What on earth could have caused this?

[tholmes3]

Ok...here goes the story that damn near got me killed and that gave my friend a near fatal heart attack!<br>I was driving his pristine 74 EB to a friends and around for a little while and then on the way home i heard an increasingly lound squeaking noise. I thought it was the exhaust pipe connection that is a little loose and has been making interesting noises, so i continued normally, without worry. I pulled up to a stop light and heard a realy loud squeaking and kind of grinding and then a pop (like a pressure release from the radiator). I thought it was just the hose, broken, and would simply get a new one in the morning. When we got home, we took a quick peak and then went to bed. In the morning, we found the plastic fan housing in three pieces, scattered about, the fan blades bend inwards (toward the radiator) and a circular gash in the radiator thatt was the circumference of the fan and one blade was embedded in it. Pieces of the radiator coil were everywhere and screws and bolts and all sorts of debris was pilled in the bottom lip of the radiator....!!! This scared the hell out of us and we are trying to fugure all exaclty what could have caused it.....any ideas or comments?<br><br><br>T3

 

[tholmes3]

I forgot to mention that the radiator was fountaining fluid and was instantly completely drained.<br><br>-Also, we checked the engine mounts and they seem to be fine (put the automatic trans in gear, in drive and reverse, and held the brake and gased it to listen for a clunk to see of there was loose or broken mounts).<br><br>-THEORY #1:<br><br>The fan housing cracked and fell on the spinning fan and bend the blades casueing the blades to cut a circle gash in the radiator and loding it stuck and then ruining itself and the radiator.<br><br>-THEORY #2:............... you tell me!<br><br><br>T3

 

[Jeepster]

I think you entered a little known and little talked about zone of baffling, head scratching, paranormal activty. A place of strange magnetic halo.....your lucky to be alive and talking about it, the gods were truly smiling opon you that night.The only reasion I can comment about this is soley because you mentioned it first. So I'm off the hook. ;D

 

[Waverous]

Is your friends name Sculy? Do you know the Smoking Man? Were you on your way to investigate reports of aliens living in suburbia? If you answered"no" to these questions, then I really don't have a theory for you and I am baffled also. The theory about the shroud appears to make the most sense. Good luck

 

[tholmes3]

Aliens.....of course.....The Ghostbusters hired me as an aquaintance and I was on the graveyard shift, taking an abnormal activity call!!!.........<br><br>-I agree, it is a wacky thing and I cant honestly say exactly what happened.<br><br>T3

 

[Explore74]

I have heard of all sorts of strange things happening at area 51, but I did'nt think that was anywhere near Houston.

 

[mxpaz]

Hmmmm MayBe[glow=red, 2, 300]Satan[/glow]

 

[Waverous]

[quote author=MXPAZ link=board=5;threadid=12621;start=0#94268 date=1040874926]<br>Hmmmm MayBe[glow=red, 2, 300]Satan[/glow]<br>[/quote]<br>OK Church Lady!

 

[jims66]

I'm going to leave Satan out of the picture and vote for a failed water pump or fan bolts. I bet the shaft is broken.

 

[hackyrat]

Armadillo. Ya! I saw on TV where these things jump up in the air when you run over them. Armadillo's live in Texas don't they? I bet one jumped up right into your fan and died a slow death, :'( thus the screaching you heard. As he died he probably also kicked the radiator to pieces. If you don't find any armadillo pieces inside the engine compartment I would agree with above and check the water pump for wasted bearings, shaft or fan bolts.

 

[76Broncofromhell]

Sounds like the waterpump bolts "broke" or wanderd loose. Or a broken motormount. Possibly sabatours?

 

[blu72]

[shadow=RED, 8, 900]HERE KITTY KITTY[/shadow][glow=red, 8, 900]MEOW[/glow][move]WHERE DID THAT DARN CAT GO?[/move]

 

[DPM77]

water pump bearings fail causing wobble in fan, which ticks shroud enough to break it, which hits fan, which causes fan to bend and hit radiator, rebounding and REALLY damaging the shroud, pieces of which come loose, creating the dreaded <br>"Oster Effect" (wherein all the loose pieces are held in a vortex in front of the radiator, beating the snot out of each other and the front of the radiator) which CHOWS the radiator........spewing fluid all over the armadillochasingdevilcat.<br><br>Note to self: When an unfamiliar noise occurs while driving the EB, turn off motor, open hood of EB, and visually inspect moving externals in engine compartment . <br><br>

 

[MI-Bronco]

You failed to mention what happened to the beamer you rear-ended before the fan wobble, ticking, plastic shattering, part spewing, fluid fountaining (real word?) events...

 

[howiebilt]

You didn't mention if the fan was a stock or aftermarket one . I would bet that the water pump was the culprit and started the chain reaction that ended with total and catastrophic failure of your cooling system . If it wasn't the pump , I would strongly suspect the fan bolts that hold it to the pump . Hope you get it figured out so you can tell us all about how to avoid the fox and scully free for all

 

[brokenhorse]

[quote author=MI-Bronco link=board=5;threadid=12621;start=0#94348 date=1040930904]<br>You failed to mention what happened to the beamer you rear-ended before the fan wobble, ticking, plastic shattering, part spewing, fluid fountaining (real word?) events...<br>[/quote]<br><br>Beamer?Who would have noticed hitting one of them it would be like a speed bump in a parking lot the faster you hit em the less you feel em <br><br><br>Your problem "of coarse" is obvious it's the "Bronco gremlins"

 

[flint_knapper]

the piece of crap (at the time it was just 20 some odd years old!) plastic shroud broke loose and fall on the fan. the same thing happened to me about 8 yrs. ago. some day I will get the metal one from tom's. ;D

 

[justinsane]

I'll add a vote to the water pump bearing. I had one fail so badly once I thought I had blown the engine. Check your water pump, If the housing around the bearing is cracked, you probably found it. <br><br>Brian

 

[huged29]

Hearing all of this reminds me of one of the first times I went wheeling with my bronco. I didn't have the battery tie downs and that morning I forgot to bungee the battery up and so half way up the trail I hear this loud ticking. Stop the truck look under the hood and turns out the battery got flung on top of the fan and the fan was just taking chunks out of it. Luckily the fan didn't break and nothing hit the radiator, and even the battery worked for a couple more weeks. ;D

 

[Landshark]

[quote author=huged29 link=board=5;threadid=12621;start=15#94498 date=1040973143]<br>Hearing all of this reminds me of one of the first times I went wheeling with my bronco. I didn't have the battery tie downs and that morning I forgot to bungee the battery up and so half way up the trail I hear this loud ticking. Stop the truck look under the hood and turns out the battery got flung on top of the fan and the fan was just taking chunks out of it. Luckily the fan didn't break and nothing hit the radiator, and even the battery worked for a couple more weeks. ;D<br><br>LOL!!! My friend did that too, only he ended up cutting<br>through the ground cable.<br> <br>[/quote]