1983 Cressida: Has a fan clutch, or is it a permanant connection?

Maybe I don't understand the terminology. I THINK that...

If it has a "fan clutch", then... the fan might sometimes be spinning, or it might sometimes Not be spinning... based upon whether or not the engine needs cooling... Correct?

I do recall that some old engines never had a "fan clutch"... the fan was always spinning when the engine was running. Is this 6-cyl engine like that?... or does it have a fan clutch?

Many thanks, people.

Mark246

Have a look! If the fan is attached to a finned 'hub', then that's the fan clutch. If it is connected directly to the water pump...

I'm betting the Cressida had a clutch. Just curious; why do you ask?

Yes, the 1983 Cressida has a cooling fan clutch. It should free-wheel when cold and lock up when hot. When the engine is hot, shut it off, remove the ignition key, and see if the cooling fan spins freely. If it does, the clutch is bad.

If your cars "fan clutch" did not slip it would be real noticeable. It would sound like a airplane and loose a huge amount of power when the engine revved up from the fan pulling to much air. But you could check that easy enough when the engine is not running.

On the other hand when one goes bad and slips to much you usually see weird symptoms. Something like the engine temperature going up at the first stop light after exiting the open highway. Then when the light turns green the temperature goes back to normal again.

GL Dan

sound like a

Somebody in the Honda group told me, "No way you can hear the fan." Yeah, right. I had remarked that, with an aftermarket fan clutch installed, at 70MPH on the highway when it kicks in it sounds like you're being passed by a B-17 at takeoff!

The fan will always be spinning whenever the engine is running. The clutch allows the fan to "freewheel" until the engine gets hot (actually it's the air coming through the radiator that gets hot). Then the clutch will lock up and the fan will spin up to the engine speed and move A WHOLE LOT MORE AIR. At speed, it will really get loud.

Jack

Thanks very much for the Very informative replies, people. You guys are Great.

Why am I asking? Because the mechanic says mine is "frozen", and he wants about $300 to fix it. I generally trust this shop, but I also thought that a car that old might not even have one. Thus... I asked.

I only paid twice that for the car four years ago, so I'm reluctant to fix it. Do I need to? I don't know how long it's been frozen. Would it be a problem if I left it frozen? So what if the fan is constantly running... why would that be a problem?

Danny G mentioned that a frozen clutch might cause a big loss of power... I took the car into the shop because it suddenly had no power. Top speed of 45 mph on the freeway, instead of the usual 70. No unusual noise... just little power.

When I SLOWLY increased gas-pedal pressure, it finally got up to 70. And when I finally got home, I checked the oil... 2 quarts low.

Could the frozen clutch be the problem?

Thanks.

Mark246.

Man, it must sound like a swamp boat! This is a bit unusual, since usually when the fan clutches go, they

*loosen* up and don't spin the fan enough! Have you noticed declining fuel economy? (Although with this engine, I think you could tow a Mack truck before you'd notice a decline...)

The fan is held on with 4 10mm bolts, and the clutch the same. You can remove the radiator shroud, and remove the clutch, and put a 'new' (aftermarket) one in for about $70. If you know what you're doing it will take 25 minutes. If you don't it will take a 6-pack.

$300 is rediculous. Did he tell you he had to remove the radiator? There's more room in a Cressida, and I did it in a Supra no problem...

You could shut off the engine, open the hood and check if the fan blades will spin manually or not in about thirty seconds. If it was frozen (or replaced with something different) they will not spin/slip.

Once upon a time... The fluid coupling (fan clutch) failed on my 1986 Toyota truck. I had to get to work and it was very hot that day so I figured it would be ok to "freeze" (used tie wire) the fan clutch and replace it after I got home.

haha. I got as far as the end of the freeway on ramp and pulled over because there was just no way I had enough power merge on the freeway.

So now i'm on the side of the freeway and late for work. For lack of a better idea I put a piece of cardboard in front of the radiator blocking off about 80% so the fan blades grab less air.

Surprise. The truck ran normal again.

