At last it is solved.....here is the dope according to the service advisor at the dealer. Take with grain of salt, etc., but this dealer has been straight with me in the past (even fixed my side skirts after messing them up).
Apparently there is a TSB on this particular problem. A 60-amp fuse is on the circuit for the ABS and blower motor in the engine compartment. This fuse is not strong enough, and blows (after all of this trouble, I think it really blows
). Thus, my ABS light came on, and the blower motor didn't work. It also explains why the new blower resistor did nothing.
They replaced the fuse with an 80-amp fuse, as per the TSB, and put in the new resistor that I had purchased, which is apparently an upgraded part that helps to deal with the problem. The result, the blower is working, and according to the tech "the 80 amp fuse doesn't blow on this circuit."
The upside: I have heat. The downside: My ABS computer threw a code for the pump motor that may come back, indicating a possible expense in the new year.
