Took the XJ-S out for a nice, Sunday date lunch with my very patient wife and, just as I parked the car, the electric fan started emitting a loud screeching sound. It stopped when I turned the car off. When I turned the key back On, the fan came on again as usual (it's wired to come on when the a/c clutch gets power) and, after a moment, the screeching resumed. I ended up pulling the fan relay and driving back home (after lunch, of course) with just the mechanical fan. As it was a cool day and mostly freeway driving, the car only got slightly warmer than usual.

It's unclear at this point if the blades are hitting the shroud (if they are, I can't observe it) or if the fan motor is dying.

Assuming I need to replace this fan, can anyone make a recommendation for a replacement or even an upgrade to the electric fan? I'm not ready to replace both fans at this time, but a replacement suggestion for the auxiliary electric fan would be welcome.

Thanks in advance.

 

If you have the OEM fan, then replacing it with a more modern design is a really good idea. The newer fan will pull loads more air. I have replaced my engine driven fan with electric as well, and it very rarely cuts in as the OEM replacement electric one is on with the aircon, which in my case is all the time.


The OEM shroud should take an 11 inch fan, and the important thing, in my view, is to buy one that pulls the most CFPM that you can find. Really cheap ones will fail early, so buy a reliable brand. Measure the diameter of the shroud hole carefully, so you are sure the fan you buy will go into it. The new fan outer guard can be fixed directly to the shroud, and the fan pushed in as close to the rad as you can, with the odd sliver of foam to stop the guard rubbing the fins if needed, and the same electrical connections used. Just make sure they are not reversed and that the fan is pulling!


Lastly, the available space between the rad and the engine bits is not that large, so ensure you buy a fan with a low profile motor, 100mm overall fan depth, front to back is the absolute limit, and 70 or 80 makes things much easier.
Greg

 

the fan blades hitting the shroud go th th th th th th th th th th very fast
I know... :- )


the bearing in the electric motor... when it dries out screams....


this is what it looked like before putting it back in, it was a rusty mess....

 

I have the a/c=on wiring config you documented in another thread.

Thanks for these specs. As always.

 

Had the fan readjusted because it was very nearly, if not certainly, touching the shroud. But a new fan is a good idea anyway (and probably inevitable), so I'll get on that too.

Thanks.

 

Any idea what cfm the stock electric fan pulls? Just looking for a point of reference.

 

that I would love to find out.

 

I have no figures, but I have tested both off the car, and I would say a modern fan pulls more than double the stock fan. One is Ok and the other is a full gale. Mine is actually a 12 inch fan and I have done away with the shroud, but as I mentioned an 11 inch is much easier to install. The great thing is to search around as the CFPM vary greatly between makes and models. mounting it as close as possible to the rad fins is also very important.
Greg