330CIc Broken Fan Blade & Fan Clutch Disaster

I suffered from the exploding fan blade which cause damage to several parts under the hood. I am currently doing the electric fan swap. Here is a list of parts that I have to replace:

Fan Shroud
Fan Blade
Fan Clutch
Coolant Expansion Tank
Coolant Expansion Tank Thermostat
Transmission Oil Cooler
Mounting Plate to attach Oil Cooler
Belly Pan/Splash Guard
Right and Left Brake Air Duct
Under hood Fire Insulation
Dent to hood

I purchase a new water pump as a caution.

In addition, as I was removing the Transmission Oil Cooler I notice that the grey quick disconnect on the end of the transmission hose were broken and damaged. This lead me to ask a few questions.

1. Is it possible to use the transmission hoses even if the grey plastic is missing?

2. If I can not use the transmission hose without the grey plastic, is it possible for me to cut off the ends and use regular clamps to attach the hose to the oil cooler?

3. Which Transmission fluid is compatible to ESSO LT 71141? I purchase Valvoline Max Life after going to the Stealers and they wanted $31 a liter.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Transmission hoses without the grey plastic.

you should do the clutch to mechanical fan swap to avoid this happening again. SolidJake posted it.

Also I would redue your whole cooling system. Look for Mango's refresh thread.

Btw that really sucks, this should be an example for others as to why the clutch fan sucks ball sack. Sorry this happened to you.

Get new transmission hoses. Last thing you want to do is use a part that will fail.

I was really hoping I could avoid purchasing new transmisson hoses. I price them and the hoses and they will cost me over $140 per hose

That is the reason I want to know if using metal clamp to attach the hose to the oil cooler would work just as well?

Any idea where to get the hoses at a cheaper price.

I had the same thing happen to me about 4 years ago. I got lucky though because it only punctured the radiator.

Quick Update!!!

I decided to try the transmission hoses/lines to see if they would leak. I am glad to say the transmission hose snaped right into the oil cooler and had no leaks. I'm under the impression that the grey ring is basically on the end of the hose to allow it to discount from the cooler and that is the grey ring only purpose. I will still keep an eye on hose for awhile.

Replace that cooling system since you're there and do the electrical fan swap that I have a thread on (all part numbers included)

I would also look into having the engine mounts checked out.

The car sat idling for about 45 minutes or so. I had the heater on while it sat park idlin since I just replace the coolent. Then all of a sudden an explosion, "BOM-BAM!!! Coolant everywhere open the hood and the Coolant Expansion Tank was blown apart and took my Radiator with it. I was sure I bleed the system and the car was not running hot.


What could have cause this? I have change the coolant several times in this car so I'm not a roockie to this.

So now I have to buy another expansion tank and radiator.

...Then all of a sudden an explosion, "BOM-BAM!!! Coolant everywhere open the hood and the Coolant Expansion Tank was blown apart and took my Radiator with it. I was sure I bleed the system and the car was not running hot.

Not clear on the timing ... did this happen after you did all the repairs in the first post? If yes, what brand expansion tank did you buy?

Its OEM Henst Autotech.

www.henstparts.com or henst.com for reference.

I'm not sure why this happen. Could it be a weak expansion tank, bad cap or the radiator had a weak spot. Im just not sure.

Blew the top off that sucka. I'm in the process of replacing my cooling system. New clutch too. I hope my stuff doesn't explode like that. If it does I will be giving ecs a call.

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I also want to ask if the fan blade failed first? This makes me want to do an electric fan swap now. I don't want to be on the highway and something like this happens while my son is in the car

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That was the beginning of my problems, the fan blade seperated and damage alot of stuff under the hood. After researching the web, I decided to go electric to avoid this happening again.

No no no no no no no and..... NO.

The problem is NOT the fan blade/clutch itself, but your lack of maintenance and the fact that you've never seen my thread.

