I would like to get to the fan/blower motor that blows the air into the cabin. Lately it has been persistently sounding like a piece of paper on moving bicycle spokes so there is either a foreign body in there or a broken component (I suspect the latter, as the sound is consistent suggesting it is fixed in place rather than something loose rattling around).
There are three or four clips on youtube that display a similar sound and people seem to think it is the air intake actuator (there are instructions for accessing and replacing said actuator at
http://sidesonic.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/mazda-3-bl-hvac-air-actuator-replacement.html). In most of those cases the noise seems to cease after a short while or when the recirc function is activated, which makes sense if the fault is in the actuator. As my noise does not change or go away whatever I do (apart from increasing/decreasing with the fan speed) I suspect it is more likely to be in the fan itself or the motor that powers it.
Does anybody know which side (driver's or passenger's) the blower motor is accessible from? The instructions above are for a model with the wheel/pedals on the left and glove box on the right. Does that mean I should be able to get at it from the passenger side? I suspect this may be one for a mechanic but thought I might have a poke around first just in case.
Edit: if the instructions at
http://www.mazda3tech.com/blower_motor_removal_full_auto_air_conditioner_-1444.html are anything to go by it may be a bit beyond my level (!!!).
