Viscous fan no longer viscous!

[BeagleCamper]

Radiator fan seems to have lost clutch function.
It seems like now it is directly driven.
First noticed by sudden increase in induction roar from the fan. motor runs cool around town - 2 notches below half way instead of one.
With motor off, fan is very difficult to rotate by hand and only rotates one direction.
Any advice on fixing or does it mean a new one? Any ideas on costs?
Thanks.

[Pipeliner]

It means putting on a new one - the viscous fan (the viscous part anyway) is a non-servicable item. Fortunately mine went while I was still in warranty, so no idea what it cost. Try Morris4x4 in the States.

[dastrix]

I think mine is cactus too, my engine runs quarter temp now, way way cool. Its running all the time and the noise is alot louder than normal. I think its been this way for some time. Spins fairly freely when the engine is off

Im going to replace mine too

[glend]

You (or a Jeep Service guy) haven't had the fan clutch off recent have you? Reason for asking is that if you lay the fan clutch down the wrong way the silicon fluid will drain out of the hub and appear to be locked up when re-installed. Once it heats up the spin tends to move the fluid back into position, but it will roar until that time.

The people over on the LOST forum tend to favour the Hayden Severe Duty Fan Clutch if a replacement is required. Hayden has a part number just for the Liberty CRD. The advantages of the Hayden is that is locks up at a lower temperature to the stock fan. I think the Hayden lockup is 170F and the stock one is 200F.

The fan clutch is a pretty heavy thing when you get it off and for that reason its going to cost to ship it here from the US (Morris or otherwise). That siad, you can bet that Jeep Australia will be making a nice profit from whatever they charge you as well, if you go to them.

There are some people that have gone for a direct drive fan using a Flexi Fan which alters pitch. There is also the V6 towing package Nylon fan with eleven blades (I am running that one right now) - it moves more air than the sotck metal fan and you can feel it pulling air in at the front of the car at idle. The V6 fan mounts on the fan clutch mount.

You could try one of the Jeep wreckers and might find a servicable fan clutch that way. I doubt VM UK is an option because it's a Chrysler Jeep add on and not VM equipment.

Good Luck,

[BeagleCamper]

Thanks for info Glen & Pipeliner,
No fan hasn't been off.
I'm touring with the camper in Mt Isa at the moment so will follow up replacement options once I'm back in Melbourne in a couple of weeks.
Cheers, BC

[Yank]

Give a call to Wooders Garage. www.wooders.com.au

I ordered a viscous fan clutch, water pump, thermostat, and a used fan (they didn't have a new one handy and I was in a hurry) yesterday and they were delivered today (I'm in QLD and they are NSW). These were all for a TJ, but the clutch ran me $100.05. The shop that has my TJ was told it would be $1000 and a 4 week wait to get the fan and the fan clutch from the US by their supplier.

Absolutely the best parts supplier I have dealt with here in Australia and I highly recommend talking to them for anything you need.

[mopar madness]

i have seen a few of these fans on other cars not work the other way,they dont lock in and thus they dont spin quickly enough to keep the engine cool especialy at low speeds like around town.i dont know about the jeep ones but just saying that i have seen these type of fans not engage properly causing overheating while at low rpm's.they apear to be spining but they are working very slowly and when the car is shut off they take a long time to stop.