Well, my radiator fan broke yesterday. It appears that the guys who repaired the body work tried to use some sort of epoxy to hold the fan to the splines of the shroud.

Nutshell...it didn't work.

Trying to figure out if it would be worth it to replace the entire thing (which I can't afford), or to remove the broken fan, dremel off the broken spines that held the original fan in place, and put in an aftermarket fan. This would keep the shroud in place.

I would have to do the same procedure for the other fan as well, my header is starting to melt the connection to the other fan.

Basically, I can't figure out if its worth it to remove the fans from the OEM shroud or not, so I can keep it on the car.







This is where I would cut, and place flex a lite (or whatever brand) fans in place of the original ones to keep the functionality of the shroud:



I will be replacing the fans with these : http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2X-12...Q5fAccessories

Any suggestions, tips?

 

Darn, that is one serious PIA ! That wire/connector proximity is definitely a concern too.

I'm wondering if it might be worthwhile removing that fan assembly, re-epoxying, and carefully drilling some small pilot holes you can either drive narrow screws into or perhaps push pieces of heavy gauge solid wire (like from house wiring 10 or 12 AWG RGU) through some of the welds with glue to pin them. That would prevent it from breaking again.

Can you tell what's causing that header pipe to be so very close? Perhaps you could shield that wire with a small piece of aluminum flashing or the like.

 

I definitely need to do something. My motivation to dremel out the OEM fans, use the shroud and attach some aftermarket fans is mostly for clearance. They will basically attach directly to the radiator, giving me another 3"-5" of space between the manifold and fan.

I figure that way, Ill have the best of both worlds (shroud and dual fans), and none of the downsides of losing the shroud, or dropping $180 for a replacement oem shroud + fans!

 

Well, it sounds like a plan! I don't know what damage occurred and whether that was the source of the header to wiring/connector proximity. I have more clearance than you and it could be the damage is the reason. I'm afraid this kind of situation tends to involve guesswork and it's certainly possible the aftermarket thin line fan is the best solution ! Best wishes dude!

 

The one thing I'm not sure of is if the OEM fans are push or pull? I'm guessing they are a pull type from the fan blades though.

 

They'll definitely be pulling the outside air in towards the engine -- that's certain!

 

Also if the body work was done under insurance tell your insurance agency they are still liable to fix or replace it.