Hey guys, just got my CRV back together yesterday (its been a very busy few months)… GOOD news the AC is nice a cold now !! The bad news is that apparently one of my cooling fans is bad… The passenger side fan, with the AC on MAX, sometimes spins very slowly, other times not at all. If I push start it it will work for a while (but spin very slowly). Now I am trying to fix this on the cheap, so my question is can I get away with out replacing the whole fan… Can I service this motor?? Has any one tried??
Yeah after posting it seems I can get a new motor only for $30-40 off ebay… maybe I will go that way… Just seems odd that it “works” all be it slowly… I May just take it apart try to lube it and see what happens.
Whatever you do don’t use the A/C until both the fans are working properly. Lack of air flow across the condenser and the resulting higher than normal head pressures are a common contributor to compressor failure.
I’ve taken these motors apart and they are not difficult. So far, the only problems I have found is that the brushes get stuck in their tracks. I pop the brushes out, scrape the sides just a tad and put them back in. The motors work fine after that.
You are looking at an hour or two of work here so you need to decide if the effort is worth it, if fixing the motor is the best use of your time. For me, it was a mater of just wanting to get the vehicle back on the road and not having to wait for UPS to deliver a new part ordered off the internet or from a local store (part not in stock)
@gsragtop: I’m inclined to agree with Keith. I’ve had a tempermental window motor in my Caravan, and knew I could replace the regulator with motor as a unit for $85, a reasonable price. I just did that on the other side when the rail and cable parts went blooey.
But now on the other window, only the motor was balky - it would sometimes work, though rarely, so I swapped the good armature left over from the previous repair, and it worked…for a month. So I disassembled the motor, cleaned up the armature contacts, filed the brushes to make better contact and it’s been working perfectly. That took less than an hour and I used the $85 I saved on some of the other things this car needs.
So if you can get at the motor, it may be worth a try. Good luck!
So I pulled the fan, and got down to the motor. It sounds like it has a bad bearing. I can’t figure out how to split the motor open. However there is a small hole on the bottom of the case, and a gap around the main collar. Can I spray wd40 or bike chain lube in?? Just wondering.
Lubing the bearning might work for a while, but I doubt it is a sustainable fix. You might try a a local auto-electric shop. They often can do this kind of thing. The bearning probably needs to be replaced. "And this kind of shop knows where to find the replacement bearings, or they might have some in stock.
Lubricating any bearing always sounds like a good idea, so unless someone else knows a reason to not lube it, you may as well go for it. However I don’t think you’ve picked good lubes. I’ve always heard that WD40 is not so great, and never been sure if that was a myth.
As for chain lube, I believe that some are made with additives which serve the specific purpose of the chain, which might include somehow sticking on the chain instead of flying off, and there’s no heat and not a lot of motion between the chain parts. In a motor you’ve got an entirely different dynamic - motion and probably heat, so you probably need something better suited for that. I don’t know what that is, but I’m pretty sure chain lube isn’t it. So other than grease which you can’t get through the little hole you found, I suppose I’d try a machine oil of some kind. Hopefully someone else here knows lots more about lube.
If you’re lubing, PB blaster makes this silicone spray lube that works really well on small bearings. It stays very viscous, even when cold.
HomeDepot sells it.
EHHH I just decided to got a new one… Advance has a deal 15% off now PLUS a $25 off $50 cupon for the future (later this month). My daily driver needs front brakes, so for $55 for the new fan motor, I will save an extra $25 when I do the brakes on my Buick next month… LOL Gotta work the programs.
Gotta work the programs.