Hector Martinez

Hi, broke mine yesterday while replacing my radiator, question is, is one really necessary? Does it keep the engine bay running cooler or is it more of a safety item to keep hands and fingers free and clear from the fans

Ralph77

You need it.
They are not usually too expensive anyway.
What year?

BlueRidgeMark

Its absolutely necessary. Your engine will not cool properly without it.

How badly is it broken? It might be fixable, in a redneck, looks hokey but works just fine kind of way. Post a pic if you can.

downs

They're only around 20 dollars. Without it you loose airflow though the radiator core. The fan will draw air though the path of least resistance. Which without the shroud is around the radiator instead of through it.

El_Jefe

The previous owner of my XJ had broken the bottom of the fan shroud off so that he could remove it more easily. Didn't seem to affect the cooling system, but I replaced it. You definitely want a fully intact fan shroud.

awg

one of mine has a slightly scalloped lower section that allows it to come out on its own (its been neatly cut)

apart from the cooling, its a safety issue, where the fan is mounted, cut yr fingers off

dave1123

Mine has been epoxied back together on the top and seems to be pretty strong. It looks like the PO broke it off to change the water pump more easily. Pretty messy looking fix.

Ralph77

I had a broken tab on mine, where it went into the slots on the lower radiator support, and when I did the fan clutch I replaced it.
It bugged me.
Thing is I have read where guys say they can just take it out with everything in place.
Well for the life of me I couldn't.
I really wanted to mod it so it could be taken out and replaced anytime.
But my OCD would not let me.
Probably going to regret not doing it at some point. LOL.
Also I found that the pricing between a Mopar one and an aftermarket one was so little I went Mopar.
Not that it matters. Just hunk of plastic.
Been meaning to stop by a graphics shop and get them to reproduce my belt routing sticker.
Tried to order a new one but couldn't find one.

downs

To me it's not worth the hassle of trying to squeeze it out. Taking off the clutch fan isn't a long or hard process. Much easier to take it out and put it in as a unit with the clutch fan. Kind of like how doing any work on the driver's side of the engine compartment is typically make much easier by taking the 5 minutes to remove the e-fan and airbox.

Waynerd

On one 98 I have one and have removed it several times. No issues getting it out with the fan in place. It’s not modified or anything. It gets easier each time.

Then my other 98 had no shroud or fan when I got it. There was an electric fan with a switch that had the plastic posts through the radiator fins. Needless to say the radiator started to leak where the pins were through it. Changed the radiator with a good non leaking used one I had. Changed hoses, water pump, thermostat and housing, temp sensor and flushed the heater core and engine and installed a clutch fan. Never bothered with the shroud. No heat issues whatsoever for 4 years now. Only problem I had was the hose to the overflow tank contacted the fan and it was cut. Since then I replaced the hose and have it better secured.

in my opinion a missing shroud will not cause under cooling. It will however exaggerate an existing cooling problem if one already exists. Maybe I’m in the minority here but that’s just from my personal experience. Not saying you should go and remove the shroud or it’s not there for a reason. But if you can’t get one for a week or two then it’s not the end of the world.

Red1992XJ

Agreed. If your cooling system is in good shape, being without a fan shroud, especially in the cooler months, would not be the end of the world. If you lived in the southwest, where you have temps of 100 plus, and tow a trailer in traffic, that would be a different story. You can have a new fan shroud, but if your cooling system is gunked up with stop leak, or your water pump is failing, you are still in trouble.

I would try to get it replaced or fixed, but I wouldn't go crazy trying to do it immediately.

dzywicki

I have a '99 that I ran for about a year in Virginia without the fan shroud. It gets into the 90's pretty regularly in the summers and it did not run warmer than it normally does. I tend to keep the cooling system well maintained with coolant flushes every 2 years and keep a close on coolant levels. When mine snapped, I drilled small holes on either side of the crack and used small zip ties to hold it together. I ran it like that for a couple of years before I picked up a replacement in a pick a part. It was actually pretty convenient when I needed to remove it. Snip the zip ties and it came right out. Put new zip ties in when it needed to go back in.

awg

apart from the OH&S aspect

two situations no shroud might make the cooling system more marginal

stuck in traffic jam, idling,100F ambient

off-road, low range hi torque, high ambient

anytime you have good airflow thru the radiator they dont matter as much

papablista

Rock auto $5.74 I bought one can't tell it from OEM except it has no stickers like for the belt routing .

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...n+shroud,10707

Ralph77

Even a Mopar one does not come a belt routing sticker. And best I can tell it is not available anymore cause I tried to find one.