Type 44 Radiator Fan current draw

[Brett Dikeman]

At 8:05 PM -0400 9/21/04, Ben Swann wrote:

>The mechanic who said he did a load test on it indicated it drew 45 
>AMP.  The 30 Amp protective fuse I had installed in the return to 
>ground line blew after 2-3 months of operation.  I installed another 
>30A fuse and drover the car for some time with it not blowing.  I 
>then replaced it with a 60 amp fuse.  What is the actual fuse that 
>Audi put in the later type 44s with the fuse option?

60-80A depending upon the part number.  Either is acceptable.

>Any other helpful information on the fan operation and current draw 
>would be appreciated.  I am trying to determing if replacing this 
>fan would be prudent.

Spin the blades by hand.  It should turn easily, and not make any 
noise.  A swish-noise means it is nearing end-of-life.  Bearing 
failure is not uncommon, and if you search the archives for "fan 
bearing replacement" you'll find the appropriate "guide number" 
bearing to use.  McMaster-Carr sells normal double-sealed bearings 
which should outlive the body panels on the car and are well under 
$20(I believe they're under $10) but if the wallet's feeling heavy, 
they also sell bearings that are manufactured(but not certified) to 
APEC-1 standards(APEC is a quality measurement, essentially, for 
bearings...I think it deals mostly with manufacturing tolerances) and 
those cost about $14.

Cracking it open reportedly is not very hard, and you only have to 
drill out 3 rivets to get the retainer plate out for each bearing. 
Pop in the new bearing, use some pop-rivets to reinstall, check to 
make sure none of the contacts on the rotor are crossed, maybe clean 
up the rotor contacts some- slap it all back together and you're good 
for another zillion miles as long as the brushes are OK!

>Vehicle/Engine in question is '87 rebuilt 2.2l turbo installed in a 
>'88 5000 quattro avant, but I assume the information spans the 
>majority of these cars.

Pretty much.  The newer cars use a quieter fan that has more blades, 
and yes, they're interchangeable.  I think the newer motors might be 
ever so slightly different in design, not sure.

Brett
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