[Biturbos4] Anyone had S4 Fan Clutch go bad?

[MattOVR6 at aol.com]

Since I changed the timing belt on my 2000 S4, the fan has been running non-stop, and sounds like a truck.  I talked to my mechanic about it, and he said that he thinks that the fan clutch inside the belt driven fan on the front of the motor might have gone bad.  It is always on, and you are not able to stop it when it runs.  It's my understanding that there is a fluid inside that thickens as it warms and causes the fan to turn with the engine at that time, and when it's cool, it won't spin as fast.

Has anyone had theirs go bad?  He thought that it might be a good idea to remove this fan, and replace it with a flex-a-lite electric unit mounted to the back of the radiator instead (if the fan unit and fan clutch were about the same price).

Anyone?  Thanks for the help!

Matt O.

2000 Nogaro S4, 77k miles.