Electric fans, 98 Disco

Jun 22, 2015
9
0
Roanoke VA
Good Morning!


Friday afternoon I discovered the electric cooling fans were not working on my 98 Disco. I have power to them as proved by my test light. So I checked in my workshop manual and could not find a diagram showing how it is wired. Does it switch on the positive or negative? Is there a way to bypass the switches and see if perhaps the fans work but aren't getting turned on? I just want to determine if the fans are indeed bad before spending lots of $$$ on replacement fans. Thanks!
Elton
 

best4x4

Well-known member
Mar 1, 2015
595
72
Beaumont, TX
Unplug them and apply 12v directly to the fans, if they don't run you'll need new fans. Don't fear though as a 93-97 Toyota Corolla uses the exact electric fan. New are like 69.00 (just swap electric motor into your assembly) or find a local salvage/pick n pull and grab a set for cheap. I walked away from my local pick n pull with two electric fans for 10.00. I removed the Corolla blade, and shroud and just bought the actual motors (all you need).

Then remove yours, cut the OEM pigtail off and splice them onto the new fans.
 
Jun 22, 2015
9
0
Roanoke VA
Best,
Thanks for the quick reply! From what I can see, it looks like I will have to remove the fans to get to the plugs. Can I manually switch them from a sender? If the fans are switched on the ground side, it seems likely to be able to cut them on at a sender. Perhaps it is a bad sensor? Or do I need to just pull them out? The workshop manual says to remove the condenser to remove the fans, is that for real? Thanks!


Elton
 

best4x4

Well-known member
Mar 1, 2015
595
72
Beaumont, TX
You can remove them without touching the condenser. When I bought my 98 D1 a few months back I noticed one efan was INOP. I looked around for a replacement and then I found info about the Corolla efan being the same Denso efan. I went to my local pick n pull and snagged a set for 10.00 (tested them out at the car). I then got home, and removed the lower headlight surrounds, grill, and with small extensions I was able to get all 4 mounting screws for the efan loose. Then it came time to remove it, and I removed the support bars (DO NOT bend them as they're very delicate), then the lower plastic drip tray, and I loosened the trans cooler bracket. Then the hood latch assembly needs to move so I removed that as well. After that with a little wiggling it will come right out without having to mess with any AC removal. Hardest part was honestly getting the fans unplugged, but if you remove the trim from between the radiator and front end support you can pop the mounting tabs loose, and then pull them down far enough and unplug them.

Took me maybe an hour and I was taking my time. Corolla efan motor is 100% exact and I got both of mine off 97 models.
 

BarryO

Well-known member
May 15, 2018
98
7
Bend, OR
Resurrecting an old thread; both the fans in my D1 aren't working, and the relay power output is fine. Next step is to access the fans themselves. How does one remove the lower headlight surrounds on a D1? RAVE just says "remove" with no guidance. I'd like to avoid breaking something if I can.
 

robertf

Well-known member
Jan 22, 2006
4,778
354
-
Pop the retaining spring off the turn signals and remove those. You’ll see a phillips head screw. Undo that. They slide out of the grill once thats gone
 

BarryO

Well-known member
May 15, 2018
98
7
Bend, OR
I have a couple of these on the way:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019T9U0DE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
The user comments even mentions it working on a Disco I

Well darn, I got them today and they don't fit. :mad: The Disco I fans need motors with 105 mm mounting centers, and these have 100 mm centers. The same Amazon 3rd party seller has one of the 105 mm units in stock, so I ordered one of them.


I'll find out! Since I ordered one of those, too.
 

BarryO

Well-known member
May 15, 2018
98
7
Bend, OR
Installed the motors and the fans today, and no more overheating at idle with the A/C on! Thanks for everyone's help.

Ordered two fans from two different suppliers since the first one only had one in stock with the 105 mm mounting centers. For both I needed to cut off the connectors on the old fans and re-use them. For this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002VFSXT...olid=3SZYBJV1LFLYW&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

while it drops in, it's not an exact fit in the vertical dimension compared to the original. The fan blades sit about 6 mm proud of their original position, which puts them closer to the condenser coils. In order to maintain the same clearance as the originals, I got longer mounting screws (M5 x 0.8 16 mm), and some 6 mm spacers that a installed between the motor and the housing.

Also noticed the A/C works better, too. 'makes sense, I guess, what with the improved airflow at idle and low speeds over the condenser.
 

WaltNYC

Well-known member
Mar 3, 2010
707
135
NYC
Installed the motors and the fans today, and no more overheating at idle with the A/C on! Thanks for everyone's help.

Ordered two fans from two different suppliers since the first one only had one in stock with the 105 mm mounting centers. For both I needed to cut off the connectors on the old fans and re-use them. For this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002VFSXT...olid=3SZYBJV1LFLYW&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

while it drops in, it's not an exact fit in the vertical dimension compared to the original. The fan blades sit about 6 mm proud of their original position, which puts them closer to the condenser coils. In order to maintain the same clearance as the originals, I got longer mounting screws (M5 x 0.8 16 mm), and some 6 mm spacers that a installed between the motor and the housing.

Also noticed the A/C works better, too. 'makes sense, I guess, what with the improved airflow at idle and low speeds over the condenser.

Interesting. If the other fan you bought is an exact fit, I'd love to have the details of the make/model/place you bought it (an Amazon link would be best).

Thanks for following up and sharing your experience.
 

BarryO

Well-known member
May 15, 2018
98
7
Bend, OR
Interesting. If the other fan you bought is an exact fit, I'd love to have the details of the make/model/place you bought it (an Amazon link would be best).

Thanks for following up and sharing your experience.

This one: It doesn't show in stock at the moment: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019T9TZUI/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

As I mentioned, all I had to do was replace the plug.

For the other one, not only was the vertical dimension different, the original screws that held the fan blade to the motor didn't work; they were too long, and tightening them down stopped the motor from turning. Fortunately, the motor came with shorter screws to use. Like I said I was able to make it work. It even probably would have been OK to just mount the fan without the spacers since even then I don't think the blades would have hit the coils, but I thought it prudent to maintain the same spacing as the original.