Plastic engine fans cracking

[YNOT]

Vehicles affected; all Patrols with plastic engine fan, which is all GQ and GU.

The engine driven cooling fan on Patrols is made of plastic (apart from the steel hub that bolts to the viscous clutch hub, and over time, the plastic becomes brittle and cracks as shown in these photos.

http://i758.photobucket.com/albums/xx224/tonyh01/IMG_0703.jpg

http://i758.photobucket.com/albums/xx224/tonyh01/IMG_0704.jpg

http://i758.photobucket.com/albums/xx224/tonyh01/IMG_0705.jpg

Once these cracks start appearing, there is a risk that the fan may shatter and fly apart, possibly damaging the radiator, drive belts, or any thing else in the area.

The good news is that new fan blades are relatively cheap (on ebay for around $100), and an easy DIY job with basic hand tools.
There are few different models of blades used across the Patrol range, so when ordering, you will need to know number of blades (7 or 8), and the bolt spacing where the blade hub bolt to the viscous clutch.

Tony

[Maxhead]

Thanks Tony,
definitely will keep an eye out when I do my visuals....I hope I've got a while to go before I see this problem on mine..hahaah

[patch697]

Dealing with this one now & am in the process of sourcing a fan (was about to ring Garry at Nizzbits in fact) so I'll keep you all posted on what I find.


Cheers
Paul

[NissanGQ4.2]

Dealt with that prob a few months ago, but rather than get new blades, decided 2 install 2 thermo fans :) now i just need 2 get of my lazy ass and install a descent temp gauge.

[patch697]

Dealt with that prob a few months ago, but rather than get new blades, decided 2 install 2 thermo fans :) now i just need 2 get of my lazy ass and install a descent temp gauge.

Was thinking of doing the same with mine, & im guessing there is not much point in asking how yours are as its not hot yet to really test them out.

But im still interested to know how well this works if anyone has a first hand on it.

Cheers
Paul

[NissanGQ4.2]

Was thinking of doing the same with mine, & im guessing there is not much point in asking how yours are as its not hot yet to really test them out.

Paul, it really only feels like it was a few months ago, but I have had them well over a year , works well on 30deg days here in Sydney, normal driving, unfortunately I have not really tested them off road :(. Have a manual switch as well so if the temp does get up a bit I just switch 2 manual. Its hard to tell without a descent temp gauge what it is actually running at. My old man is an ex diesel mechanic and he is the one that told me to put thermos in, and he has the same set of thermos waiting to be installed into his GQ Patrol ( unfortunately he is waiting on me 2 install them!!! ) *L*

[patch697]

Cheers Todd

I've already got everything I need so I might just go ahead with it, I have to take the clutch fan off to anyways to get the right blade set so its no biggy really & I'll still grab a new blade set on the "just in case"


Paul

[NissanGQ4.2]

Paul, here is some other info on Thermo fans if u wanna read.


http://www.exploroz.com/Forum/Topic/8431/flexalite_thermo_fan.aspx

Cheers

Todd

[Finly Owner]

excellent preventative inspection tip Tony. another one to go into index file

[Mrowka]

I like thermo fans in sports cars (you'd be shocked how much power a clutch fan can use) but not in 4x4s where they are one more electrical component to possibly short out.

[nismat]

Great tip, will order mine in the next few days, my fan is definately cracking! Thanks for the tip!

[MQ MAD]

Great tip
Just done my fan on the GQ few months back
Fairly simple job really,a few beers worth and done
The MQ/MKs also suffer from this problem
The TD 42 fan is the same bolt centres as the SD (either n/a or T)
Although the SD fans come in 2 styles,either straight blades or blades with tail (if u like)


From memory my fan was under $70 posted
Not a real fan (pun intended) of thermos
Factory fans flow alot more CFM of air than thermos

[GQ TANK]

Sorry grave dig.

The tb42s and TB42efi fans are different and cannot be swapped (the centre are differant size). i currently have a new tb42e fan - need one for a tb42s

[mudski]

Sorry grave dig.

The tb42s and TB42efi fans are different and cannot be swapped (the centre are differant size). i currently have a new tb42e fan - need one for a tb42s

Good post mate. Also you can use a tb45 fan on a zd30. They are the same fan but with 5 mm difference in offset.
Cracked fans are more common than I thought. I check my fan as part of my 5k service I do, among other things. ...

[CPOCSM]

I went through the fan and viscous coupling saga recently and my head was spinning about the differing diameters. I simply bought the new coupling and took it to the wrecker here in toowoomba and matched it to a new fan they had in stock. Turned out repco got the wrong one in as the bolt pattern on the dayco unit, supposedly for a TB42E, was actually a TD42 one. Blade setup is identical with both but spacings were different. So now have a TD42 viscous hub and a TD42 fan on a TB42E...confused yet?

Temperatures are now right on 83 degrees in 35 degree days here coming up the range into toowoomba. Temperature gauge doesn't get above 1/3 and can hear the fan clutching in and out. There was a noticeable drop in acceleration though as the new coupling and fan are offering a little more resistance than the clapped out items I replaced. The old fan was totally cactus and had cracked between every blade right down to the metal hub thingy...

[jay see]

This was mine
54143
54144

[pat in a troll]

sometimes second hand fan clutches that look fine from the outside can have worn insides which will end up costing you when it finally cracks. it's a good idea to replace it with a new part as it'll save you time, money and collecting parts (or possibly paying postage).
also the viscous clutch can wear out over time which can cause things like overheating at idle or poorer fuel economy and power