replacing fan clutch & blade

Post by **qship96** » Thu Feb 10, 2005 12:59 pm

well,today I noticed the engine roaring like never before! sounded like the fan spinning at jet speed.turned car off and tried to spin the blade-no go,even with our 38 degree weather today.I am ordering the clutch and blade{it is cracked,like all of them}from Joe today.is there any other parts I should be ordering,like the pully?also can someone who has done this give a brief rundown of whats involved as far as tools needed and procedure?maybe the local repair shop is a better option then doing it yourself?

ALSO,is it safe to drive it as is until the parts arrive?figure 400-500 miles?

Post by **Q_SHIP** » Thu Feb 10, 2005 1:27 pm

It should be safe to drive. Just don't get the R's up any higher than they need to be.

I have never done one on a Q but it should be a fairly easy DIY.

Post by **elwesso** » Thu Feb 10, 2005 4:00 pm

Very simple, shouldnt take you more than 30 mins.....

Remove fan shroudloosen the beltRemove the fan and replace.....

Post by **qship96** » Fri Feb 11, 2005 7:36 am

wes,you stated to loosen the belt,does this need to come off to get to clutch hardware? what size wrenches are needed?

Post by **elwesso** » Fri Feb 11, 2005 10:15 am

10mm wrench..... You loosen the tensioner/idler pulley.....

Post by **DAEDALUS** » Fri Feb 11, 2005 10:54 am

It's a 12mm head on the tensioner and a 14mm nut on the pulley. The bolts on the clutch are hard to do without gearwrenches (highly recommended).

Post by **qship96** » Fri Feb 11, 2005 11:00 am

I am confused! by looking at the engine,it seems that you should be able to unbolt the clutch and fan assembly as one piece by removing the 4 nuts,without having to touch the belts,tensioners,etc-no?

Post by **DAEDALUS** » Fri Feb 11, 2005 12:56 pm

With the belt applying all that tension to the clutch, how will you bolt it back up again? Also, when you undo the last bolt, you don't want that tension to cause a bending/shearing problem with the studs on the water pump.

The clutch as I recall is held on with 4 8mm nuts. If you can remove them you can finagle the the clutch/fan assembly out as one piece and take the fan off at your workbench.

Post by **qship96** » Fri Feb 11, 2005 1:34 pm

Deadalus,thanks for the reply.looking at the FSM,it appears the clutch bolts to the pully that is attached to the waterpump-Im thinking-leave the belt attached to the pully and just unbolt the clutch from this pully,not messing with the belt tension or anything else,no?

Post by **elwesso** » Fri Feb 11, 2005 3:04 pm

Sorry about the misinformation... Too lazy to go out and check and its been a while since i messed with that stuff

I dont think youll be able to do that..... The belt isnt a big deal at all... It may seem like it but its really not.....

Post by **DAEDALUS** » Fri Feb 11, 2005 3:26 pm

I'm pretty sure you'll still have problems with tension on the pulley. It's on conical seats I think, to center it for balance, like a wheel. Remove the nuts, and the belt tension will upset things. You can try it, but be careful. You cannot risk bending or breaking the studs, or you might be replacing the water pump while you're at it.

Post by **vicQ45** » Fri Feb 11, 2005 10:02 pm

if you were just replacing the fan blabe would you still hvae to loosen the belt tensioner and pulley or could you jsut bolt it on in place of the old one?

Post by **qship96** » Sat Feb 12, 2005 4:53 am

ok,after another read of the FSM,it states in the section regarding waterpump replacement:step 1...remove fan/with clutch{4 bolts}step 2 ..loosen psbeltstep 3 remove water pump.

so,am I crazy thinking I can remove fan/clutch without touching the belt or tensioner?need to know before I start this process!Has anyone ever replaced these on their q?

Post by **elwesso** » Sat Feb 12, 2005 5:18 am

qship96 wrote:
so,am I crazy thinking I can remove fan/clutch without touching the belt or tensioner?need to know before I start this process!Has anyone ever replaced these on their q?

The studs are small, and not an easy way to replace without replacing the water pump..

Heres a picture step by step guide to removal... its not the best organized but it should do

Post by **qship96** » Sat Feb 12, 2005 5:49 am

thanks.Wes-but still confused! my 96FSM states to remove the fan/clutch by undoing the 4 nuts as step one

step 2 is to loosen the belt TO proceed with waterpump removal.........

so original question is according to the manual,to just replace the fan/clutch{not waterpump},shouldnt one just have to follow the first step of removing fan/clutch by removing the 4 nuts without having to touch the belts/tensioner?

Post by **elwesso** » Sat Feb 12, 2005 7:04 am

I can follow your reasoning.. But remember the manual is made for a tech.. Any tech would know he has to loosen the belt first...

