Ambient Air Temperature Sensor

WARNING: This page is about a different car, the 2002 GMC Sierra, 2002 GMC Cab & Chassis Sierra, 2002 Chevrolet Silverado, and 2002 Chevrolet Cab & Chassis Silverado. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.

The HVAC control module receives an input of the ambient air temperature from the ambient air temperature sensor. The HVAC control module uses this input for determining heating and cooling requirements. The ambient air temperature sensor is mounted in the grill area of the vehicle. In this position, it is exposed to the airflow through the grill before is reaches the radiator.

The ambient air temperature sensor is a Negative Temperature Coefficient (NTC) thermistor, when the temperature of the sensor changes so does the resistance across the thermistor. When the air temperature is warm, the sensor resistance and signal voltage is low. When the air temperature is cool, the sensor resistance and signal voltage is high. Inside the HVAC control module 5 volts is supplied to the ambient air temperature signal circuit through a fixed resistance. The fixed resistance inside the HVAC control module makes the signal circuit a series circuit. As the resistance of the sensor changes, the amount of voltage it drops also changes since it is in series with the fixed resistance inside the HVAC control module. The HVAC control module monitors the voltage drop of the circuit which is needed to calculate the air temperature. The ground for the ambient air temperature sensor is provided by the low reference circuit.

The signal provided by this sensor is filtered. There are conditions which cause the sensor to produce a signal that is not proportional to the actual ambient air temperature. The HVAC control module will use a default value for the ambient air temperature signal if there is a fault with the input. This value will be displayed on the scan tool. The HVAC control module will use this default to ensure HVAC operation is still performed.