Fan clutch ques.

[philo_beddoe]

Not necessarily a squarebody, but in general, lets say a 06 pathfinder, can i remove the fan clutch and just have a regular fixed fan and be fine?

[VileZambonie]

Question back at you would be why?

[Stewart G Griffin]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXdLgaFXZzs

[philo_beddoe]

Question back at you would be why?

Because it's always running! (It seems)I got that "air conditioner" sound under the hood constantly, even at cold start up. Nissan dealer in enfield says thats normal for that generation of pathfinders, but i'm not convinced. It was my moms vehicle, low mileage and totally mint cond. i just want it to be right. Im having no problems whatsoever, it runs great, engine stays cool. But i hate that loud clutch fan sound.

However, after watching that video, i think i have the rpm type clutch fan, and if i recolect, it may quiet down at cold start up when engine reaches temp and rpm's drop, and all while in park. Of course as soon as i step on the gas to go, you hear the loud woooshing clutch fan noise. But then again, i also dont think i hear it when just cruising down the road or hwy. But i always hear it taking off from a stop. I hope this makes sense to someone out there for a simple explanation. Thanks...

[LTZ C20]

If you hate that, don't listen to mine, mine roars when it's hot out, especially in the triple digit heat California has been getting. You can hear even with the radio on, a.c. fan on and windows up. And the Duramax diesels are even louder, in our weather they sound like a jet engine. all I hear when I accel is the fan roaring, but my a.c. is cold. If Nissan says it's fine and everything works properly, don't touch it. Don't fix what ain't broke.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk

[MrFiveOh]

Why not do yourself a favor and go electric fans. two LT1 Camaro fans, a shroud from tejas steelworks (or make your own) some wiring and you save about 25hp and get effective cooling when at an idle cause the flex fans and clutch fans are not effective at idle, when they are needed the most.

[VileZambonie]

Those came with electric fans as well so retrofitting it would be easy however, why not turn the radio up and stop listening to the fan altogether? Unless you're looking to resolve a true issue it seems like a waste to even go down that road.

[philo_beddoe]

All good feedback! Thanks, i guess i'll leave it alone. But i will call a few more random nissan dealers and see if they all say the same thing. Fan spins with engine off, as it should. So i guess its working properly. But why some vehicles and not others?? Appreciate the replys, thanks again.

[bd]

But why some vehicles and not others??

Fan clutches are tailored to specific applications.  Some applications require more forced airflow than others to effectively manage the heat rejected by the engine/transmission radiators and A/C condenser, either because of the rate of heat rejection or because of restricted natural airflow through the radiator/condenser and out of the engine compartment (poor airflow engineering).  Jeep XJ's with inline 6 cylinder engines were a grand example of the latter.  Fan clutches for heavy-duty cooling systems generally engage at slightly reduced temperatures and engage more completely (less slippage) than their standard-duty counterparts.  Increased forced airflow (for whatever the reason) translates to increased noise.  But, a little noise beats the alternative - broken down on the side of the road with engine coolant dripping on your shoes.  Incidentally, what makes you think a solid hub fan would run quieter than a clutch fan?

[philo_beddoe]

To the ques on the end,,,not sure why. I just always thought ALL that woooshing noise came strictly from a fan clutch. My 77 c-10 makes no such noise, and has no fan clutch, and, runs nice and cold, (or not too hot anyway) regardless of environmental conditions. (according to the temp guage)