Fan clutch bearing m103
 

I have everything off and I noticed the bearing for the fan clutch is grinding. Sounds toast to me....Does anyone here know if it requires that entire assembly to be replaced or can I just replace the bearing at the front?

Maybe that is the reason my fan clutch is not engaging? :confused:

Yep, it's toast. You can see all the grease has escaped and the bearing was running dry.

http://www.ps2cho.net/downloads/phot...h/bearing1.jpg
http://www.ps2cho.net/downloads/phot...h/bearing3.jpg
http://www.ps2cho.net/downloads/phot...h/bearing2.jpg


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Question still stands though...Do you guys think that could have been the reason my viscous fan was not engaging?

It's a fan clutch bearing bracket, and must be replaced as a unit; at least I never found a way to get the bearing out. It's not just a std replaceable bearing, but appears specially made, and pressed into the bracket unit. Pretty expensive, over $150 for the last one I bought several years ago.
No, this will not affect your fan clutch, other than making it wobble maybe.
Notice the fan/clutch unit bolts onto the bearing race of this unit, but the clutch operates independant of this bearing.
So, you may have to buy both to get everything working properly.

DG

Thanks. I want to get the car back on the road today, so I bought the assembly. $135 Febi-Bilstein. Looks and feels good quality.
Oh well it is what it is. New one is beautiful :)

Now that I have my replacement viscous fan clutch bolted on, it has significantly more resistance to spinning when cold when compared to the old one. I could spin the old one 5/6 of a turn, this one 1/4 tops.

Yep, the entire bracket assembly must be replaced as a unit. Had this done last week on my 22 y/o 124. MSRP for the OE part is $254. The upside is that the cabin will seem sooooo quiet afterward. Amazing how much noise was being transmitted into the car from that old bearing.

Success! The fan clutch is engaging! The old one must have been dead for sure. It does seem quieter too although I never noticed it before so it may just be in my head.

Now I have peace of mind I have some additional cooling.