The fan blade itself is great--Genuine BMW is able to last 100,000+ miles or 10+ years. Ideally, you should replace at 75,000 miles or 8 years. The blade itself can chip, crack, become off balance and just grenade inside of your engine bay. This is why I recommend the complete overhaul of your cooling system and NOT just bits and pieces--these so-called "KITS" available from many "vendors" which are just out to grab a quick buck, but aren't doing enough to educate and assist the community about the importance of replacing the entire system.

Replace your fan/blade and clutch with Genuine BMW (or OEM Sachs for the clutch) and never have a problem. Though the problem is usually with the blade.

Yes you can also do an electric conversion, but don't for a second think you can just ignore maintenance. You'll have to replace stuff JUST as often and frequent mechanical or NOT.

See sig. Do it all!!!!!!!!!!

Mango I see your point but less then 30k miles ago the stealer replace all the parts you recommend replacing under an extended warranty program. I had an over heating problem and I allowed them to deal with it. Believe me they replace all the parts so that they could make money off the warranty. Needless to say that has been years but the car has been garage keep and not driven much with low miles. So things happen eventhough we do preventive maintence. I not taking the blame for these items not holding up. Again things sometimes just happens.

Looking at the way your expansion tank blew the top off has me scared cause I looked in the inside of my new meyle piece and it has the plastic grooves where the top off the tank is joined to the bottom. I think I might just get an OEM tank to replace with

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Originally Posted by DRICHFL

Mango I see your point but less then 30k miles ago the stealer replace all the parts you recommend replacing under an extended warranty program. I had an over heating problem and I allowed them to deal with it. Believe me they replace all the parts so that they could make money off the warranty. Needless to say that has been years but the car has been garage keep and not driven much with low miles. So things happen eventhough we do preventive maintence. I not taking the blame for these items not holding up. Again things sometimes just happens.

The fact that you did not have any direct involvement with the actual parts ordering and installation, you really cannot say for sure what was done to your car, if anything.

New parts don't fail like that. Your car was taken advantage of. Your car overheated to begin with because you didn't maintain it. Don't say you maintained your car on a preventive basis! Your dealer attempted a poor repair on a car that already overheated. Big big mess.

Ouch! That is a catastrophic failure if I ever saw one...
Sorry to see this happen to a fellow fanatic.
Just be glad it didn't occur when you were driving!

Here's some of my observations and thoughts:
(I'm taking this out of 'posting' sequence - Post#17)

Originally Posted by DRICHFL

Mango I see your point but less then 30k miles ago the stealer replace all the parts you recommend replacing under an extended warranty program. I had an over heating problem and I allowed them to deal with it. Believe me they replace all the parts so that they could make money off the warranty. Needless to say that has been years ...

What ALL parts were replaced? Do you have the original list of parts- was the ATT replaced at the same time??

Also, what was the mileage when the overheating first occurred?

Originally Posted by DRICHFL

... I not taking the blame for these items not holding up. Again things sometimes just happens.

That's true. BUT, in your case > if a certain part was NOT replaced/neglected (or slightly/minutely broken but left in place, ie: ATT) that could cause a major failure down the line/road. In that case, it was predictable.

What's that old saying... "A chain is only as strong as its weakest link"

Originally Posted by DRICHFL

Its OEM Henst Autotech.

Originally Posted by DRICHFL

www.henstparts.com or henst.com for reference.

NOTE: WARNING!
You are buying said "OEM" parts from a chinese manufacturer/supplier... **

This is a serious lapse in judgement or you are a heavy gambler because these parts are Not up to spec and are guaranteed to fail.

Originally Posted by DRICHFL

I'm not sure why this happen. Could it be a weak expansion tank, bad cap or the radiator had a weak spot. Im just not sure.

One reason why I believe OE expansion tanks can fail is due to the design of the ATT (automatic transmission thermostat). When the small retaining cap breaks, it can cause "over pressure" within the tank >
Reference my video on expansion tank diagnosis on my youtube channel.

If you look carefully at your own photo, you can see that exact same cockeyed break in the cap (top of the ATT) that I was referencing below





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Disclaimer -
I do not work/own/associate with said company. So what I say is strictly of my opinions and has nothing to do with this forum or the forum's owner.