Testing fan clutch?
From : milesh
Q: whats the easiest way to test if the fan clutch is doing its job people have told me that i should be able to easily hear it kick in and out when climbing hills and the engine runs hot. i hear no such fan noise change ever. around town and on highway the engine temp is fine even on a hot day. but when climbing hills the temp gauge will climb rapidly well past the mid 210 range. i always back off and have thus never overheated. so because i do not hear what others say i should im suspecting the clutch maybe a problem. truck is 2001 ram 1500 with 5.9l. .
Replies:
From : steve barker
210 is not excessive and you may not get it to lock in good till about 230 for a few minutes. also no reason to back off the throttle with a good radiator cap you should be able to run 230-240 without problems. the fan should kick in and roar if it gets that hot. also if there is any grease at all seeping out of the fan clutch it is bad. -- steve barker ========= whats the easiest way to test if the fan clutch is doing its job people have told me that i should be able to easily hear it kick in and out when climbing hills and the engine runs hot. i hear no such fan noise change ever. around town and on highway the engine temp is fine even on a hot day. but when climbing hills the temp gauge will climb rapidly well past the mid 210 range. i always back off and have thus never overheated. so because i do not hear what others say i should im suspecting the clutch maybe a problem. truck is 2001 ram 1500 with 5.9l. .
From : miles
from clear to socked in in minutes. how many airports in alaska lack towers or weather stations how many are unicom or unattended how many lack the luxury of atis reports you dont get around alaska much now do you with your twisted knowledge it would appear that alaskan pilots only fly to airports and only fly in vfr conditions. good grief. . 222 281175 k%jfc.12011$rz3.4521@fed1read05 steve barker wrote 210 is not excessive and you may not get it to lock in good till about 230 for a few minutes. also no reason to back off the throttle with a good radiator cap you should be able to run 230-240 without problems. the fan should kick in and roar if it gets that hot. also if there is any grease at all seeping out of the fan clutch it is bad. normal driving its around 190. pulling steep hills it passes the 210 mark and continues to climb. i dont think ive let it get past about 220 but i had thought the clutch would have kicked in by then. i get worried when i see the temp gauge climb 30 degrees above its normal state. .
From : mac davis
on 14 apr 2004 185102 edt milesh milesh@nounwantedspam.com wrote whats the easiest way to test if the fan clutch is doing its job people have told me that i should be able to easily hear it kick in and out when climbing hills and the engine runs hot. i hear no such fan noise change ever. around town and on highway the engine temp is fine even on a hot day. but when climbing hills the temp gauge will climb rapidly well past the mid 210 range. i always back off and have thus never overheated. so because i do not hear what others say i should im suspecting the clutch maybe a problem. truck is 2001 ram 1500 with 5.9l. well i wouldnt suggest that you do this but heres what the service manager of the local dealership did when he suspected fan clutch he had me start it up while he was holding the fan with his thumb! sure as hell he was able to hold it with the engine temp indicating that it should be turning.. they replaced it that day... mac .
From : miles
big al wrote a good indication is after the truck has sat overnight when you start it the fan will be locked up. why would this be seems if its sat all night it the clutch coil would be cold and not lock it up. i have never heard the clutch since my truck was new. hmm. its past the standard warranty but still in the extended warranty period i have. i hate taking it to the dealer as they warn about their $90 charge on top of any other costs if problem is not warranted. is $90 the goin rate now for diagnostic charge .
From : big al
on 14 apr 2004 185102 edt milesh milesh@nounwantedspam.com wrote whats the easiest way to test if the fan clutch is doing its job people have told me that i should be able to easily hear it kick in and out when climbing hills and the engine runs hot. i hear no such fan noise change ever. around town and on highway the engine temp is fine even on a hot day. but when climbing hills the temp gauge will climb rapidly well past the mid 210 range. i always back off and have thus never overheated. so because i do not hear what others say i should im suspecting the clutch maybe a problem. truck is 2001 ram 1500 with 5.9l. well i wouldnt suggest that you do this but heres what the service manager of the local dealership did when he suspected fan clutch he had me start it up while he was holding the fan with his thumb! sure as hell he was able to hold it with the engine temp indicating that it should be turning.. they replaced it that day... mac i do this all the time. but you cant chicken out. you have to hold it. however the procedure you described above will not prove the fan clutch is good or bad. the fan must spin for the clutch to work a good indication is after the truck has sat overnight when you start it the fan will be locked up. you will get an idea of fan roar right there. my 3/4 ton dodge fan couples up in heavy traffic. the fan will roar when i take off and then get quiet. its very hard not to notice it. towing or climb long hills it also locks up. even at 80 mph i can hear it. on my truck the temperature moves up about 2 needle widths before the clutch couples. al .
