Ex Member Posted March 20, 2009 Share Posted March 20, 2009 In my experience, they fail in the unlocked position. The only way to test them, is to drive hard enough to start overheating. Then get out, take a newspaper or such and try to stop the fan. If it stops, the coupling is not working. It is fairly hard to get into a condition ( in the UK) where the coupling locks up. It needs to be hot out and you need to be using power and moving slowly. A long steep hill when it is 30 C out is what you need. Like I said, I have NEVER found a used LR with a working coupling. Most people can't tell because they never see the conditions where it is needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tacr2man Posted March 21, 2009 Share Posted March 21, 2009 Viscous fan , as mentioned moves far more air, which is what you want when you need it , I have found they usually fail in lock up . You can tell by the roar even in a "200 dismal", I have seen usage life of 250000kms plus even in hot climate conditions (OZ) With a viscous and cowling fitted you are using the whole rad cooling surface , not just a 12" or whatever diameter . Whats the big need for space in the front of the engine , if you have a well maintained vehicle you should not need to be in there every five minutes , and anyway how long does it take to remove a viscous fan coupling and cowl , compared with the time taken in the rest of the job . Its obviously a personal choice thing (Unless dictated by space as in modified eg V8 in 86") but from the logic point of view no contest . JMHO&E Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reads90 Posted March 21, 2009 Share Posted March 21, 2009 mmm i think you lot need to tell land rover what a useless bunch of p****s they are by spending millions on reseach and testing in the artic and dessert and still after 60 years fit Viscous fans and not kenlowes. After all you lot think they are alot better than the carp Land rover fit . As for saving fuel Christ you drive and land rover if you are that tight go and buy a corser and shut up Never ever ever had a problem woth Viscous in all sorts of tempetrues towing what every . So never had the need to even think of changing the vicsous for a kenlowe and after the stories i have heard about them i never will Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted March 21, 2009 Share Posted March 21, 2009 The two viscous fans I've seen fail locked up came off the shaft and went through the radiator matrix. Yes the work ALL the time Try standing in front a a Defender or a Discover on a day at -2 Deg C and feel the fan pulling cold air through the radiator grill. mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted March 21, 2009 Share Posted March 21, 2009 mmm i think you lot need to tell land rover what a useless bunch of p****s they are by spending millions on reseach and testing in the artic and dessert and still after 60 years fit Viscous fans and not kenlowes. After all you lot think they are alot better than the carp Land rover fit . As for saving fuel Christ you drive and land rover if you are that tight go and buy a corser and shut up If the vehicle manufacturers spend so much time testing why can't the make sun visors that stop the sun getting in your eyes.Now. All of you against electric fans WHO still has OE tyres fitted. Road wheels Springs Shockers mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted March 21, 2009 Share Posted March 21, 2009 mmm i think you lot need to tell land rover what a useless bunch of p****s they are Is that before or after Land Rover tell every other auto manufacturer what a useless bunch pf p****s they are for fitting electrics for the last 20 years? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poohbear Posted March 21, 2009 Share Posted March 21, 2009 Go on.. I give up.. can't get anything to fit..... what should be there instead of the '****' in 'p****s'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retroanaconda Posted March 21, 2009 Share Posted March 21, 2009 r i c k Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
defender300td1 Posted March 21, 2009 Author Share Posted March 21, 2009 im sure the new defenders are fitted with electric im going to stick with my original!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M&S Posted March 22, 2009 Share Posted March 22, 2009 yes, generally when they 'fail' they just lock up giving you maximum cooling all the time.as long as your thermostat is working fine, then the engine temp will still be maintained by the stat. to check its working is simple. when the engine is cold, turn engine on for 30 seconds to get everything 'spun up' and the viscous fluid in the fan moving around. Turn the engine off!!! The fan should be fairly easy to turn by hand at this point. When the engine is fully up to operating temp, turn the engine off!!! the fan should now be stiff to turn by hand. if the fan is locked on all the time, you can either leave it alone and put up with longer warm up times, or replace it. Sometimes though, all the magic stuff leaks out of the unit and the fan spins uselessly hot or cold. Then it needs replacing. Thanks Nick, mine works fine then, as I thought it was. Even though it does run at all speeds, it's not drawing very much air through when cold so is running slowely. At higher temps there is a definate change in the airflow been sucked through the engine. If I fitted wings I reckon I could take off This is an old argument anyway, and one that will never be won by either camp, so long as your vehicle is running well and doesn't overheat I don't see the problem with either system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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