No the frozen clutch isn't your problem. The fan will only use about

5 hp at speed and less at lower rpms. You have another problem and you should get it check out.

$300 to replace the clutch seems a little high. Check with other shops in your area. If you have some metric wrenches, stop in at Auto Zone or some other auto parts shop and check the price for the clutch and do the work yourself. It isn't hard.

Jack

Thanks, people, for the continuing conversation.

Jeff... a clogged Muffler? I never woulda' guessed that. I remember my dad telling me about cramming a potato up the tailpipe... the car might not even start. I guess if it's only Partially blocked, then that could be the problem.

A bad clutch? It's an Automatic trans, but here's another interesting tid-bit... Since this problem started, I floor it, and the engine does rev up (same SLOW increase in RPM as when I do it in Neutral), but the car hardly goes any faster... the tranny slips. When I back off the throttle, then apply Very Little pressure to the gas pedal, it works better... the tranny works... the car Slowly increases speed.

More clues... about when the problem started... It's been Very reliable... run Fine for the 3-4 years I've had it... even on several-thousand-mile trips. A week ago, I drove 25 miles, parked it for 2 hours, then started to come home... 4 miles of streets... then 3 miles of freeway... still running fine... then it started slowing down. No unusual noises. Full throttle, and it slowed to 45, and I heard 2 or 3 "pops", like what you'd hear thru the carburator (but it's fuel injected).

Hachiroku... It still runs very quietly... still IDLEs very smooth... can hardly hear it.

Mileage? I dunno'. Never could check it, 'cause the odometer has been stuck since I bought it.

Danny... With engine stopped, fan blades don't move. Thus... it's frozen. I'll plan to do the fan clutch myself. Haven't done that kinda' work on cars since they started putting computers in 'em, but I'm sure I could do this.

I Cannot understand your '86 truck story... WHY would the fan grabbing too much air cause such a power drop? You drove a mile (or several) to the freeway, so the engine was warmed up at least a bit... So what... the engine gets a breeze... Why would ventilation under the hood have an effect on the internal components?

Thanks, guys.

Mark246

Thanks, people, for the continuing conversation.

Jeff... a clogged Muffler? I never woulda' guessed that. I remember my dad telling me about cramming a potato up the tailpipe... the car might not even start. I guess if it's only Partially blocked, then that could be the problem.

A bad clutch? It's an Automatic trans, but here's another interesting tid-bit... Since this problem started, I floor it, and the engine does rev up (same SLOW increase in RPM as when I do it in Neutral), but the car hardly goes any faster... the tranny slips. When I back off the throttle, then apply Very Little pressure to the gas pedal, it works better... the tranny works... the car Slowly increases speed.

More clues... about when the problem started... It's been Very reliable... run Fine for the 3-4 years I've had it... even on several-thousand-mile trips. A week ago, I drove 25 miles, parked it for 2 hours, then started to come home... 4 miles of streets... then 3 miles of freeway... still running fine... then it started slowing down. No unusual noises. Full throttle, and it slowed to 45, and I heard 2 or 3 "pops", like what you'd hear thru the carburator (but it's fuel injected).

Hachiroku... It still runs very quietly... still IDLEs very smooth... can hardly hear it.

Mileage? I dunno'. Never could check it, 'cause the odometer has been stuck since I bought it.

Danny... With engine stopped, fan blades don't move. Thus... it's frozen. I'll plan to do the fan clutch myself. Haven't done that kinda' work on cars since they started putting computers in 'em, but I'm sure I could do this.

I Cannot understand your '86 truck story... WHY would the fan grabbing too much air cause such a power drop? You drove a mile (or several) to the freeway, so the engine was warmed up at least a bit... So what... the engine gets a breeze... Why would ventilation under the hood have an effect on the internal components?

Thanks, guys.

Mark246

Oh the deal with that was, #1 the truck has a small engine and #2 the fluid coupling (fan clutch) will only drive the fan something like 75% of the water pump RPM for standard duty version.

So the fan spinning at the same speed as the water pump that fan was pulling so much air it just took way to much HP.

Dan .