> On Thu, 3 Jul 1997, Gary Atkinson wrote:
>
> > Hey,
> > I have an annoying roar that I think I have isolated down to the cooling
> > fan/clutch. It doesn't happen all the time, but maybe 30-40% of the time
> > and is quite loud. I "sounds" like a slow shift out of first gear and
> > that the engine is racing. A quick check of the tach showed that not to
> > be the case. It happens with hard or easy acceleration and when I hold a
> > constant rpm, the roar fades away.
> >
> > Its a 97 V-6 auto. Can anyone tell me if this is a thermal clutch? It
> > not associated with air conditioning, seems to happen independant of
> > engine temperature, and happens in gear or when in park/neutral Any
> > second opinions (asking for opinions on this list is dangerous :-) )
> >
> > Any help appreciated.
> >
> > Gary Atkinson, 97 V6 cc sport
Yes, the noise you are hearing is the clutch for the fan. It gets too thick
when the truck is cold and you hear the fan blowing lots of air when you are
idling. The clutch thinks the motor is really hot when actually the motor is
cool. This is a "known problem" on the Dakota list.
My '97 hasn't done it much lately (probably due to the sweltering heat in
Michigan last week). It seemed to only happen when the temps outside are
pretty chilly.
I plan to switch to an electric fan so the problem will go away for me. I
wonder if we complained to dealership, would they install a new fan clutch on
our 97s?
Dave D: Where do the fan clutches on the 97s come from?
-Scott
=Scott Vieth
'68 Camaro RS, 327/PG
'97 Dakota Sport 4x4 Club Cab, Magnum V8/5-spd, Gibson cat-back, FIPK-clone
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