Receintly my heater/defrost makes a horrible sound whenever I turn either on. I believe it has something to do with the fan as it makes a loud noise, like a bearing is bad or something. Kind of a grinding, muffled jackhammer sound. I think it's the fan because when I turn it off the rythem of the sound slows down as the fan blade slows down. Any help?? Do fans have bearings? Tough to access/replace?

 

Fans do indeed have bearings (well, bushings, but close enough), and they do wear out/need oil. Most of the time a cleaning and some oiling will quiet a noisy fan motor down. They're pretty easy to get at, too. If you take out the glove box, it's right behind it up under the dashboard. It's held in by three bolts and the wiring harness. The squirrelcage is held in by a spring clip and a little lip; it can be tough to get it off, but with some gentle prying it'll come off (be careful, though.....it's only nylon!). After that you can separate the two halves of the motor and clean/oil the bushings.

It's not a bad job, just a little dirty because of the junk that accumulates in the blower housing.