[Locksmith]

Got my fan motors and finally got a chance to swap em out so here we go.

Gotta get a few things outa the way first. Remove the plastic rivits and the plastic trim front and center.

Squeeze out all the wire grommets and remove the 4 bolts that hold that T shaped thing in place on top.

 

[Locksmith]

There's one more bolt for that T shaped thing on the bottom and I had to remove the plastic cover under the front end to get to it. It's a little difficult to get any pics when I'm on my back but I think you'll get the point.

After that you can lift the T up and out of the way. I didn't bother removing the hood latch or the radiator brackets.

Remove the coolant reservoir also. Unscrew the cap, one bolt on top and it lifts right out.

 

[Locksmith]

Each fan assembly has 2 bolts and 1 plug on top. The one on the left has a plug and wire holder on the bottom. Remove all that.

Remove the top radiator hose. I'm doing a coolant flush too so I'm draining the radiator while I'm at it.

 

[Locksmith]

Both fan assemblies should lift right out at this point.

Swapping out the fan motors at this point is just a matter of removing the fan blades and swapping out those motors. One of my minions showed up to help take pictures so here some nice crotch shots for ya.

 

[Locksmith]

Installation is the reverse of removal and... have fun!

 

[Bowzer]

Nicely presented...thanks for taking the time to take and post the pics.

 

[AZelementman]

CRV fan fits!!!!

I would like to add a few things I encountered while performing a condenser fan replacement.. (the instructions above were invaluable!!!!)

First - the terminology had me confused. BOTH fans are supposed to come on when the AC is on. NEITHER fan seems to be needed if the engine runs cool. So it was hard for me to determine which was which. That made it hard to order a replacement. ("The one on the passenger side" didn't seem to matter to the parts counter guys) I finally figured it was my condenser fan - the passenger side. And that fan was hard to locate. What I did discover, by accident, is the the Honda CRV fan was a perfect match for a replacement, and was cheaper too!!!

Other than that, the difficulties I encountered were small but time consuming. Wire clips were hard to get to, hard to remove and hard to replace. The bottom plugs were a bear to get right. NOTE - if you broke the bottom plug clip when removing it, be sure to remove the broken part from your plug before trying to replace it on the new housing. This took me 20 minutes on my back to discover and remedy.

Lastly, I think it might be better (though I didn't try this) to remove that top-to-bottom brace thingy at the hood latch point rather than at the bottom. That way you could avoid all of the wire tabs that attach to that support altogether, and avoid the need to get on your back to remove the bottom 10mm bolt. .

 

[Blue Boxer]

I would like to add a few things I encountered while performing a condenser fan replacement.. (the instructions above were invaluable!!!!)

First - the terminology had me confused. BOTH fans are supposed to come on when the AC is on. NEITHER fan seems to be needed if the engine runs cool. So it was hard for me to determine which was which. That made it hard to order a replacement. ("The one on the passenger side" didn't seem to matter to the parts counter guys) I finally figured it was my condenser fan - the passenger side. And that fan was hard to locate. What I did discover, by accident, is the the Honda CRV fan was a perfect match for a replacement, and was cheaper too!!!

Other than that, the difficulties I encountered were small but time consuming. Wire clips were hard to get to, hard to remove and hard to replace. The bottom plugs were a bear to get right. NOTE - if you broke the bottom plug clip when removing it, be sure to remove the broken part from your plug before trying to replace it on the new housing. This took me 20 minutes on my back to discover and remedy.

Lastly, I think it might be better (though I didn't try this) to remove that top-to-bottom brace thingy at the hood latch point rather than at the bottom. That way you could avoid all of the wire tabs that attach to that support altogether, and avoid the need to get on your back to remove the bottom 10mm bolt. .

I just changed out my Drivers side radiator cooling fan this morning. I did it without completly removing the t-bar brace. I removed all the top bolts and the 4 radiator bracket brace bolts at the top. I loosened the botttom bolt and pushed out all the wire clips. I did not remove the botom plastic shroud, insted I cut an u shaped acsess hole in it . Just pull it down and insert socket through the hole to get at the bottom brace bolt. The acsess hole is located where the arrow is molded in the plastic.

Getting the rad cooling fan out this way can be done, but you have to push the T-bar brace as far forward at the top as you can. Then its a tight fit pulling the fan out. It will hang up on wires going to a sensor on the air intake body. so be carefull not to damage this. The fan asembly will also hit the cooling fins if you carelessly wrestle the fan asembly too much. If you ask me if I would advise removing the old rad fan this way id say no. go the extra step and completly remove the T-bar up and out of the way.

