Fan Clutch Removal

wahoo · November 27, 2001

I'm in the process of replacing my water pump on my 96 pickup with a 350 engine. My instructions failed to inform me that I needed a fan clutch wrench to achieve this project. :stupid:

I have successfully removed the water pump with the fan and the fan clutch still attached. I will be picking up a fan clutch wrench this afternoon so that I can transfer the fan assembly to the new water pump.

My question is...Which direction do I turn the fan clutch nut? And any other pointers that you can give me.

Thanks in advance!

Wahoo

Kansas Kid · November 29, 2001

I wish I could help you out, but I wouldn't have known you even needed that special wrench. I guess you have helped me out though, because I need to replace my fan clutch by next summer. Now I know I will have to get a special wrench before starting.

raventai · December 7, 2001

??? not familiar with that particular year but ushualy the pump comes bare with no pully or fan stem

so wile taking the old one out the first thing u do before u loosen the belt is loosen the 4 nuts that attach the pully and fan onto the watter pump, the belt keeps the assy. from turning.....

is it diffrent in that year?

wahoo · December 10, 2001

Sorry for the delay...I went to Autozone and they had the wrench in their loan-a-tool program. Basically, you buy the tool and then take it back and get your money back.

Anyway, Once I got the wrench, I had the fan clutch off in about 5 minutes. I slapped the new pump on and put everything back together with no parts left.

For every job there is a perfect tool.

Wahoo

Jack-of-all-trades...Master of None.

96 Vortec · January 6, 2002

How the crap did you get the fan and clutch seperated from the water pump? I had to replace the seals today and just ended up pulling the water pump out with the fan still in place. I even rented the tool but couldn't figure out what direction to turn.

How hard is it to break them loose?

Turns out it is the water pump leaking so I gotta do it again tomorrow.

95Yukon · January 6, 2002

'95 was the last year for the 4 nuts :blush:

The '96 and up vortech has a single threaded post the fan assy. screws onto. It should turn the same direction the fan turns when it's running to loosen it. (standard thread, not reversed) It's probably easier to do that with the serpentine belt on it to hold it from turning, but you can probably put a strap wrench on the pulley if it's already on the workbench. According to my book, it says to use a special tool, but also says an adjustable wrench can be used if the tool isn't available. (the picture shows them using an adjustable to loosen it) That's for the fan itself, which should be all you need to do for changing the water pump. Fan and clutch will come off as one assembly.

wahoo · January 7, 2002

Yep, sounds familiar. I removed the pump with the fan also. The guy at the parts house told it would have been easier if I had left it on. No Joke!

I wound up mounting the old water pump with the fan attached to my work bench and then using the fan clutch wrench. I'm pretty sure it loosened counter-clockwise. The box end of the wrench fit around the 4 bolts on the fan clutch. The other wrench went on the larger center nut. You may need a small tap from a hammer to break it loose.

Wahoo

CMNTMXR81 · January 7, 2002

Yep, sounds familiar. I removed the pump with the fan also. The guy at the parts house told it would have been easier if I had left it on. No Joke!

I wound up mounting the old water pump with the fan attached to my work bench and then using the fan clutch wrench. I'm pretty sure it loosened counter-clockwise. The box end of the wrench fit around the 4 bolts on the fan clutch. The other wrench went on the larger center nut. You may need a small tap from a hammer to break it loose.

Wahoo

No, think about it. If you are standing facing the engine, the engine turns to your right (the vehicle's left). As such, to tighten the nut it would be counter-clockwise. To loosen, it'd be clockwise, the same as the direction of the fan.