Cheaper fan alternative (info)

[elwesso]

I mentioned in a previous thread that I had intermittent issues with the radiator fan not working properly. Sometimes the fan would get stuck on high speed so it sounded like the car was preparing for take-off, or sometimes it wouldn't come on at all, and I wouldn't notice until I was sitting in traffic and the little orange temperature light came on..

I was not on board with paying $650 for a replacement fan without at least trying to find an alternative.

After doing some digging around, I discovered that many similar year BMW use the same fan blade/motor as the M Coupe, just not the same shroud. I believe the same vintage 5 series, 7 series, and X5 all use the same fan. Long story short, I ended up finding this on eBay, and thought I'd give it a try.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/New-fits-BM...72.m2749.l2649

if you search eBay for part number: 17427543282, you'll find an aftermarket replacement fan for about $200 made by "topaz" (part number T1207013).

Comparing the motors, you'll see they're exactly the same shape, and the connector is exactly the same as well. Remove the 5 screws holding the motor to the shroud, and simply swap it in to your existing shroud off the car..

Plugged the fan in, and everything seems to work properly. I've heard it modulate speed, so everything seems to be good. Again, this was a brand new fan with a 1 year warranty... Even if this fan only lasts a few years, I can still buy many of these before I got to the price of an OEM replacement.

Just thought I'd pass this along for anyone trying to replace their fan with an OEM replacement to avoid paying stupid OEM prices.

[StickMon]

Probably worth grabbing one to put in my spare parts collection next to my spare coolant expansion tank.