q45 cooling idea...

[1991q45]

eh...okay while installing the injector i noticed the cooling fan.where the clutch meets the plastic base of the fan: IT HAD STRESS CRACKS.

i dont like this there's one other q at the junkyard but it had stress cracks too.

so i've been reading a bit and there was one thread where this member had a q and i belived he used the nissan quest/villiger cooling fan.

and i noticed that the raditor on the q has a thermoswitch.

so i was hoping to seek some advice from you guys/gals.

get the cooling fan. 30amp relay (well two of em one for cooling, the other for a/c operation).

2 10a fuses.

ground it to frame.

but only operates when i have the car on.

so one of my questions is:

does the thermo switch on a 1st gen q turn on and off at a set temp?

and the second one is: is this fan set-up okay to run with?

thanks in advance

[qship96]

Seems like alot of fabrication for questionable results? Why not just purchase the correct new fan blade from Infiniti of Scottsdale for around $70 and be done with it in about 10 minutes??????

No need to re-engineer the cooling system because of a simple fan blade!!!!

[Infinitiguy19]

What if you fabricate a metal fan?

No more stress cracks, just have to worry about rusting if not painted properly.

[qship96]

Use aluminum to prevent rust- just need to figure out how to attach to the fan clutch. I have thought about this mod, but with the ease of obtaining a new factory part for $70 that lasts 5-6 years, I dont have enough incentive to fool with trying to adapt a generic aluminum blade!!

[unknown007]

What if you fabricate a metal fan?

No more stress cracks, just have to worry about rusting if not painted properly.

If you want to get cut up it'd be good.

Today as I was messing with the vaccuum leak gauge my finger hit the fan. It was a little tickle but thank god it was plastic.Just bondo it together again.LOL

[1991q45]

yea i've hit the fan one to many times myself. lol. damn i thought it was gonna be more than that for the blade.

ive kinda made up a pros and cons.

the fan, relays, i can get for free.

i was 1/2 way through replaceing the ps belt and reliazed this is gonna be a p.i.t.a to do again down the line.

[qship96]

Replace all 3 belts at the same time to avoid duplicate labor. Utilizing used fan blade and relays just shorten time to future failure.

[maxnix]

Use aluminum to prevent rust- just need to figure out how to attach to the fan clutch.

Use the OEM nylon one as a prototype and forge a magnesium one. Remember you have to match the OEM blade pitch and area or at least its flow rate vs. rpm!

Think I will stick to OEM every 10 years.

[qsiguy]

My fan has the cracks as well. Has anyone actually had a fan fail? I suspect these cracks are not too critical to the strength of the fan where they are.

[96Qowner]

My fan has the cracks as well. Has anyone actually had a fan fail? I suspect these cracks are not too critical to the strength of the fan where they are.

Now that you mention it, I've read lots of posts about cracked fan blades, have replaced mine once already with new cracks appearing in the new one as well, but I've never read of a NICO member having a fan blade come apart on him.

Not that it can't happen or that we shouldn't replace them, but ... just sayin'.

[bullittandy]

(Who am I impersonating?) What are you people? Crazy? Knowingly and willingly operating a motor vehicle with a known failing part that places everyone around in danger should automatically cancel your insurance.

I've had cracks in my fan for about 55K miles and 3 years so I don't think that it is a structural issue-kind of like cracks in trees or wood. (Get ready for the Cassandras.)

[maxnix]

My fan has the cracks as well. Has anyone actually had a fan fail? I suspect these cracks are not too critical to the strength of the fan where they are.

You would be wrong! One broken fan blade flying into the radiator can necessitate radiator replacement. Mine was cracked all the way through the hub in a couple of places. The metal ring only goes halfway into the depth of the hub.

[oldmako]

Mine has a lovely mosaic of cracks which I feel, pay homage to the 145K on my car. I think of them like the sexy lines of character on Lauren Hutton's still lovely visage. I think I'll keep my crackly fan. After all, I wouldn't replace her either.

I promise that when my fan fails, and causes an insane amount of damage to my radiator and surrounding engine bits that I will fess up on this site. I will gladly assume this level of risk to further the Q brotherhood and give Manics a golden opportunity to reprimand, berate, and castigate me for not replacing mine the instant it showed signs of wear. Until then, I'll sleep easy.

PS. When I took the fan off to replace the belts, I wailed on some of the more seriously impaired vanes to gauge their remaining integrity. I thought enough of their strength to slap that mother back on. I look forward to reading the rebuttals.

PS.S. I also like to juggle chainsaws, bungee jump, fly upside down, drink hard liquor, run offshore in single engine boats, drive much too fast, etc etc.


Modified by oldmako at 2:27 PM 4/1/2009

[1991q45]

well it has'nt gotten all the way to the hub area.and i noticed something when the fan clutch is cold that thing is loud and blow out hella air.

then while i had it running right now my mom was wanting to know about the ticking/clatter sound.

that fan was quiet. plus when i push on it, the cracks don't spread open any further.

i just wanted to run this idea because it seems to take up space.

[maxnix]

i just wanted to run this idea because it seems to take up space.

Still plenty of room for a dual row radiator, though!

[bullittandy]

PS.S. I also like to run offshore in single engine boats,

Modified by oldmako at 2:27 PM 4/1/2009

You're a goddamn lunatic.

[Infinitiguy19]

Then while i had it running right now my mom was wanting to know about the ticking/clatter sound.

That ticking/clatter noise could be attributed to many things, can you be more specific?

[1991q45]

the noise i think is from the fact i used 5w30 and cheap oil filter (free99 at my job). when i was supposed to use 10w30 according to the owners manual. ooops

but i'm also leaning towards the vtc becuase it does what my maxima used to do when the vtc was bad.and mannix dual row radiator...jeez

[dusred]

My Q had a terribly cracked fan and when I replaced the fan clutch I didn't replace the fan.

My philosophy has always been "If it's not broke don't fix it". And yes, there are some things that you just do as preventive maintenance but I don't think the fan is a necessary one as it is unheard of them to fail.

[timderiksen]

i i noticed my 98 it had a clutch fan and then 2 push fans on the radiator

[1991q45]

more on that ticking thing.well when your rev her it goes away...you can hear it a little bit.

there's no knocking of any sound...so thats a good thing.

so i think the problem with that is the oil i used.so tomarrow ima go get the 10w30 oil and redo the oil change

[Skibane]

Quote »What if you fabricate a metal fan?[/quote]Flex-a-lite and Perma-Cool both manufacture a wide assortment of metal fans. Unfortunately, they're all designed to be used without a fan clutch - which means that their mounting bolt patterns match the OE water pump, rather than the OE fan clutch.