NEED HELP - Radiator Fan is Cracked

A few days ago I was driving and hit ~4k rpm and heard a fast wacking noise from up in the engine bay and just today I found cracks and missing chunks in my radiator/cooling/engine clutch fan blades (I've been searching this forum and found them under a lot of names but no answer to whats happening). It appears that they flex and are hitting a bolt just under the power steering reservoir. There is good resistance and no free spinning when I manually spin the fan so I feel like the clutch is good, and there appears to be no wobble if i move the fan back and forth (it feels secure), the blades just seem "flexible." My question is how to I test the clutch portion and determine whether I need just new blades, a new mount, or a new clutch. And how to I swap it all out? I havent been able to find a thread to follow for this.

http://youtu.be/JnJavzKhp80

The truck is a 2001 TRD 4x4 with 149,994 miles. Only mods are deck plate, squeaky clutch fix, and grey wire but those shouldnt have any affect with this. Just took the truck through 2 days playing in mud so the engine bay is the way it is but this issue was post off road adventure so Im pretty sure its not a rock.

 

actually its not easy to see but I think I can detect the fan clutch hub also has wobble to it.

yes the fan is toast and I think the clutch is bad too and both need to be replaced.

you have more then just a fan blade issue there, the fan blade falling apart is just the result of something letting it wobble so that needs to be fixed as well or the new blade will wobble and hit something too.

 

Thank you, and thanks for the quick reply. I was looking on rock auto and found two fan blades. I assume OE is naturally the better option?

$45 http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=1027480&cc=1375343
$55 http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=2195946&cc=1375343

Why do you think the clutch is bad as well? How can I check or what should i look for? Clutch fans are new to me.

And I see the wobble youre talking about but I think its an optical illusion from the fan warping because it feels super solid, no abnormal movement like a wiggle or flex or budge (I tried pushing and pulling and twisting different spots on the full rotation of the fan several times), just normal spinning.

 

well its no big deal if you just change the fan and then see what happens. if you couldn't feel any looseness or wiggle to it then its most likely fine.

after you replace the fan take another video or have someone rev it for you to be sure the hub itself doesn't have any wobble to it. there shouldn't be any wobble in the hub or the shaft it rides on.

and yes, oem fans are best, aftermarket fans are cheaper but then just don't move the same amount of air.

the reason I mentioned the clutch hub was, im thinking there is some reason the fan broke and im looking for that reason.

don't forget to take a look and make sure the fan blade didn't also hit the radiator and damage it too.

from the video its hard to tell.

 

I snapped a fan blade about a month ago. No idea what caused it. Easy to fix. Very happy that the blade didn't do any damage.



http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/1st-gen-builds/259729-tomtoms-03-trd-xtra-cab-41.html#post9669340

I'd replace the fan and see how things run unless you feel like replacing the clutch hub while you're in there.