Bypass AC Aux Fan Resistor - Long Term Effects?

[Zeemz]

Purchased my car in January so it was hard to gauge if the AC was working, and of course it was not. Had a small BMW shop check it out today. System was still holding pressure so they evacuated the system and re-charged (r-12).

After they got the system charged they called back and said that the resistor was bad and that to change it was $66 for the part plus an hour of labor. Essential low temp fan will not turn on but high will.

They noted they could also bypass it, but would still charge me a hour of labor to do so.

After doing a little research on R3v, I know I can change it myself, but I am heading to the beach in two days. If I can't get the replacement resistor in time, I am going to just bypass it.

If I bypass it, do I need to replace the resistor later on? Are there any negative long term effects of running the AC with high temp/level fan whenever I have my AC on? The guy at the shop was of course pushing me to replace the resistor, he said it would be ok to bypass it temporarily, but not for good. Didn't really note why.

[Zeemz]

I know the more long term way to bypass the resistor is to directly bypass the wiring at the resistor.

This other option to have the fan on high whenever the AC is on (http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/show...13&postcount=6). This seemed like a good temporary solution until I got back from the beach and could replace the broken resistor.

[jlevie]

In the short term it should be okay to bypass the resistor. The downsides of doing that are additional load on the alternator, increased noise when idling, and faster wear of the fan bearings. I would do it as a temporary measure until I could replace the resistor, which is pretty easy to do.

[Zeemz]

In the short term it should be okay to bypass the resistor. The downsides of doing that are additional load on the alternator, increased noise when idling, and faster wear of the fan bearings. I would do it as a temporary measure until I could replace the resistor, which is pretty easy to do.

If I am just doing it temporarily, do you recommend bypassing it directly at the resistor, or to bridge the 1 & 3 pin at the temp switch like in the post I referenced above?

[jlevie]

If I am just doing it temporarily, do you recommend bypassing it directly at the resistor, or to bridge the 1 & 3 pin at the temp switch like in the post I referenced above?

Bridge the resistor and change the low speed fuse to a 30A.

[jeffnhiscars]

If you have the original resistor, it has screw lugs on the back. Unscrew it from the aux fan housing, put both the wires on one side & swap the fuse as Jim says. 15 min with one hand tied behind your back & a new resistor is $20. If you have a replacement resistor it may have come with pigtails that are crimped to the original wires so a slightly different process.

An hour labor and $64 is...well...high (way robbery) especially if they are already working on the car

[lolcantturn]

Lol paying someone to change the resistor, it's actually more difficult and time consuming to remove one wheel than to change the resistor..it's two phillip screws that are easily accessible. It's a 30 second job.

[scottinAZ]

other than the aforementioned extra noise and possible faster wear of the fan, I have had NO ADVERSE EFFECTS to bypassing the fan resistor (did it at the resistor, just screw all wires onto one side and done). In AZ I need all the extra cooling I can get, especially with the AC cranked full time

[JonsE30]

resurrecting an old thread, but i am in so cal and i always use the a/c here since its summer temps all year. i would like to bypass the resistor.

i have the t-shaped bosch resistor with screw connectors on each end. to bridge this i can remove the resistor and just use some wire and connect both ends to each other and upgrade the low amp fuse from 15A to 30A?

[jeffnhiscars]

resurrecting an old thread, but i am in so cal and i always use the a/c here since its summer temps all year. i would like to bypass the resistor.

i have the t-shaped bosch resistor with screw connectors on each end. to bridge this i can remove the resistor and just use some wire and connect both ends to each other and upgrade the low amp fuse from 15A to 30A?

Just move the low speed wire to the other end of the resistor and yes, bump the fuse. FYI both low and high speed wires are the same gauge and will handle the higher current

[JonsE30]

worked like a charm. thanks!