 

[glorth2]

Sorry for crossposting this but:
Hoping for some emergency advice. I got the (AC condenser fan) assembly out but it seems that, on the outgoing unit, I snapped off a plug type thing on the bottom, right hand side of the unit, looking at the car from the front. I was able to reach in and seperate the male from the female but I don't really see any electrical connection for this to plug into. I mean, I can obviously connect the male to the female and I see the electric going to the car but I don't see a connection coming into the unit from that area. I have the other 2 connections. As it is right now I'm not even sure how to get the combined male/female connection onto the unit. Hope I'm making sense. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Locksmith]

...snapped off a plug type thing on the bottom...

Not 100% sure what you mean but a quick glance at my car and I see the radiator temperature sensor and the wiring harness going to the A/C compressor.

Barely visible in this pic

Hopefully you didn't break one of them. When you've got everything back together and fire up the car again see if your temperature gauge rises and run the A/C. If one of them doesn't work, you'll know where to start.

 

[vancemo]

Locksmith is the man!

Just did my 2 fans, thanks for the great info and pics!

Regarding glorth2's post:

Sorry for crossposting this but:
Hoping for some emergency advice. I got the (AC condenser fan) assembly out but it seems that, on the outgoing unit, I snapped off a plug type thing on the bottom, right hand side of the unit, looking at the car from the front. I was able to reach in and seperate the male from the female but I don't really see any electrical connection for this to plug into. I mean, I can obviously connect the male to the female and I see the electric going to the car but I don't see a connection coming into the unit from that area. I have the other 2 connections. As it is right now I'm not even sure how to get the combined male/female connection onto the unit. Hope I'm making sense. Any help is appreciated.

Check out this post about the AC condenser fan plug at the bottom:

http://www.elementownersclub.com/forums/showpost.php?p=881839&postcount=5

 

[robb5150]

Oops! Wrong place to post. Please refer to

http://www.elementownersclub.com/forums/showthread.php?p=974002#post974002/

 

[Hondapartshero]

DIY: Element cooling and condenser fan motor

Just did a video on replacing the cooling and condenser fan motor. Hopefully I'll have a few more by the end of next week on the same vehicle (front motor mount and washer pump). Hope you enjoy!

http://youtu.be/ea4BNY-0uok

 

[LobsterThief]

I just replaced my Element's drivers-side radiator fan as well -- I wrote up a guide in case anyone needs additional pictures/info:

http://howchoo.com/g/honda-element-radiator-fan-motor-replacement

IMPORTANT NOTE: Advance Auto Parts sold me the wrong fan (they actually had it stored wrong in their computer). The left and right fans don't use the same motor:

- Driver side: round motor
- Passenger side: wankel-shaped motor

 

[the_box_rox]

I replaced both of my fans this morning in less than an hour. Your "'how to" posts made this a no-brainer....THANKS GUYS!

 

[dimlight85]

Thanks again! I just did this today. I feel like I owe you some more beers.

 

[Rare-Element]

Bottom Wire Clips for the Condenser Fan Assembly

I would like to add a few things I encountered while performing a condenser fan replacement.. (the instructions above were invaluable!!!!)

First - the terminology had me confused. BOTH fans are supposed to come on when the AC is on. NEITHER fan seems to be needed if the engine runs cool. So it was hard for me to determine which was which. That made it hard to order a replacement. ("The one on the passenger side" didn't seem to matter to the parts counter guys) I finally figured it was my condenser fan - the passenger side. And that fan was hard to locate. What I did discover, by accident, is the the Honda CRV fan was a perfect match for a replacement, and was cheaper too!!!

Other than that, the difficulties I encountered were small but time consuming. Wire clips were hard to get to, hard to remove and hard to replace. The bottom plugs were a bear to get right. NOTE - if you broke the bottom plug clip when removing it, be sure to remove the broken part from your plug before trying to replace it on the new housing. This took me 20 minutes on my back to discover and remedy.

Lastly, I think it might be better (though I didn't try this) to remove that top-to-bottom brace thingy at the hood latch point rather than at the bottom. That way you could avoid all of the wire tabs that attach to that support altogether, and avoid the need to get on your back to remove the bottom 10mm bolt. .

Sir,

How do you pop up the wire clips at the bottom of the condenser fan assembly? Do you force them out by just pulling them out of the clip or you have to press some kind of tab? Since you can not see them I can't tell and am afraid of breaking anything. Please help. Thanks.

 

[Locksmith]

You talking about the connector for the compressor?

 

[xbladr]

I ran into an issue today and i think i broke both connectors on the bottom. It was a long day to say the least as I was trying to replace the alternator which should be easy. Does anyone have some pics or a diagram of how they connect? or should look

 

[nubsy1]

I have but one question. Is it cheaper to replace the motor or the whole assembly?
Everything i find says the whole assemply is cheaper.