Hi all,
I've owned my '96 SR5 for about a year and have had a hard time finding a fan clutch that keeps it from running hot.
When I bought the truck, the fan clutch was always engaged - great for cooling, but pretty noisy and terrible on gas. So I ordered a Beck Arnley piece from rockauto. It worked great for about 300 miles, but after that the truck began running hot in stop-and-go traffic (the needle hit the red mark and coolant was boiling in the radiator). Even when the engine was this hot, the fan wouldn't engage.
I sent the fan clutch back to rockauto and they sent me a replacement. I got the same results - worked great for a few hundred miles, then it wouldn't engage.
This time I got a genuine Toyota replacement and thought everything would be fine. And it was, for about 2000 miles. I could hear the fan engage in hot traffic jams etc. Then yesterday I got the same crap: I saw the needle climbing to "H" again in 90-degree afternoon traffic, and the fan refuses to engage.
WTH is going on here? None of the fan clutches showed any sign of leakage or looseness, and they all make the typical "roar" during a cold start. Aside from running the risk of engine damage, this is really starting to make me feel foolish because I'm pretty mechanicaly inclined.
I have recently learned about the ability to add more fluid to the clutch, and I plan on giving this a try. But why would all 3 clutches take a crap without any signs of leakage?
The truck has a new water pump, t-stat, and hoses (replaced during timing belt change). The radiator is in great shape. There are no signs of a head gasket leak (but I'm afraid it's bound to happen soon if it keeps overheating). Is this a common problem? Am I missing something?
Thanks in advance,
Scott
:AK47:
I've owned my '96 SR5 for about a year and have had a hard time finding a fan clutch that keeps it from running hot.
When I bought the truck, the fan clutch was always engaged - great for cooling, but pretty noisy and terrible on gas. So I ordered a Beck Arnley piece from rockauto. It worked great for about 300 miles, but after that the truck began running hot in stop-and-go traffic (the needle hit the red mark and coolant was boiling in the radiator). Even when the engine was this hot, the fan wouldn't engage.
I sent the fan clutch back to rockauto and they sent me a replacement. I got the same results - worked great for a few hundred miles, then it wouldn't engage.
This time I got a genuine Toyota replacement and thought everything would be fine. And it was, for about 2000 miles. I could hear the fan engage in hot traffic jams etc. Then yesterday I got the same crap: I saw the needle climbing to "H" again in 90-degree afternoon traffic, and the fan refuses to engage.
WTH is going on here? None of the fan clutches showed any sign of leakage or looseness, and they all make the typical "roar" during a cold start. Aside from running the risk of engine damage, this is really starting to make me feel foolish because I'm pretty mechanicaly inclined.
I have recently learned about the ability to add more fluid to the clutch, and I plan on giving this a try. But why would all 3 clutches take a crap without any signs of leakage?
The truck has a new water pump, t-stat, and hoses (replaced during timing belt change). The radiator is in great shape. There are no signs of a head gasket leak (but I'm afraid it's bound to happen soon if it keeps overheating). Is this a common problem? Am I missing something?
Thanks in advance,
Scott
:AK47:
