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Thread: Exploding fan!!!!

  1. #1
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    Exploding fan!!!!

    Title says it all. I replaced the whole cooling system 3.5 years ago and now square one. destroyed my nice aluminum radiator too

  2. #2
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    Mine looked like it exploded too. The water pump bearing went out and the fan blades hit the radiator, fan parts everywhere!. The pump was not leaking but you could see things wobble while running. I thought BMW fixed the problem with a new pump design....

  3. #3
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    Maybe with high temps you see in Florida and maybe some high RPM runs your fan gets a workout. Check it regularly for cracks. Sorry man it sucks.

  4. #4
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    Yeah it does oh well....going to replace everything and motor mounts just incase.

  5. #5
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    Replace your motors mounts. Bad ones almost guarantee exploding fans.

  6. #6
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    I went to the diesel fan, it has an outer ring that is fairly stiff and, in my mind, could help not exploding. It does seem to have less chord angle and fewer blades, so may not push as much air, but I'm in IL, and don't need as much as FL maybe.

    11522243303

    https://www.ecstuning.com/b-genuine-...522243303~geb/

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  7. #7
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    20180417_181100.jpg
    Water pump is done! I can move it up and down thinking it was the cause of the exploding fan.
    Last edited by Left Coast; 04-17-2018 at 07:23 PM.

  8. #8
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    I had that fan destroy itself about 3 times. The last time it also took out a good couple chunks of my radiator and some hoses too. This was after I did the cooling overhaul too. I just did the fan delete mod and replaced the clutch fan with an electric fan attached to the radiator. The car felt smoother during acceleration and also I don't have to worry about the fan exploding anymore �� look into the fan delete mod, it's worth it imo

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by ilyasoul View Post
    I had that fan destroy itself about 3 times. The last time it also took out a good couple chunks of my radiator and some hoses too. This was after I did the cooling overhaul too. I just did the fan delete mod and replaced the clutch fan with an electric fan attached to the radiator. The car felt smoother during acceleration and also I don't have to worry about the fan exploding anymore �� look into the fan delete mod, it's worth it imo
    what parts did you use

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by ilyasoul View Post
    I had that fan destroy itself about 3 times. The last time it also took out a good couple chunks of my radiator and some hoses too. This was after I did the cooling overhaul too. I just did the fan delete mod and replaced the clutch fan with an electric fan attached to the radiator. The car felt smoother during acceleration and also I don't have to worry about the fan exploding anymore �� look into the fan delete mod, it's worth it imo
    That shouldn't happen.

    Your motor mounts are probably jacked. Engine is tilting back and forth as you accel/brake and fan is contacting the shroud. The mechanical set-up has been fine on thousands of maintained E36s for over two decades.
    Last edited by Nanniepoo; 04-18-2018 at 10:57 AM.

  11. #11
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    I used a 16 inch electric fan mounted to the radiator. I installed a sensor within the coolant lines, so the electric fan would turn on at certain temperatures. Also, I installed a lower temperature thermostat to help with the cooling. The radiator was hooked up with a wiring harness to the junction box in the engine bay to receive power for the fan. Some people also use redline water wetter as an additive to their coolant to help with temperatures.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Originally Posted by Nanniepoo View Post
    That shouldn't happen.

    Your motor mounts are probably jacked. Engine is tilting back and forth as you accel/brake and fan is contacting the shroud. The mechanical set-up has been fine on thousands of maintained E36s for over two decades.
    Yeah I changed the motor mounts after it blew up twice, but then it still cracked on the 3rd time, and I just decided to an electric fan conversion

  12. #12
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    radiator mounts

    and do not forget the 2 radiator rubber mounts for proper spacing.

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Moron95M3 View Post
    I went to the diesel fan, it has an outer ring that is fairly stiff and, in my mind, could help not exploding. It does seem to have less chord angle and fewer blades, so may not push as much air, but I'm in IL, and don't need as much as FL maybe.

    11522243303

    https://www.ecstuning.com/b-genuine-...522243303~geb/

    I'd say it probably wouldn't suit for warmer parts of the USA. E36s offered in areas such as Japan and Australia (whose climate really wouldn't be dissimilar to many parts of the USA) were fitted with the "Hot Climate" fan clutches and fan blades that give more cooling ability much sooner. The fan in my little 320i doesn't need much persuasion to sound similar to a jet engine!
    https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...and-Fan-Blades
    Reading my old thread there, the diesel fan blades (and water pump) were mated with a pulley that was smaller in order to drive them faster.

    For those complaining about "exploding fans," it is a symptom of another problem. Engine mounts are often the culprit. A failing water pump (i.e. bad bearings) is another cause. While I understand there can be failures without warning; these underlying issues point to ignorance (maybe that's why my Diff is sounding sickly )... If the water pump has that much slop in it, it should be noticeable to the naked eye when you inspect your engine. When you replace your serpentine belt, that is the perfect time to check your pulleys and water pump for noise/slop. Likewise with mounts, it'd be pretty visible if the engine was moving around so much.

    The OE cooling system has been more than adequate. Fan Delete Mods seem to require investment in high performance water pumps, colder thermostats, coolant additives and colder fan switches. All this points to it being inadequate. Meanwhile, when your fan clutch locks up, even revving the engine at 1000rpm will move significantly more air. At 2000-3000rpm with the fan roaring - well, no electric fan can do that.

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Moron95M3 View Post
    I went to the diesel fan, it has an outer ring that is fairly stiff and, in my mind, could help not exploding. It does seem to have less chord angle and fewer blades, so may not push as much air, but I'm in IL, and don't need as much as FL maybe.

    11522243303

    https://www.ecstuning.com/b-genuine-...522243303~geb/

    Which fan clutch did you end up using? Did you use your original gas motor fan clutch ( 11527505302 ) with the diesel fan, or did you have to buy the diesel fan clutch ( 11522246042 )?

    Looking at the RealOEM pages, I see that the 325td fan clutch has a different part number than the gas engine fan clutch. Because diesels run at lower RPM I'm wondering if the choice of a clutch is significant when putting the diesel fan on a gas motor.

    How long have you had this setup on your car?
    (oOO \ (||||)(||||) / OOo)

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by pescadero View Post
    Looking at the RealOEM pages, I see that the 325td fan clutch has a different part number than the gas engine fan clutch. Because diesels run at lower RPM I'm wondering if the choice of a clutch is significant when putting the diesel fan on a gas motor.
    In my response above, I linked this thread here: https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...and-Fan-Blades , a discussion on the "Tropical/Hot-Climate" fan clutch and fan blades the petrol (gas) E36s could be fitted with. Of interest is the fact the diesels do have smaller pulleys to ensure the fan is driven fast enough given the lower rpm of a diesel engine.

    You'll need to double-check the parts diagrams as I do believe some clutches will only mate with some fans (three screws vs four, diameter and so on).

  16. #16
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    thanks for posting. I noticed that thread, and that the most important data was conspicuously absent. Although people have discussed the fan blade pitch and the pulley size, what's missing is the temperature on/off specification for the clutches. is that information available anywhere?
    (oOO \ (||||)(||||) / OOo)

  17. #17
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    Fan clutch manufacturers could possibly have that information. All I can tell you, based on owning/driving an E36 with the "hot climate" fan clutch is it is generally quite aggressive at locking up and the fan 'roaring' in warmer/hot weather conditions (although when it was brand-new, it was reluctant to lockup with the A/C & auxiliary fan running on low, resulting in the aux fan running on high. If the A/C was switched off, the fan would lockup normally!).

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