E280 - Visous fan?

[Stewart Smith]

I been looking at a nice E280 for sale locally - only problem is when you start it it sounds like the fan is 'howling' - for a few minutes. - Is this simply a viscous fan on those motors - I had a sierra with the same symptoms. It's been there a while, but apart from that it's a cracking car that I might be able to get cheaper because of the noise.  - What you guys think? - Cheap fans?

Oh ay - filled the  class up today and only got a 3/4 reading on the tank with it brimming. - Sender unit gone?  - Common?
:-(

(Edited by Stewart Smith at 8:25 pm on Sep. 1, 2002)

 

[DougE280]

E280

On my E280, you can definitely tell when the viscous fan is engaged, there is a "roar" that is not there when the gauge is less than about 90 degrees.

If you're under the bonnet and rev it up and the fan is engages, it's a bit frightening first time!

When driving you can definitely hear it inside if you're giving it some welly" after idleing in traffic.  My youngest is convinced there's an angry lion under the bonnet!  

 

[Stewart Smith]

E280

Problem is - I think - that this viscous fan is on from cold but not all the time - so I think it needs replacing....

It's definitely an angry lion though!

Stew.

 

[G4VSQ]

E280

I wouldn't worry about the viscous clutch fan being active from cold. I have just had a new one fitted to my 1988 260E and it does EXACTLY the same-when the car is cold, it's on. When the car is hot and you leave it for a while and restart the car, it's on. When the coolant is over about 105-110 degrees it cuts in. Yes, it certainly is loud but it's moving  a LOT of air!

I asked the mechanic who fitted the coupling if it's meant to do this and he said it should. After all, when the coupling's fluid is cold, it is thicker, so the fan will tend to spin faster until the fluid thins out and/or it's pushed back to the other side of the valve, which has a bi-metallic strip on it.

When the car is at normal operating temperature and you leave it, the underbonnet temperature can rise high enough for the valve in the coupling to open and hence to release the fluid so the fan can be driven by the engine. This sort of makes sense as it will give some  effective cooling underbonnet. Of course if you then leave the car until next day or when it is cold again, the fluid is still ready for action, so the fan roars-I think this is where I came in....

Cheers, Al