From : big al
big al wrote a good indication is after the truck has sat overnight when you start it the fan will be locked up. why would this be seems if its sat all night it the clutch coil would be cold and not lock it up. i have never heard the clutch since my truck was new. hmm. its past the standard warranty but still in the extended warranty period i have. i hate taking it to the dealer as they warn about their $90 charge on top of any other costs if problem is not warranted. is $90 the goin rate now for diagnostic charge because the fluid settles to the bottom of the clutch. it tales a while to redistribute around the edge. radiator shops have a tachometer to check fan clutches. the put a small shinny sticker on one blade and the tack sees it. you can always have it checked. i have no idea what the dealers charge. i stay far away from them al .
From : mac davis
on fri 16 apr 2004 002808 -0700 big al nospamsal1@qwest.net wrote i do this all the time. but you cant chicken out. you have to hold it. however the procedure you described above will not prove the fan clutch is good or bad. the fan must spin for the clutch to work a good indication is after the truck has sat overnight when you start it the fan will be locked up. you will get an idea of fan roar right there. my 3/4 ton dodge fan couples up in heavy traffic. the fan will roar when i take off and then get quiet. its very hard not to notice it. towing or climb long hills it also locks up. even at 80 mph i can hear it. on my truck the temperature moves up about 2 needle widths before the clutch couples. al exactly al... i used to hear folks complain about the fan noise in the morning and thought that we were lucky that ours was pretty quiet... the first morning that i started it after the new fan clutch it went the first few blocks sounding like it had a k&n system with an air leak! mac .
From : mac davis
on fri 16 apr 2004 055234 -0700 miles unknown@unlistedspam.com wrote big al wrote a good indication is after the truck has sat overnight when you start it the fan will be locked up. why would this be seems if its sat all night it the clutch coil would be cold and not lock it up. i have never heard the clutch since my truck was new. hmm. its past the standard warranty but still in the extended warranty period i have. i hate taking it to the dealer as they warn about their $90 charge on top of any other costs if problem is not warranted. is $90 the goin rate now for diagnostic charge i think that besides being temperature controlled its centrifugal too.. not sure... since the new fan clutch i always hear it in the morning for at least the first block.. mac .
From : big al
*out* thats an alaskan! if the brake lights stay on i dont care how long theyve lived in fairbanks if by august they have reverted to driving like they would in california they arent really there yet! otoh by january *everybody* has learned to get their foot off the brake before turning the steering wheel. but when it becomes so ingrained that they still do it that way in august theyve become habituated and while you are driving in america they are driving in alaska. but you cant drive to where they are. thats not a driving practice isolated to alaska. i drive like that myself. i learned to drive in pennsylvania. how much time will you have while youre there and how much adventure do you want during that time and whats your basic idea of adventure ill be there for about 2 weeks but ill be working while im there. i suppose there is limited hours of darkness in august so i should have some time after work to go sight seeing. my idea of adventure is traveling and seeing new things and experiencing different cultures. alaska idaho oregon and washington are the only states that i have not visited yet. im not too much of a thrill seeker. i dont sky-dive or go parasailing but i had a blast white water rafting on the snake river near jackson hole wyoming. i enjoy hiking swimming hunting fishing and playing or attending popular us sports other than basketball. high performance vehicles always piqued my interest. cars trucks motorcycles boats airplanes.....whatever. i have no plans or even any idea what there is to do in fairbanks. i just found out about this trip a few weeks ago and i have not yet transferred to the squadron that i am going there with. . 222 281335 bsvfc.24$83.39520@.uswest.net on fri 16 apr 2004 002808 -0700 big al nospamsal1@qwest.net wrote i do this all the time. but you cant chicken out. you have to hold it. however the procedure you described above will not prove the fan clutch is good or bad. the fan must spin for the clutch to work a good indication is after the truck has sat overnight when you start it the fan will be locked up. you will get an idea of fan roar right there. my 3/4 ton dodge fan couples up in heavy traffic. the fan will roar when i take off and then get quiet. its very hard not to notice it. towing or climb long hills it also locks up. even at 80 mph i can hear it. on my truck the temperature moves up about 2 needle widths before the clutch couples. al exactly al... i used to hear folks complain about the fan noise in the morning and thought that we were lucky that ours was pretty quiet... the first morning that i started it after the new fan clutch it went the first few blocks sounding like it had a k&n system with an air leak! mac i have a little extra time so ill explain why you hold the fan blade and start the engine. i thought someone would ask. you do it to check the bearings in the clutch and to see if the fan wobbles. but you cant chicken out!! the fan will try very hard to eat your hand at first then get very easy. i have even spun them backwards with the engine running. best to run the engine a while at about 2000 rpm have someone turn it off. grab the blade and have them start it. some clutches are very strong like the ones on a one ton pickup. some are easy. i held one on a motor home one time and i thought it was going to win back in my more time than money days i mounted a fan spacer in my lathe and bolted a clutch to it. i played with the spring in front to see how it worked. then i bent the clip so i could release or tighten the spring by reaching in front of the blade and moving it. after that i could turn the clutch off in winter and at the drag strip al .