paranoidandroid

I've noticed that my fan housing leans forward. There's a 1/8" gap between the fan housing and the engine shroud. This hasn't been an issue - no rubbing between fan or housing, other than it's annoying and my air duct doesn't align to the shroud. Do I need to remove the belts and remount the fan housing, or is my shroud warped? I've loosened the strap to push the fan housing back but it does not want to budge.


Fan housing leans forward

budge96

There is a modicum of adjustment in the belt attachment at the pulley by adding or removing the washers behind the pulley I would attempt to adjust this to get your fan shroud aligned correctly or you could get unnecessary wear on the alternator bearing …Bert

Also a new set of belts never hurt haha

paranoidandroid

Thanks! Are you referring to the shims closest to the alternator? I believe the outer shims affect belt alignment to crank pulley and AC compressor?

EckFe1

It seems to me more that the fan housing isn't seated correctly.
You can take a straight edge or long enough ruler and check if the top pulley is in line with the crank
pulley.
This alignment has nothing to do with belt tension.
If the housing is indeed leaning, like you said, all belts will be off in their V position.

budge96

in other words loosen the belts and the shroud retaining strap , realign the alternator shroud and strap secure then retention your belts and see what your alignment appears to be ,there is a sweet spot and devit or groove that places the shroud correctly in its pedestal side to side for and aft …Bert

95_993

It's far more likely the plastic shroud is not sitting correctly than the fan housing. The fan housing sits on a dowel and it would be difficult to have it leaning toward. One word of caution, do not over tighten the strap on the fan housing as it can distort the housing (ie egg shape). Torque on the strap for the housing is ridiculously low like 5-7ft lbs if memory serves me right. I can look it up if needed. I would also not loosen the fan housing strap with the belts on....you need to seat the housing, torque the strap, and the set belt tension.

here’s a pic under the fan housing, showing the dowel.

paranoidandroid

I pulled off all the belts and realigned the fan housing to the dowel. It seems to sit fine but as soon as I tighten the fan strap it begins to pull the housing forward. This is without any of the pulley pieces installed. My hunch is that the spot where the housing sits is completely mangled and I'll have to get a replacement fan housing.

budge96

Before you would go to that expense check that the housing straps are secured correctly ..never seen one of the strap pins bend or pull away but doesn’t mean it couldn’t happen ..Bert

paranoidandroid

Thanks. The straps are in fine and the bottom of the fan housing doesn't look mangled at all. I removed the entire fan/alternator assembly and it spins freely with no rubbing on my bench. Took apart all the pulleys/shims and noticed that I may be missing a spacer. Is #17 below supposed to be between inner pulley and fan, or is it between the fan bearing and alternator, like what is seen on the last picture in the DIY here: https://p-car.com/diy/alternator/alternator.html

budge96

As far as I recall that spacer fits next to the alternator then comes fan bearing , fan and pulleys ..but I think that would make the bearing and fan closer to the alternator maybe alter the fan alignment in the bracket but not the bracket alignment in the pedestal .
Make sure the fan bracket is back far enough as well that’s about all I can offer sometimes these things require an assembly then disassembly to discover what is off kilter ..
Bert

paranoidandroid

Updates:
- Found the spacer when I took apart everything this afternoon. The PET shows it in the wrong place. Part #17 is actually between the alternator and the bearing/hub.
- Also, while the fan spun true on the alternator, the bearing does not feel smooth when I hold it in my hand. I believe this means the bearing is shot? (car has 80K miles).

Not sure if this explains why the housing was leaning forward, I guess i'll find out when I put things back together. Since I'm already this far, I'm going to get the alternator rebuilt and will look at painting the straps, fan and housing. Does anyone recommend painting the pulleys, or is that a waste of time?

95_993

I wouldn't paint the pulleys. Having them replated is the way to go.

budge96

Possibly check the base of your alternator bracket it may be worn from rubbing or fitting incorrectly and of course replace the fan bearing ..Bert

paranoidandroid

Thanks..luckily the fan housing is good other than it needs to be painted. I got the alternator rebuilt today by a local shop. Was more than I wanted to spent but 200 incl tax for a 1 day turnaround is pretty amazing..the guy said it was pretty worn. New fan bearing is on the way too.

The only other thing I've observed is that the AC belt that has been on the car is the contitech 13x1085, which is short according to this post https://rennlist.com/forums/993-foru...-question.html and @IXLR8 post#6 here https://rennlist.com/forums/993-foru...ator-belt.html
I'm wondering if the PO forced the AC belt on by loosening the fan strap, which pulled everything forward.

71-3.0-911

I hope this fixes your issue but I don't think it will. Given how the housing gets strapped down prior to the belts, I'm betting your shroud looks the same before you even put the belts on.

My shroud looks just like yours and my fan housing is straight and true to the crank pulley from when I put in the Clewett. I think the shroud just deforms over time and heat cycling.