Auxillary Fan replacement in '90 300SE - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

cam69ss · #1 09-16-2002, 10:33 PM

Hello,
Has anyone replaced their front aux. fans on a W126? I have a dual fan set up and the factory CD only show a single fan. I am having a hard time removing the shroud from the front of the car. Anybody out there provide me with help?
THanks in advance,
Dan

Jim Anderson · #2 09-17-2002, 01:01 AM

I have a 190e that has dual fans, but only one worked. I had to take the front bumper off to get to them, but that was only 4 bolts, plus one for the temperature sensor.

cam69ss · #3 09-18-2002, 10:43 PM

Anybody else have any more info on how to do this repair?

#4 09-21-2002, 06:55 AM

I replaced the right hand Aux Fan in my 560sel last week. The fan was actually easy to replace after I removed the fan shroud (grille). Removing the shroud was the hard part. Here is what I did:

I removed the 3 bolts holding the vertical support rod (with horns attached) and placed this assembly down insde the bumper. I did not detach the elctrical wires from the horns.

I removed the 3 cable clamps that support the fan wires across the fhe front of the fan shroud. With a little finesse,these can be detached from the shroud but do not need to be removed from the wire cable. Pull the fan wires rubber boot loose from the shroud.

Remove the 8 "plastic rivets" that are used to attach the shroud. These are located around the perimeter of the shroud and mine were a real "pill" to get out. I broke the heads off several and had to go to the local MB House and purchase replacements. (Purchasing a few of these rivets may be step 1 in the shroud removal process. Having a few on hand will allow you to see how they unlock and you will already have the replacement part).

At this point, the shroud is loose but will not come out. The top of the shroud is hooked over the top of the sheetmetal support that it mounts to. The shroud must be pushed straight up until the inside lip of the shroud clears this support. With the fan motors protuding through the shroud and the interference from the metal bracket (that stablized the vertical support already removed), this step requires finesse and patience. I GENTLY bent the bracket out 10 to 15 degrees so that it would not interfere with the shroud being pushed up. The shroud was flexible enough to allow me to pull it out over the end of the fan motors and push it up. I had to insert my fingers through the grille area at the top of the shroud and "unhook" the shroud from the sheetmetal support.

With the shroud now totally loose, I was able to reach in and unhook both electrical connectors from the cable. Continued finesse was still required for shroud removal on my car because the shroud is wider than the opening between the left and right hand air intakes for the engine.

Once the shroud is removed, the fan replacement is easy and obvious, so I won't bore you with any more details. Reverse the process to replace the shroud.

Hope this helps. Just in case you are wondering, you can not remove the radiator and get to the aux fans and you can not obtain ANY HELP from the MB manual. I tried both.

cam69ss · #5 09-21-2002, 08:12 AM

Tom, Thanks for your help. I thought there would be a much easier way to do it. I tried exactly what you explained but I thought I was ging to break the plastic shroud. I will try again this weekend and let you know how I do. It is weird that the MB cd is not correct in this area.
THanks,
Dan.

philmartin · #6 09-21-2002, 10:10 AM

The CD rom procedure is 83-560 and gives instructions for shroud and fan removal for engines 102, 103, 104 and 119. What is incorrect about this procedure?

philmartin

cam69ss · #7 09-29-2002, 12:23 PM

Philmartin,
The only procedure I can find on my 2 CD's for the W126 is 83-546. I do not know how to search for 83-560, I can not find a "search engine" on the CD?
Thanks,

Dan

philmartin · #8 09-29-2002, 12:42 PM

cam,

I have the CD rom for the 124 so not sure if this will be on yours. The way to search is with Windows explorer on the E drive when the CD is inserted. Searching this way will allow you to find many procedures that apparently can't be accessed with the normal table of contents.

philmartin

Mike Richards · #9 09-29-2002, 01:35 PM

Task 83-560 is not on the 126 CD.

Task 83-546 deals with the aux. fan removal. I looked at it and it appeared to be complete to me? The doc on the CD should get things done.

TomLatos · #10 09-29-2002, 02:40 PM

I removed those eight plastic rivets w/o damage using the followng technique:

Use a small flat blade screwdriver, pry each rivet up just a bit, and then loop a piece of string underneath the rivet. Using your finger to keep the string in-place, pull on the string and the rivet will pop right out.

cam69ss · #11 09-29-2002, 02:51 PM

Philmartin,
The only procedure I can find on my 2 CD's for the W126 is 83-546. I do not know how to search for 83-560, I can not find a "search engine" on the CD?
Thanks,

Dan

cam69ss · #12 09-29-2002, 02:53 PM

Just got it done, thanks.
I was sent the wrong side fan, all I had to do was remove the three nuts in the middle of the fan that hold the motor to the cast alum. bracket and rotate the bracket with the wire to the location needed.
Dan

#13 06-26-2003, 12:15 AM

I have a '91 350SD and my left aux fan has failed. I removed the brace with the three bolts but did not disconnect the horn. I then removed the plastic rivets around the fan. However, I only count 3 for each fan. Each fan has two on the top and one on the bottom inside.

The sides seem loose, however, the top middle seems taught. Can anyone offer any additional assistance?

Am I missing anything. How do I remove the aux fan shroud considering the top center?

I need to get this done, it's 90+ degrees in KS and killing me!

Thanks

cam69ss · #14 07-09-2003, 11:31 PM

If I remember it, I think the shroud has a lip the hooks onto the top radiator support. You have to push the shroud in and then up. It is a pain in the butt to get the shroud out. I am actually going to replace the D/S fan this weekend. I replaced the P/S in this past Fall. So, I suggest doing both at the same time b/c the other one will fail soon enough.
Dan