that one's even worse!

I have the same problem. Took the whole thing apart and re-greased and for a couple of entries the noise was gone only to return as loud as ever.
Thinking it might be an alignment issue, with the entire assembly removed but wires still connected I observed that it turns about 90 degrees and stops upon switching the ignition on. Then turns back by 90 degrees when ignition is turned off.
I haven't checked what happens if I leave the car sitting for 15+ minutes, might try this tomorrow and report back.

gj88 wrote:

How did you get on with this in the end John? It's definitely this part that's the problem, but I've taken it apart and cleaned it up, no joy, ordered a second hand used part for a fiver to see if it made a difference, and that one's even worse!

Pulled the thing out for the Nth time this morning leaving it connected to the wiring. Locked the car and let it sit for 30 or so minutes. Unlocked and opened the door. The motor moved its 90 degrees travel silently.

I unclipped the motor from the gearbox then fitted the gearbox only, without the motor, and finger moved the gears the entire cycle; everything moves effortlessly. I fitted the motor back and switched ignition on and then off. Felt the motor moving as normal. Locked the car and I will be back to check in 30 minutes...Let's see.

*Update*

Still same. I think I' ll live with it for the time being as it doesn't seem to have any ill effects other than the annoying clicking noise. Please note that other blend motors can be heard clicking in a similar tune but very, very faintly. One has to listen very closely to detect.
One guess could be this: most dampers rest on some sort of sealing foam frame when shut. If this foam has been detached, it could prevent the damper from traveling the entire radius, resulting in the motor jumping gears. I didn't see any gear wear though...

I've had some success so far, it would seem the gearbox wasn't fully engaged.

I did as VS322, watched the motor cycle which was fine, so i realigned the flap and refitted - click click click

Removed again, realigned refitted and waited about 15 mins, this time when it was doing its self test I pushed the gearbox into place more and heard a click as it moved in slightly, since then its been fine.

So it might be it just isn't fully located on yours, mine looked like it was, the little tab was engaged but it needed that little extra push while running.

As for the others clicking quietly, I think that's by design, I read somewhere there is no feedback loop on the motors like the old P38 ones. They are just driven to a hard stop each time to calibrate them.

Thanks for posting this, John. I'll give it a try and report back. Glad it worked for you

I give up on this one. I can confirm the gearbox is indeed engaged.With the motor removed and gearbox in place, I was (again) able to move the gears a full opening and closing cycle of the damper.
However, while the car is switched off and locked, the temperature sensing fan is working for about 15 minutes. Every few seconds, there's a pause of the fan followed by a slight movement of the offending motor. Some of the movements sound smooth (and all when the assembly is removed), others (most of them and only when in position and engaged) as if a gear is jumping (identical to the usual noise but in single shots).
Unlocking the car will result in yet another burst. Since thete are no ill effects, apart from the ear rape, I'll let it be until I can source a brand new one.

Are you certain the door moved by this device is moving freely?
I had to give mine a good workout back and forth a few times to make it smooth. I used the end of a 12" file to turn it.

Yes, I'm sure it's moving freely but can't be sure it's really the full range. It may very well be some detached piece of sealing foam preventing the damper from reaching it's fully open or shut position. But I can't confirm or rule this out without taking the entire console apart

Im still looking for where I read about no feedback loop so im sure its to do with timing.

Its designed to go to one end of travel and click as it doesn't know where that is, so you could be fitting it and it will start by trying to move the flap the wrong way as its already against the stop.

I noticed mine when run loose didn't always stop at the same place. Try putting some marks on it when it stops moving and refit it (aligning flap) in those different positions.

Found it.

Click image to enlarge

By way of update and addition to the knowledge base:

Removed the motor and opened up the gearbox once again on this lazy Sunday morning.
I don't know how I'd missed this in the first place when I had taken everything apart but this time I found one of the two plastic pins of the servo motor had broken off and was caught into the gears.
It must have been stuck somewhere on the grease. It's almost the same color after all.
End result is no more noise. Rear fan works okay, temperature control works okay as well so I think it's all good now.