No pun.

So I was sitting in a parking lot with my 2000 Maxima (195K miles) running with the A/C on. I was sitting there for about 10 minutes when the air from the vents started getting warmer. So, I started to drive away to go home (about 2 miles) and then noticed my temperature gauge was rising. Instead of letting it overheat, I turned off the A/C and cranked up the heat and pulled into an auto shop about 1/8 of a mile away from the parking lot.

The mechanic checked it out and said that 1) the passenger side cooling fan was not running at all and 2)the driver side fan was running "slow." He said he whacked the fan that was not running at all with a hammer a couple of times (on the fan motor I assume) and it started going again.

I asked him what I should do, and he said that I need to replace the entire cooling fan unit (both fans and the plastic casing) which would be $200 for the part and $100 for labor. I told him I would call him tomorrow and drove home with the A/C off. Tested it tonight with the A/C on and both fans are running (although the driver side fan seems to be just a tad slower than the passenger side).

1. Is it really necessary to replace the entire thing?
2. Can just the motors be replaced instead for cheaper?
3. Do I need to do anything at all right away?
4. Should I trust this guy?

Thanks guys!

 

GO get a second opinion?

 

i really don't know if the fans are your problem or not but hopefully someone here can help you diagnose

i will comment on the price he quoted you if you have to go that route.. new fan assembly < $100 on amazon. it's probably a 5 minute DIY job. 2 bolts at the top of the radiator, unclip 2 wire harnesses and and pop it out (not sure if you can wiggle it out past the top radiator hose or if you'll have to temporarily disconnect)

 

What the shop wants is reasonable. They mark up the parts to make a profit on that and then add the price of labor.

Like cornholio said, for $100 and some of your time, you can do it. It will take longer than 5 minutes, but that's how we say it isn't a hard job to do.

 

Thanks. Sounds like it might be more reasonable to save about $200 and do it myself. I saw a YouTube video that shows how

Is it normal that whacking it with a hammer got it running again? If so I'm going to try that with other parts too =)

 

Yes, a hammer is an essential part of every mechanic's toolbox, and Liquid Wrench.

 

Sheesh a $100 mark up?

 

Is it possible that the cause was something else like the ECTS going bad? The fans seem to be working fine now...

 

I guess in the mechanics defense OEM ones are selling on courtesy parts for $300+. The link I posted was marked down like 60 I think so the mechanic might not be tooo off base

 

If you have a copy of the fsm , ec-351 starts troubleshooting process for engine overheat. You could work your way through there and see if it helps pinpoint the problem

Link to FSM:
http://boredmder.com/FSMs/Nissan/Maxima/

 

If the fan wasn't spinning and it ran after being hit with a hammer (or whatever), the fan motor is in the process of dying. It will stop again. As another point, the two fans always run as one, never just one fan at a time.

If you wonder about the ECTS, you can do the resistance test that is outlined in the FSM, but an easier way is to check the engine coolant temperature with an OBD code reader.

 

TallTom is right a hammer and a BFH

 

These fans are known to fail. The rest of the system that turns them on and off is pretty solid. You can get the motors themselves or the assembly. You may be able to get the motors locally even cheaper than the assembly from Amazon.

You have to disconnect the radiator side of the upper radiator hose. It's tempting to try to squeeze the assembly by it but it wont work. Just keep the hose pointed up and you wont loose much coolant.

The markup isn't too bad. He's probably getting it local or from a regular supplier at a slightly higher cost. He's not going to wait for Amazon. His markup isn't just profit either. It also covers the warranty on labor. If he supplies the part, and it fails, he will warranty the part AND labor. If the customer supplies the part, and it fails, he'll charge the entire job again.

Whatever you do, you need to handle this soon. Maybe consider getting the motors locally and handling it tonight. If you overheat it, things can get very expensive.

 

Derrick is gonna have to have a pre-typed response for all the radiator fan motor talk that's been going on lol.

 

It's that time of year.