I keep seeing ads for a power steering fan cover to prevent road stuff from entering the fan. Is this really a necessary aftermarket item?

 

I have seen some posts here and elsewhere that some have had problems with rocks, plastic bags and other road junk locking up the power steering fan which, can blow a fuse, cause overheating, etc.

I have the stainless PS Cover and have had no problems :smile: :smile: but, who is to say that I would have had problems without it? The Stainless cover is well built and very easy to install. The newer Minis (04) have a plastic cover that would do much for rocks or plastic bags because the openings are two large. I feel better knowing its there. My .02

 

Gives you peace of mind, really. Preventative measures can't hurt!

 

Would the aftermarket skid plates protect this area?

 

Yeah, the skidplate protects the fan and more. I've got the stainless one on my car and I'm glad it's there! This winter I've done quite a lot of scraping under there on roads that have been less than well plowed. Especially, after a day or so when the remaining junk in the road has become chunks of ice that my little car just doesn't clear. At least I know there's some protection under there. It's worth the extra weight for some piece of mind as far as I'm concerned. :smile:

_________________
Robyn
<p>Nittany: 03 IB/W MCS, Lapis Blue lthr, 3 packages, H/K, rally lts, THE ORIGINAL blue dash, US flag OR White sunroof decal (depending on mood)

 

That's right! The full skid plate is woth the peace of mind. Same thing happened to me this winter as MINI scraped along some of the ice chunks....the skid plate did it's job. The power steering fan plate is much smaller and leaves much more of the engine exposed to the elements.

 

>>Yeah, the skidplate protects the fan and more. I've got the stainless one on my car and I'm glad it's there! This winter I've done quite a lot of scraping under there on roads that have been less than well plowed. Especially, after a day or so when the remaining junk in the road has become chunks of ice that my little car just doesn't clear. At least I know there's some protection under there. It's worth the extra weight for some piece of mind as far as I'm concerned. :smile:
>>
>>_________________
>>Robyn
>><p>Nittany: 03 IB/W MCS, Lapis Blue lthr, 3 packages, H/K, rally lts, THE ORIGINAL blue dash, US flag OR White sunroof decal (depending on mood)
>>

Yeh, two thumbs up on the full skidplate.

Jon

 

If you don't want the weight of a skid plate, then I highly recommend the fan cover. We have one on both of our cars. Better safe than sorry.

 

Got mine at Moss MINI , easy install. I believe they are on sale now.

 

BTW the car does come with a plastic skid plate, however this plate does not offer any protection for the power steering fan. The metal plate covers all of the area .

 

I had a cover fabricated out of aluminum mesh ($5) and rivited over fan (labor $20). I did this because on the track one day, I sucked up a piece of rubber, lost steering and almost killed myself. When the steering locks up it really locks up.

 

Does the metal skid plate allow for proper ventilation? i dont know if its a problem, but on my old volvo, the plastic shielding that is there has a second purpose besides procection: it forces air up into the radiator for cooling.

this came loose once and caused the car to Almost overheat. not sure how this affects the mini, if at all...

Patrick

 

I actually did get a rock in my power steering fan. The dealership noticed it when I took the car in for an inspection. They replaced it under warranty, which surprised me as it was not damaged due to a defect. Oh well, at least I didn't have to pay for it this time. Maybe I will look into getting the cover.

 

I also hit a big hunk of ice last week that fell off of a 18 wheeler. My skid plate took the full hit. It was very large piece that I think could have caused some damage without the skid plate.

Just this week I seen a very large piece of truck tire about four feet long laying in the freeway just waiting to whack some poor driver who might not see it.

 

It'll be interesting to know if the cover actually decreases the level of noise that comes out of that fan. If it does, I'll buy one just for that reason...

 

I join in the comments regarding the usefulness of the skid plate. However, you should seriously consider fitting an oil drain valve with hose fitting (which are avaliable from Summitt Racing - there's a thread on this) as oil changes with the plate in situ are a nightmare. Did it once and fitted the valve. Now oil changes are completely mess free!

 

I heard the 04's come with a fan cover. On 02's the power steering pump and radiator fans were on the same fuse so if the power steering fan locked up you lost the power steering and the fan cooling the radiator when the pump over heated. Somwhere near the end of 02 production they were put on seperate fuses I heard.

 

Can somebody post a link on where to get just the fan cover?

 

I agree that the fan cover would do well to protect any debris from getting sucked up into the fan.

However, for those of us up in the areas where it snows, who drive our cars in the bad weather, I think the skidplate is worth serious consideration. On snowy roads, I scrape bottom A LOT on all the snow/ice that sits between the tire tracks and my car isn't even lowered!

Don't know that I'd trust that little fan shroud to offer much protection from all that snow/ice. But then again, maybe I worry too much.

 

yes yes yes get the cover i dont have one an my fan is shot when i get the new fan i will get the cover

 

For anyone interested in the fan cover only, mossmini.com has them and they also have the large shield that others have mentioned.

 

$3.00 in materials, 30 minutes to do it. It's been on my car for almost a year now with nary a problem