This afternoon I pulled the fan bearing assembly from our CRD to take measurements. I plan to build a plate with 2 idlers that will bolt in place of the fan bearing assembly. I want to install an electric radiator fan and the mechanical fan hub interferes with the electric fan. I found the fan bearing to be a little rough.......not real bad, but still rough. I do not want to spend nearly $200 on a new bearing assembly when I will be replacing it soon with an electric fan. Does anyone know of a replacement bearing for this thing? Our CRD has miles 82k. This seems like premature failure. I expected this bearing to last at least 150k miles.

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2006 CRD Sport
GDE FT ECO tune, GDE TCM ECO tune, ARP studs, HDS-001 203F T-Stat, 3.7L nylon fan & Hayden 2905 clutch, Carter P76148M in-tank pump, Racor 245R122 filter head & 2 micron R25S fuel filter, Provent 200, Samcos, Fumoto F-102, Litens 920834A de-coupler, PML rear diff cover, OEM trans pan with welded in bung, JBA UCAs, full skids.

Interesting idea. There are folks here who've fitted electric fans and others who've changed idler locations and eliminated the viscous heater and ac.

Might as well delete the VH at the same time, unless you want to go through finding the right belt twice when the VH bearing fails. One bigger idler pulley on the mechanical fan mount in place of the current one works. You can also relocate the tensioner, but that gets a little more involved.

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05 CRD: H.D.S2 stat,WW Ironrock trilink&LCA's, OX rear,ARB front, 4.10's, ARB bumper, Suncoast,OME 3.5, JBA UCA,rock rails, Moabs&265/75 Duratracs, GDE tunes ,FFD fan,ARP's, 2 micron fuel, new valves,sasquatch battery tray & grid heater, tensioner relocated
Mech fan, VH & AC delete

That is the plan. I am waiting for the HDS thermostat. Hopefully, Jeff will ship them soon. I will use the 1/4" port in the HDS thermostat for the fan controller temperature sensor. In the meantime, I will re-assemble using the as-is bearing assembly and a Liberty 3.7L nylon fan. The nylon fan should be easier on the bearing than the CRD steel fan. Does anyone think the factory steel CRD fans have an inherent imbalance issue causing the bearings to fail? Or possibly the bearing is undersized for this application?

I will use 1/2" aluminum plate and a Gates 36157 pulley for the VH delete and 1" aluminum plate and two Gates 38006 idler pulleys for the fan bearing / idler pulley replacement bracket. Both the Gates 36157 and the Gates 38006 fit many current applications and are readily available. I paid less than $50 for all 3 pulleys

I have decided to use an electric fan from a 1996 Ford 4.6L Thunderbird.........if I can make it fit. This fan moves over 4000 CFM and is available for less than $100 at Rockauto. I have the Ford factory version on my 1994 Grand Cherokee. I will be using a 4-seasons brand fan on the CRD as the blade design exactly matches the Ford design. Not all brands have the same blade design. If I can't make the Thunderbird fan fit, then I'll use the Liberty 3.7L electric fan.

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2006 CRD Sport
GDE FT ECO tune, GDE TCM ECO tune, ARP studs, HDS-001 203F T-Stat, 3.7L nylon fan & Hayden 2905 clutch, Carter P76148M in-tank pump, Racor 245R122 filter head & 2 micron R25S fuel filter, Provent 200, Samcos, Fumoto F-102, Litens 920834A de-coupler, PML rear diff cover, OEM trans pan with welded in bung, JBA UCAs, full skids.

Not sure about the bearing, but I haven't heard of anyone finding a replacement. You can also press the hub out, or whatever you call it, and mount your new idler to the existing mount, without fabricating any mounting plates. But, I found it quite satisfying to take that 5 pound sinker off the front of the engine.

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05 CRD: H.D.S2 stat,WW Ironrock trilink&LCA's, OX rear,ARB front, 4.10's, ARB bumper, Suncoast,OME 3.5, JBA UCA,rock rails, Moabs&265/75 Duratracs, GDE tunes ,FFD fan,ARP's, 2 micron fuel, new valves,sasquatch battery tray & grid heater, tensioner relocated
Mech fan, VH & AC delete