Squeaky fan under dash

[acko13]

My 2010 STX D40 has recently developed a squeak in the under dash fan when first starting up. That's the fan that drives the air around inside the car.
Has anyone had to fix or replace one of these little buggers? Is it possible to replace the fan motor or is it a major piece of equipment? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated before I start pulling it apart.

 

[Old.Tony]

In our other car we had a similar problem (with vastly reduced airflow too) and it turns out that the previous owner parked the vehicle under a tree and a large amount of leaf matter had fallen into the intake and over the course of time had worked its way into the ducting inside the dash. The noise came from pieces of this that were being scraped against by the fan. I'm not sure this is even possible in the Navara, but opening the filter door (behind the glove box) might reveal the presence of some debris and give you cause to look further.

Alternatively, yours might have had some water get in and cause some damage to the bearings of the fan which might be quieted by WD-40. If this solution works, you might consider obtaining a new fan from a wreck, and ensuring that it's still in good condition before swapping it out.

 

[[email protected]]

something dropped down my windscreen vent i think it was paper

 

[Maddo71]

I also agree with the clean the filter etc. image below is old vs new. I change mine often too

 

[fuzzylogic]

My 2008 STX d40 does this often, water gets in, after heavy rain (especially if its parked so that the left front wheel is the lowest wheel). The small bearing at the bottom of the fan gets rusty, and the squeak develops. Drop the lower glove box out, and the whole fan housing is held by 3 torx screws. The back one is fiddly. Also, there are 2 electrical connectors to remove. I lube up the bearing and it's good to go for another 6 months, depending on rain. It's a crap design that lets water ingress, and a crap design bearing/housing. Another fun fact, rats can also get in through air inlet, they love to chew through where the aerial cable routes out (Thai build). If they do, this is also the earth for the radio, so that stops working...

 

[fuzzylogic]

My 2008 STX d40 does this often, water gets in, after heavy rain (especially if its parked so that the left front wheel is the lowest wheel). The small bearing at the bottom of the fan gets rusty, and the squeak develops. Drop the lower glove box out, and the whole fan housing is held by 3 torx screws. The back one is fiddly. Also, there are 2 electrical connectors to remove. I lube up the bearing and it's good to go for another 6 months, depending on rain. It's a crap design that lets water ingress, and a crap design bearing/housing. Another fun fact, rats can also get in through air inlet, they love to chew through where the aerial cable routes out (Thai build). If they do, this is also the earth for the radio, so that stops working...

EDIT: I meant left back wheel as the lowest wheel

 

[fuzzylogic]

EDIT: I meant left back wheel as the lowest wheel

And also.... when I ignored this noise for too long, the drag on the fan motor burnt out the fan resistor, which resulted in only the full setting on the fan speed working. losing fan speed 1,2 and 3. About $70 for the fan resistor from memory.

 

[Been a while]

Hmm yup, I've just spent days chasing a leak in the cab. Found two on the driver side fire wall and i have one on the left also that im sure is coming from the fan and heater box area...
I pulled the scuttle panels and checked the scuttle drains. Because of the inlet dam wall it's hard to see and get to the "scuttle to guard" drain. I did flush them but I'm thinking the left one may still have bigger pieces floating back and forth, blocking and un-blocking itself.
Unless she has a minor rust hole the water to enter the heater/air box has to pass over a dam wall the surrounds the air inlet. It's about 50 to 70mm high! My first though was blocked "scuttle to guard" drain but i think what happens on the D22 is, the drain from the collection plate "another plastic removable tray" under the main plastic scuttle gets blocked.. Not able to direct the water it floods over the top and into the heater box inlet... I've got a Wattle Tree in the driveway the has a funeral coming up, the stinking things they are
I'll post some photos soon, "it's on the to do list".. I'll shove the endo scope down/up/around there if clearing the first collection tray drain under the plastic scuttle didn't work..

How's those fancy cab filters you rich guys have pfff I bet you have those fluffy white pillows to rest your face on in an accident too...

Jealous of those cab filters... I wonder if you can get them in the D22 s.cabs, do the early D22 duel cabs have them?