Bongo Fury

Hi Just Looking at some of the questions about the fan control button but can't really see any answers that will help so thought i would try get more help off you guys, my problem is my front fan has stopped working, it lights up on 1 2 3 with aircon on but not 4, the rear fan works if i set it to 1 2 3 but again not on 4, i checked the fan and it was a bit stiff at first but managed to free it, i have put it straight to battery and it spins ok, i have not changed the resistor thing as not sure where it was but after looking on here i think i found it, is it held in by 2 screws just behind the fuse box under the drain hole? anyway i unplugged it and tried but got a different light sequence when aircon was on but still no fan, Can't afford to buy new fan if its not that so wondered if you can help, had this bongo now for 5 years and its been brill but now the problems have started i'm a little worried, Thanks Andy

I am in the middle of fixing my Fan and controller (slightly different as I have the Climate control however the fan part is the same). In the members section there is everything you need to fix the controller and strip the fan down (2 data sheets).

First thing you need to do is make sure that the drain hole in the guttering at bottom of the window screen is clear. Most probably this is blocked which causes water to flow under the bonnet and will evetually find its way down to the fan motor causing the lower bearing to stick and then burn out the controller (from the overload). This will be the stiffness you encountered when you tried to turn the fan by hand. The good news is that your motor still works however I would recomend that you strip it down. I have just done mine an found a load water and crud, so even though you have freed it up it will seize again. Took me a couple of hours to strip down, clean up and relubricate the bearings.

Mike

Thanks for the reply, i took it to bits yesterday taking the 3 screws out from underneath and dropping the fan, hope this is the right fan as not looked at the forum for answers but just got stuck in, it was dry and i put a bit of wd40 and a quick clean then tested it to the bat, it spun lovely so i thought that was it, put it all back and connected it and the same problem, checked fuse first and that was fine, just not sure about this other part i was suppose to check so had a look on here and it gave me the instructions to locate it but not sure how to check it or even if it is the part i am looking for so any info on that would be a good help, thanks again. Andy

Ok, I've taken everything apart, stripped the motor down, put it back together, resoldered the resistor unit and........it still doesn't work. Taken everything apart again and the resistor has blown its little plates again (probably due to the motor not spinning).

Here's the question: it has been mentioned many times about re-greasing the bearing in the motor, but mine does not appear to have any bearings. The spindle sits in the indentation in metal cap, but no bearings. Any clues? Also, the magnets seem intent on sticking to the sides of the motor housing (which obviously hinders motion). Still can't bring myself to spend £120 on a new one, and as yet have not found a replacement from another vehicle which fits.

Any help welcomed gladly.

Simon

I've never done it myself, but the metal cap, you are talking about, may well be a phosphor bronze bearing which should be soaked in oil. Doubtless someone wiser will be along if I'm wrong

Hi simon cheers for your reply, have you connected fan to battery to see if it spins, i was lost when i got told to lube the barrings as mine is the same as yours, i need to take the resistor out of mine as not looked at it yet but not sure what i'm looking for, will get back to you tom when i get chance to strip it down and try again, i cant afford to be spending that sort of money on a fan so hope we come up with something, good luck

SORTED, i took the resistor out and took the plastic top off and 2 of the pins had solder joints that had popped off so have re soldered them and it works spot on, Thanks guys for ya help, hope you all get yours sorted, all i can suggest is make sure your fan is spinning free and you try it by connecting it to the battery, i peeled a bit of the red and black wire so the wire was showing and pushed it on to the terminals, jumped out my skin when it spun but it worked, takes a bit of doing getting the fan out as a bit tight but there are 3 screws under the intake that are pozzi drive to take out then the fan drops out, there is a plate that has to be put back on the same way as an air hose needs to be re connected, you will see what i mean when you take it off don't panic it just needs turning until it fits back on, have a look at it before you re connect it so you know which way it goes, PLEASE MAKE SURE THE FAN SPINS FREE AS IT WILL BLOW RESISTOR AGAIN IF NOT, I've done all my own repairs on my bongo as had it now for 5 years but this was a bit of a pain to sort out but don't be put off, these are great little campers and will keep it till it falls apart, No choice really as the wife wont let it go, Thanks again you all. Andy

andy1865 wrote:SORTED, i took the resistor out and took the plastic top off and 2 of the pins had solder joints that had popped off so have re soldered them and it works spot on, Thanks guys for ya help, hope you all get yours sorted, all i can suggest is make sure your fan is spinning free and you try it by connecting it to the battery, i peeled a bit of the red and black wire so the wire was showing and pushed it on to the terminals, jumped out my skin when it spun but it worked, takes a bit of doing getting the fan out as a bit tight but there are 3 screws under the intake that are pozzi drive to take out then the fan drops out, there is a plate that has to be put back on the same way as an air hose needs to be re connected, you will see what i mean when you take it off don't panic it just needs turning until it fits back on, have a look at it before you re connect it so you know which way it goes, PLEASE MAKE SURE THE FAN SPINS FREE AS IT WILL BLOW RESISTOR AGAIN IF NOT, I've done all my own repairs on my bongo as had it now for 5 years but this was a bit of a pain to sort out but don't be put off, these are great little campers and will keep it till it falls apart, No choice really as the wife wont let it go, Thanks again you all. Andy

Excellent news dude - I was beginning to worry for you there for a bit

Phosphor bronze bearing???!!! I take you mean the plate acts like a bearing with the motor spindle spinning directly on it. You say soak in oil - chip, olive, crude?! Any clues greatly appreciated.

Andy - my resistor is also blown (but I have done a repair once before, gone again due to motor seizure). If you are struggling to remove the fan motor clambering underneath the van, my approach is to disassemble the whole intake from above - really easy (10 mins max).

Will update later...

Will give that ago as got a bit more confidence now, i took the fan out from above the first time by taking the single nut off and sliding the fan up but the bottom main plate was still hard to get off, is that what you mean as taking that plate off was a pain and even worse getting it back on,

simon_gone_surfing wrote:Phosphor bronze bearing???!!! I take you mean the plate acts like a bearing with the motor spindle spinning directly on it. You say soak in oil - chip, olive, crude?! Any clues greatly appreciated.

As I said, I've never seen the Bongo heater dismantled, but it would be unusual to have a spindle just resting on the end plate - there is usually some sort of bearing, which may just be a phosphor bronze sleeve that the spindle fits into. What have others, who have dismantled their motors, found?
Citrus oil would smell nice, but most such bearings are soaked in normal engine oil

My heater fan was not working, so tried to move it by hand , it was a bit resistant, but did move,(maybe worth taking off and giving a service), checked the resistor and found that 2 solder connections had come loose again.
2nd time for this little job not sure if it was my earlier fix last year that had broke , it had been repaired before my ownership, so re-soldered them, fitted all back and its working , fingers crossed.
Will give the fan motor a service next weekend if dry weather permits.