Question about fan and smoke from under the hood

[mse678]

hello, so recently i noticed the fan in the front near the grill no longer turns on. i dont know how long this has been happening, the car still drives fine, so i m not sure how big of a problem this may be. any idea what the else is?

#2 question is, i posted this in another thread before. the problem is whenever i turn on the fan inside the car (with the AC button off), i can smell some burnt smell. as soon as i press the AC button, i wont smell it anymore. one time i popped the hood, i can see some smoke appearing (see attach pic, where the RED BOX is). any idea what this may be?

again the car drives fine, no overheating, no leaks in my garage. but i want to make sure these are not major problems

[rayesc]

Location in engine bay is right over the headers which has the valve cover over them. Check your valve cover gasket. It could possibly be the source of your burnt smell as well.

[mse678]

Originally Posted by rayesc

Location in engine bay is right over the headers which has the valve cover over them. Check your valve cover gasket. It could possibly be the source of your burnt smell as well.

should i wait until the car is cold before i pop that black cover open?

what about the fan problem? any comments on that?

[JETninja]

If the fan does not work, check the Fuse first. (when I got my car mine was blown, been fine for 5yrs and 3+yrs of FDM since)

If the Fuse blows again, prob need to replace it. May be a relay is also worth checking out.

Smoke, is it coming from fan area or from the headers? I've had a leaky valve cover before and it would drip right on the headers causing quite a smell in the cabin....

[mse678]

Originally Posted by JETninja

If the fan does not work, check the Fuse first. (when I got my car mine was blown, been fine for 5yrs and 3+yrs of FDM since)

If the Fuse blows again, prob need to replace it. May be a relay is also worth checking out.

Smoke, is it coming from fan area or from the headers? I've had a leaky valve cover before and it would drip right on the headers causing quite a smell in the cabin....

the smoke is coming from the area in the 'red box' in my attachment. not near the fan. no plastic bag underneath car.

i just removed the black cover, i see no oil or leak marks
i also mentioned no oil spots in my garage (i park my car inside the garage at all times)...

so, i m not sure what's going on

for the fan, is it a huge issue if it doesnt turn? should i not drive the car?

[rayesc]

That is the auxiliary fan. Not sure what triggers it to come on but I think under normal conditions it won't be on. The main fan is on the engine side of the radiator, and normally driven by a belt. As long as that's running, you should be able to drive the car.

[JETninja]

The AUX fan comes on when the A/C is switched on (thats the easy test) and if the engine gets too hot.....

Think the Bentley has a easy check for it also. Mine drove fine without it (I didn't know it was not working) Might check Pelican Part DIY section, they might have info....

[mse678]

Originally Posted by JETninja

The AUX fan comes on when the A/C is switched on (thats the easy test) and if the engine gets too hot.....

Think the Bentley has a easy check for it also. Mine drove fine without it (I didn't know it was not working) Might check Pelican Part DIY section, they might have info....

my bro has the same e36 m3 as mine.

his fan turns on as soon as the car starts, then stops. upon stepping on the gas pedal a couple times, the fan comes on, with or without the AC on...

mine, doesnt turn on whatsoever...

[rayesc]

Here's the aux fan details from the manual.