Aux / pusher fan dead
 

The last few weeks I've noticed that my aircon was not particularly cold driving around town, and only really got working at open road speeds, but even then never really cooling down to the nice 18C that I like.

Today I finally figured out that my aux fan was not working, and that the 50amp! fuse (#61 in glove box) for it was blown.

Since there was a spare fuse sitting right above it, I thought I'd try my luck replacing the fuse and seeing if everything worked ok.

However the old rule that fuses only blow for a reason was true, and no sooner had I replaced the fuse and walked around to the drivers side when I noticed a huge plume of smoke coming up from under the front of the bonnet!

I ripped the fuse back out, but it had already burnt out. The smoke was coming from the aux fan area, so I assume it is stuffed?

Replacement fans seem massively expensive ($800+ locally) so my question is could it be the fan that is at fault, or could something else be faulty, and that has killed the fan (and will kill a new one?)

Also, has anyone purchased some of the non original fans from EBay like this one 00-06 BMW X5 E53 AC Radiator Cooling Auxiliary Fan Assembly Air Condenser Motor | eBay and do they work ok?

And why does such a small fan need such a huge amount of power, 50amps seems like a lot to me!

I am in the process of diagnosing my pusher fan, as it has been dead for a year or so. Did you ever find out the problem?

Yep your fan is dead. Only the fan is on that circuit and only the fan will draw enough current to blow a 50 amp fuse.

Here's my post on my fan replacement.

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...fan-fault.html


To paraphase another Xoutpost member:

if the OP can't afford to buy a new fan, then this is a case of someone buying the wrong vehicle.

I did not buy the wrong vehicle. I can easily afford the fan, but I don't simply throw money at something just because it stopped working. If I know 100% that the fan is dead, then I will buy a new one.

You were not the Original Poster. You just came onto this thread looking for answers to your problem, without telling us what the problem is other then you think the fan is dead. Did you check the fuse?

If you have the software for the BMW you can use the software to see if a "Fan Fault" is listed in the DME memory. You can command the fan to turn on, if you have the BMW software. If your 50 amp fuse is blown it is a good indication that the fan needs to be replace. If you think the fan is expensive wait until you get the labor to replace the fan. Front bumper cover as well as the metal bumper needs to be removed in order to replace the fan.

I haven't even started diagnosing anything. I will begin that tomorrow when I have time. And I've seen the DIY for replacing it, seems like a piece of cake. After I take it apart, I would be interested to see if the motor can be sourced somewhere and attached to the shroud somehow. That way you could have a back up fan assembly.

Plus I never said my fuse was blown. Where did you hear that from?

The original poster said that his fuse was blown. My initial reply was to the original poster.

Not Nice to Hijack someone else thread.

It probably the control circuit for the motor that is all burnt up. Try sourcing that. :rofl:

Should have posted here awhile ago, but I replaced my fan a few months ago and everything is good now!