300 tdi viscous fan

Paul D · Jul 17, 2013

So me viscous fan broke, and I'm now running without it .. and what a revelation!

The engine is smoother, almost zero vibrations, quieter, more responsive and generally makes the Disco feel absolutely spot on!!! It's warmer than a warm thing today and just been stood in traffic for half an hour without the temp gauge moving, steady crawling in lo 1st for a mile or so and no tg movement. I have a new vc on the way but probably won't fit it for a while, see how it goes without .. Or might fit it, see how a decent one works and maybe remove it again anyway ..

I know the old one must have been running off-centre for a long while, we've heard strange noises for a year or so, but it hadn't caught up just how badly the unit was vibrating .. the only real noises now are tyre noises ...

Now to check me rear wheel bearings and change all brake pads .. got some EP90 on the front offside and the rears are worn anyway so gonna do all of em at once ..

Chrisw8 · Jul 17, 2013

Previous owner took mine out and put electric one in its place. she reckoned there was a slight increase in mpg too.

gemsdad · Jul 17, 2013

Paul D said:
So me viscous fan broke, and I'm now running without it .. and what a revelation!

The engine is smoother, almost zero vibrations, quieter, more responsive and generally makes the Disco feel absolutely spot on!!! It's warmer than a warm thing today and just been stood in traffic for half an hour without the temp gauge moving, steady crawling in lo 1st for a mile or so and no tg movement. I have a new vc on the way but probably won't fit it for a while, see how it goes without .. Or might fit it, see how a decent one works and maybe remove it again anyway ..

I know the old one must have been running off-centre for a long while, we've heard strange noises for a year or so, but it hadn't caught up just how badly the unit was vibrating .. the only real noises now are tyre noises ...

Now to check me rear wheel bearings and change all brake pads .. got some EP90 on the front offside and the rears are worn anyway so gonna do all of em at once ..

paul,tis a good job all these jobs keep cropping up,if not you might have some free time,god forbid.

Paul D · Jul 17, 2013

If they didn't crop up, I'd still fettle something .. 'tis lovely having a Landie thobut ..

horse62 · Jul 17, 2013

I ran without mine through the winter when i first got it and it was no problem.

Then I had big trouble on the A303 heading west stuck in traffic with overheating and had to keep pulling up on the verge, it took me hours and hours to get where I was going and guess what I had been keeping the fan in the boot and had taken it out to get my luggage in for the weekend

So keep it with you so if you need it you can fix it on the spot.

Paulmitchell1984 · Jul 17, 2013

mines same normal running is fine but any incline on motor way with foot down she gets warm soon cools though, always keep the fan with you if you do remove, im looking into electric fans now thow

Paul D · Jul 18, 2013

About what I reckoned, thanks.

I'm also looking at getting a cheap 12v fan and wiring it in .. even if only to a switch!

aston108 · Jul 18, 2013

i agree you should keep it with you, when I had my 300tdi I took the fan off and one hot day I pulled off the motorway onto a sliproad that was at a standsill.. the gauge kept going up as there was no air movement.. I was bricking it

discool · Jul 18, 2013

If a viscous fan is fully functional then there is no need to remove it. If in doubt replace it.

discomania · Jul 18, 2013

Paul D said:
So me viscous fan broke, and I'm now running without it .. and what a revelation!

The engine is smoother, almost zero vibrations, quieter, more responsive and generally makes the Disco feel absolutely spot on!!! It's warmer than a warm thing today and just been stood in traffic for half an hour without the temp gauge moving, steady crawling in lo 1st for a mile or so and no tg movement. I have a new vc on the way but probably won't fit it for a while, see how it goes without .. Or might fit it, see how a decent one works and maybe remove it again anyway ..

I know the old one must have been running off-centre for a long while, we've heard strange noises for a year or so, but it hadn't caught up just how badly the unit was vibrating .. the only real noises now are tyre noises ...

Now to check me rear wheel bearings and change all brake pads .. got some EP90 on the front offside and the rears are worn anyway so gonna do all of em at once ..

I keep mine in the boot. If I need it say in traffic, I would pull over fit it and carry on.

discomania · Jul 18, 2013

aston108 said:
i agree you should keep it with you, when I had my 300tdi I took the fan off and one hot day I pulled off the motorway onto a sliproad that was at a standsill.. the gauge kept going up as there was no air movement.. I was bricking it

Get the heater on full belt hot.

