Blower Fan DIY

Here are some pictures/instructions to help out a little more. GL

I was wonder what kind of blower fan you got from Tischer for $104? They use to be almost $400 from the dealer.

Originally Posted by TitaniumCranium

So the part from Tischer that only costs $104 is OEM and works perfectly fine.

Follow the instructions that have gone before. I found it helps to remove the plastic (BMW) camshaft cover also. Rip the old fan out - have some fun - it's already damaged so you're not going to hurt it.

BEFORE you put the new part in, since the fins don't come off the Tischer unit, it is IMPERATIVE that you remove the right side (cars right side) blower housing. If you don't you can be assured you will break the fins trying to get the new unit in. If you take this cover off it's like 5 minutes to get the new fan in - no kidding!

NOTE: if you did happen to break a piece of the fin(s) off of the new unit trying to wedge it in, find the exact opposite fin and take off approximately the same amount of plastic. This might help keep you from buying a new one!

IMPORTANT: My old unit had a black side and a white side. The black side was on the cars right side. Make sure you orient the fan correctly when you install it.

With the right blower housing off (cars right) the fan unit literally just slips right in to the housing - no problems - no risk of bending/breaking the blades. Slide the metal keeper in place and lock it in place on top; use the torx screw driver to slide into the hole at the bottom of the clip and force the clip into place on the housing. Rotate the blades to see that it's installed correctly and you have the correct clearance. Test run the unit by inserting the key and turning the ignition on but don't start the car. If everything is correct it should turn as expected with no vibration or rubbing.

Now put it all back together and you are good to go! I'll post some pictures later but thought I'd get this out here for others that may be trying this soon.

NOTE: This was on a left hand drive car - US model.

Well Tischer is a BMW dealer and it looks the same as the unit that came out except that the one that came out had a black fan cage on the right side and white on the left.

The unit in the pictures is the new one from Tishcer.

Note that I broke two small sections of the fan blade off trying to wedge it in before I took the right blower enclosure assembly off. Normaly this would cause an unbalance situation that would vibrate throughout the car. I took the same amount of material off the exact opposite blade (of motor shaft) and the unit doesn't vibrate.

Are they still made by bosch? Are they quiet?

Originally Posted by TitaniumCranium

Well Tischer is a BMW dealer and it looks the same as the unit that came out except that the one that came out had a black fan cage on the right side and white on the left.

The unit in the pictures is the new one from Tishcer.

Note that I broke two small sections of the fan blade off trying to wedge it in before I took the right blower enclosure assembly off. Normaly this would cause an unbalance situation that would vibrate throughout the car. I took the same amount of material off the exact opposite blade (of motor shaft) and the unit doesn't vibrate.

To be honest I can't tell you. The old unit didn't have a name on it (like I would expect from Bosch) and neither did the new unit. The way the wires attached was a bit different on the new unit. It appears to be as quiet as the previous one, with the exception of that damn cricket that somehow has disappeared.

Originally Posted by paraklas

Just an update.. when you struggle to put the new fan in place, watch not to bend the plastic fins. They are balanced (1 weight per side) and the slight bending will result in massive vibrations when you have full blast (learned the hard way )

I am reading through this thread trying to understand the noises that plague me when I am driving. And of course laughing at the frustration of those that tried before me.

Originally Posted by yetieater

I am reading through this thread trying to understand the noises that plague me when I am driving. And of course laughing at the frustration of those that tried before me.

I have become really obsessed with all sorts of vibrations noises. The blower fan on my E30 took around 19 years to fail and there wasn't even a filter before that. The one on my E46 lasted 3 years. Plastic rivets used about everywhere on the car, failing fans, etc etc can create a very bad driving experience.

For those of you that have replaced your old fan, cant you take them apart to check if there is possible to change the bearing? If thats possible, its just to buy the best bearing you can get, with the same size and replace it..

Alot cheaper than blowing 400$ on a fan because of some noise.. The noise doesnt quite irritate me enough to spend so much money on a new fan, that eventually will be like that again..

It's not user-serviceable. By the time the bearing fails the plastic fins are already too brittle to mess around. Over here it costs $170 a new blower fan.

The fan from Tischer is only $104 - it's not a knock-off it is a factorty BMW service part from BMW Group.

I took a look at the box it came in. Tischer is a BMW dealer with real BMW parts, just very resonably priced. BUY EEEET!

Tischer v.s. Bosch .... reminds me of the Zohan!

"... No, no! it's Sony guts!"

so from what i can tell i can get the cheap 100 dollar one and just have to remove the right enclosure half. so it will slide in, instead of haveing to get the 400 dollar one with removeable blades.

I'm not sure if this is the same noise, but I have this noise that is really givin me the shits, if I stick my head under the hood I cant hear it but If i get under the car, its loudest where I can see through the Engine Bay at the rear, I can hear it if I stand at the side of the car and it almost sounds like a loose Exhaust but its not ... is that the noise we're looking at lol?

Damn, me got cricket beginning too!

I did the blower on my '92 325i and I'm not going in again unless it fails completely, but I'm wondering...

seems like many think the sound is the result of dust/crud built up in blower motor.

For those who went through this nightmare (mine was too long ago to remember any more than the pain), you think there's any chance of this working?

Turning on blower and then, from the inside center vents, blowing a stronger blast of air into vents to dislodge crud and then have blower motor blow it back out into car (I can clean car easier than getting into motor).

You think my chances are any greater than 10% of success?

Thanks for any thoughts you might have!

Doug in NJ

Got mine from Tischer yesterday; the blower motor confirmed made by Bosch.

In the UK we don't have crickets so its hard to know what you mean

However, i get a strange noise which sounds like it is coming through the air vents in the centre of the dash. It seems to have started since it became colder over here and continues when the car is switched off and can last for a good few minutes. Its really like a buzzing noise - is this a cricket??

I really don't want to have to buy a new blower unit but would at least like to identify what the problem is.

Either way, if I do have to replace the unit, the quality of the DIY's posted here are fantastic and would tackle it with confidence because of them - Thanks a lot guys!

Originally Posted by nickdeck

... Anybody have a source for really good magnetized tools?

Haven't finished reading all the posts yet, but - I have a magnet that I put on the shaft of my screwdriver or torxdriver and the screws seem to hold fine. I also have one of those extension magnets (looks like a pen in your shirt pocket and it telescopes out like a pointer) that I hold near the screw, so that when it's ready to come out it doesn't fall into the abyss.

Originally Posted by vanzalone

Tischer v.s. Bosch .... reminds me of the Zohan!

"... No, no! it's Sony guts!"

LOL - except that it's not Tischer vs anybody. It's BMW's part sourced from whoever they decide to source their OEM parts from; in this case Bosch. Tischer's just a very resonably priced BMW dealer (at least for parts).

GREAT DIY!
subbing for later

looks like it is 516.04 at Tischer to me