RCB

My E61 started making a bunch of noise last week and has been shaking whenever the fan comes on. At first I didn't know what it was but noticed that the noise would change and it would vibrate really bad for a few seconds once I turned the A/C off and then go away.

I just took a look at it and found out that my cooling fan has 3 huge cracks in the plastic at the hub with one of them going up halfway through a blade. I'm very luck that it didn't explode while driving, leaving me stranded. Although I'm yet again just frustrated with this car. Every piece of plastic or rubber is just junk. I have done so much work to this car in 1.5 years that it's just insane. Now I'm looking and seeing that in order to get the fan blades you need to buy the entire assembly with the motor and shroud at the tune of $700.

If anyone has a used on that lost a motor (another common problem) or just a good complete unit please let me know.
So far this week it's new rear brakes, a 535i big brake upgrade in the front with S.S. lines.
New oil pan gasket, front axel seals, and front diff input seal. What's next......

JayArras

Also check junkyards. You might luck out.

RCB

I'm searching Car-parts.com now. Hopefully I have some luck

I recommend that everyone check the area that you see in my photo periodically with the key out of the ignition. This happened to me in a matter of days. Once a crack starts the fan goes out of balance and it just gets worse quickly!

twh

This thread is interesting...if you can find a fan that has a dead motor, you should be able to swap the blades.

https://5series.net/forums/diy-do-yo...cement-136695/

RCB

Yep you're right and it's crazy that you can't get the blades separate.
I actually came across that thread earlier today and it got me thinking that other models must share the same fan. I have an 2010 E92 335xi here in my lift so I took a look at the fan in that. It turns out that it uses the same fan and motor as the E60/61 535i with a different shroud.
I looked up fans for E90 tonight and all the ones I find online have a different looking fan motor the my E61 or the E92 that I have here. Both cars have a round fan motor with heat sink fins but the E90 fans I'm finding online have a more square motor with a smoother metal housing. Maybe they updated the motors or switched vendors at some point.

I did find a 335xi at a local salvage yard today with a broken fan shroud. I'm going to have the yard pull it tomorrow and hopefully the motor is the same design as what I need.

I'll update this thread tomorrow with either good interchange info for the community or to say I'm still looking for one.

RCB

It turns out that E90 cars with the N54 have two fan options, a 600W and a 850W. The E92 that I have here has the 850w version with the same motor and blades but differant shroud. That one is a direct bolt-on for the E60 535 shroud. The 600W motor has a differant shape and a lower output. The output alone makes it not an option and I don't even know if it would bolt in.
With that said no salvage yard I talked to was willing to confirm which version they had until I paid for the part and they pulled it. That eliminated that option so I checked Ebay again and got lucky. I found a E60 535i fan that had been listed as a 550i fitment. I noticed from the pictures that it looked just like what I needed. After a quick phone call to confirm the part number and wattage I had a fan with shroud on the way for a reasonable price. My car I back up and running for $250 rather then the $600-700 BMW parts bill.

JayArras

Congrats on the successful fix! It goes to show with some research and a little bit of legwork, along with perseverance, anyone can save mega bucks on repairs on our cars.

twh

I really hate salvage yards that don't let you go out and pick your own stuff and bring it back to the office and pay then. That way you can spend all the time you want getting exactly what you want as well as seeing what shape the part is in as well as seeing what shape is the vehicle.

JayArras

Those days seem to be long gone. I can see their point though... some people will hack their way to get the part they want with total disregard to the saleable parts around it. I guess it's a safety liability too. This is a litigious society nowadays.

ripley

Also some people tend to fill their pockets with injectors, coil packs and other small, high value parts etc.