Paul D · Jul 19, 2013

New (second hand) viscous coupling arrived today, (thanks SASBob ..

) fitted it, ran it .. and no difference to without the old fan! So I reckon the old fan has been nackered a long time, running off-centre and causing all sorts of extra vibrations and squeals without me realising it!

Thank goodness for our lass and her higher-pitched hearing to mine!!

Stuff running without, I might still look into getting an electric fan so I can turn it off for wading, but for now, Viscous works and I is happy ..

MPfive · Jul 20, 2013

I've got a cheepo electric fan on mine,not had to turn it on in anger yet. I do switch it on now and again to check it still works

Maroondestroyer · Sep 12, 2018

Paul D said:
New (second hand) viscous coupling arrived today, (thanks SASBob .. ) fitted it, ran it .. and no difference to without the old fan! So I reckon the old fan has been nackered a long time, running off-centre and causing all sorts of extra vibrations and squeals without me realising it!

Thank goodness for our lass and her higher-pitched hearing to mine!!

Stuff running without, I might still look into getting an electric fan so I can turn it off for wading, but for now, Viscous works and I is happy ..

Sorry for raising and old thread. Can you remember what sort of noises they were, my viscous has some play in it, and makes a loud vibrating noise at certain revs, whether it be 2nd 3rd 4th or 5th gear ( hard to tell in first as it isn’t laboured long enough)

Paul D · Sep 12, 2018

Maroondestroyer said:
Sorry for raising and old thread. Can you remember what sort of noises they were, my viscous has some play in it, and makes a loud vibrating noise at certain revs, whether it be 2nd 3rd 4th or 5th gear ( hard to tell in first as it isn’t laboured long enough)

Mine was all vibrating at almost any speed, IIRC. When it's cold it's easy to turn the fan, when the engine's hot it should be harder to turn, it's viscous so stiffens as it gets hotter.

discool · Sep 12, 2018

Maroondestroyer said:
Sorry for raising and old thread. Can you remember what sort of noises they were, my viscous has some play in it, and makes a loud vibrating noise at certain revs, whether it be 2nd 3rd 4th or 5th gear ( hard to tell in first as it isn’t laboured long enough)

Ok, so what is a vibrating sound? If there’s play in the viscous coupling then its due to a worn bearing which will give a knocking sound, even when the engine is idlling, therefore no need to be in any gear.

lynall · Sep 13, 2018

You have to be careful with the 300 as its not as tolerant of overheating as the 200, especially if its running a/c as the a/c rad really restricts air flow.
I had an ES a few years ago and after a fast run in the summer, pulled into town and sat in traffic, it got hot very very quickly and I could feel it starting to falter, viscous went back on and stayed on.
I learnt my lesson and anythhng post 200, no viscous is asking for trouble sooner or later.

lynall · Sep 13, 2018

Maroondestroyer said:
Sorry for raising and old thread. Can you remember what sort of noises they were, my viscous has some play in it, and makes a loud vibrating noise at certain revs, whether it be 2nd 3rd 4th or 5th gear ( hard to tell in first as it isn’t laboured long enough)

Remove the fan and test drive the car, no noise/vibes and you have your answer.

Maroondestroyer · Sep 13, 2018

lynall said:
Remove the fan and test drive the car, no noise/vibes and you have your answer.

Simple answer that is normally overlooked

Cheers

Maroondestroyer · Sep 13, 2018

discool said:
Ok, so what is a vibrating sound? If there’s play in the viscous coupling then its due to a worn bearing which will give a knocking sound, even when the engine is idlling, therefore no need to be in any gear.

Makes sense, probably isn’t that then. Will still get new viscous unit though to prevent any issues.

300 tdi viscous fan

Old, nackered 'n broke, but the Landy is fine . :)

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NOT BOTHERED.

Old, nackered 'n broke, but the Landy is fine . :)

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Old, nackered 'n broke, but the Landy is fine . :)

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Old, nackered 'n broke, but the Landy is fine . :)

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Old, nackered 'n broke, but the Landy is fine . :)

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