Dont get so bent out of shape, its like an extra 5 minutes to deal with the belt... loosen the idler and thats it.... JUST DO IT!!!!!!!

Post by **Q45tech** » Sun Feb 13, 2005 11:27 am

"Sorry about the misinformation... Too lazy to go out and check"

Moderators should check the facts before posting off the cuff comments, not that I haven't done it, but 99.99% reliable answers are the key to a successful site.

Self discipline even at 3AM.

Post by **qship96** » Sun Feb 13, 2005 4:08 pm

Q45tech wrote:"Sorry about the misinformation... Too lazy to go out and check"

Moderators should check the facts before posting off the cuff comments, not that I haven't done it, but 99.99% reliable answers are the key to a successful site.

Self discipline even at 3AM.

So q45Tech........... Do I have to loosen the belt to change fan clutch or not?

Post by **DAEDALUS** » Sun Feb 13, 2005 4:32 pm

Just give it a try. If you can keep the pulley seated then you'll be ok. If it comes off, you'll probably have to loosen the belt to get it back on, depending on how tight the belt is. Add your experience to the collective knowledge that is NICO.

Post by **DAEDALUS** » Sun Feb 13, 2005 4:34 pm

vicQ45 wrote:if you were just replacing the fan blabe would you still hvae to loosen the belt tensioner and pulley or could you jsut bolt it on in place of the old one?

If you can reach the bolts holding the fan on, then yes, you can leave the clutch on and not mess with the belt at all. Kind of hard with the shroud in the way. Be careful to not bump the radiator right in front of the fan--those fins are fragile.

Post by **qship96** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 11:11 am

Ok,just finished replacing the fan clutch and blade-under 10 minutes! undid 4 10mm nuts and removed clutch/fan-undid 4 10mm bolts on blade,transferred same to new blade-replaced clutch/new blade to pully.no need to remove any shrouds or loosen any belts! finally i get to rev the engine above 2000rpm again w/o sounding like an explosion is about to occur-went for 110mph test drive! ps local garage wanted 90.00 to do this while I was getting new oil put in last Friday!

Post by **elwesso** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 11:18 am

I guess I was slightly disoriented, in that the fan goes on after the pulley, so thus no need to do that...

Glad you got it done!

Post by **DAEDALUS** » Sun Feb 20, 2005 12:46 am

Good job! I have a heck of a time with those little nuts, even with gear wrenches. I can never get to 1 or 2 of them on the far side (plus I always drop a washer and have to spend 5 minutes looking for it). I forgot that's another reason I loosen the belt first--so I can spin the assembly to access the nuts.

Post by **ahardb0dy** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 11:20 am

I found a fan blade at the local junk yard that looks brand new, even had the part number sticker still on it, anyway it was on a 91 Q, will this fit on my 94 Q? If not what is different? I got it for $6, thanks

Post by **Jesda** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 11:36 am

ahardb0dy wrote:I found a fan blade at the local junk yard that looks brand new, even had the part number sticker still on it, anyway it was on a 91 Q, will this fit on my 94 Q? If not what is different? I got it for $6, thanks

Wow, thats a sweet deal! Everythinginfiniti.com lists the 90-93 blade as being different from the 94-96 blade, with the 94-96 part being cheaper by about $15. I do not know what the physical difference is.

Post by **ahardb0dy** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 3:50 pm

I saw that also, just was wondering if anyone knew why they were different. I wasn't at home near the Q when I asked about the blade. I'm home now I will have to compare the 2 tomorrow.

Post by **Q45tech** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 3:46 am

Shape of fan blades and their twists also different fan shroud but I believe the new fan design will fit in old shroud.

Remember the 94 was a redesign to improve luxury and thus quietness of the Q..............not sure if the air flow vs rpm changes. However, the AC condenser on 94 appears to have more resistance [fins per inch vs air space].

Post by **elwesso** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 3:58 am

the old fan is taller, the new one is shorter but the blades are wider...

Post by **ahardb0dy** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 10:29 am

so will it work? Or does anyone need a fan blade for a 91 that is in excellent condition and possibly has one for the 94??

Post by **DrewQ45** » Tue Jun 13, 2006 1:38 am

ahardb0dy wrote:so will it work? Or does anyone need a fan blade for a 91 that is in excellent condition and possibly has one for the 94??

You'll be able to sell that thing no problem. Just about every early Q with original fan has moderate to severe cracks and needs to be replaced soon.

Regarding fan install.... nothing to it - but to do it! Big deal made over nothing!!! The time spent agonizing and posting could have had the job done in half that.

replacing fan clutch & blade

replacing fan clutch & blade

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