Need to buy new fan for my T40p 2373 then install.

[bullarded]

Hello and thanks for viewing.
Where do I
(a) find out which fan I need, I've read about long and short
(b) go to buy one
(c) learn how to install if I want to try this myself? ( figure if someone has posted the instructions if I chicken out then I can show the instructions to the local fix it place...

I know there are posts here somewhere but alas I can't find the right on!

[underclocker]

Changing the fan is not hard at all.

You can use either fan, but if your machine had the long fan, you should stick with a long fan (T40p's all have long fans!) The long fan is longer and the extra length covers the graphics processing unit a.k.a. GPU.

You didn't mention one important step. You have to clean up the old thermal grease and reapply thermal grease to the CPU prior to installing the new fan. A paper towel works fine, some people take it a step further with alcohol.

In the likely event that you don't have a spare tube of thermal grease floating around your office, you can reuse the old grease by scraping it off carefully and reapplying it to the top of the CPU - just the metallic part. The factory always applied what is generally considered too much thermal grease, so you'll have plenty and will probably have to wipe the excess away.

Regarding the swap, it's basically 1) remove keyboard (4 screws for 14" T4x machine), 2) remove palmrest (5 screw covers plus 8 screws), 3) remove old fan (3 screws plus small connector cable), 4) clean CPU with paper towel, 5) reapply thermal grease to CPU, 6) install new fan, 7) install palmrest, 8 ) install keyboard. Notes: remove the battery and power cable before you begin. Also, care should be use when removing the old fan, frequently long fans become stuck to the GPU. The GPU is very sensitive to pressure and pulling. Some removals require a sharp blade to separate the fan from the GPU - use care!

The T40 Hardware Maintenance Manual (HMM) has pictures and directions --> http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... MIGR-46464

Good luck.

P.S. In case you are receiving the "fan error" message, you should be aware that infrequently this means a bad motherboard, not a bad fan. You won't know which until you try a fan swap, though, so you're on the right track.

[LeoB]

Underclocker:

Hope you're still around as this post of yours is two years old.

I have a T40 original from about 2004. It's not been used much in years as I have had a number of other Thinkpads since then and my primary one now is an R500.

The old T40 works fine, although it only has 768MB RAM and a 20GB HDD. I loaned it to my daughter and she said that it would sometimes just quit working. I took it back and, of course, it worked fine for me. But recently I've been cleaning up the HDD and thinking about using it as netbook, but then a couple times I've gotten the Fan Error message on boot-up. When I shut it down and reboot, then it works fine.

I installed CPU Thermometer and it shows a pretty consistent 45C when using it. It doesn't have enough memory to play a video DVD, even though it has a CD/DVD drive. I did put a music CD in it and let it run on a loop for hours, and it's still at 45C. I can't hear the fan running, although I think I can feel relatively cool air coming out of the vent. I always use a laptop prop, so the bottom of the unit is slightly raised and not flat on the desk.

You mentioned that it is possible that the Fan Error message is caused by a motherboard issue.

So, would you recommend replacing the fan now? Or should I wait for it to fail?

Thanks for your helpful posts.

[RealBlackStuff]

To make that laptop usable for another few years, you can ramp it up to 2x1GB RAM (200-pin PC2100 or PC2700 SODIMMs) and a PATA (not SATA) hard disk up to max. 320GB.
Get a replacement fan before it conks out on you.

[underclocker]

Oh, I'm still here!

It sounds like you could have more than one problem. Your daughter's complaint does sound like the most common problem with the T4x series, the GPU connections fracturing and causing intermittent lockups. The failure can begin in a way that makes you think you have a bad video driver or virus, but in the end, it's the GPU. It's possible that your daughter handled the machine a little less carefully than you do, resulting in her experience. Before spending any more money on it, I'd 1) gently torque the machine from the front corners to see if it freezes up while on, and 2) run the Freestone video card stability test (link below) to see if the GPU exhibits any failing symptoms. Be careful not to flex the machine so much that you cause the failure!

http://freestone-group.com/video-card-s ... y-test.htm

Assuming your GPU is OK, I'd guess that the fan is going bad (vs. the fan controller on the mobo). One way to tell if the fan is going bad is to remove the keyboard screws and hold the keyboard up with one hand while powering up the machine. This way you can watch and listen to the fan to see/hear any issues. Fans that are going bad can have trouble getting going when the power is turned on. Some even need a manual push to get going. Some squeal.

What makes sense to do is up to you, but you have to be careful about spending too much, considering T60's with SXGA+ LCD's are available in the $300 and up range at this time. While I prefer the look of the T4x machines, the T6x's are fast and reliable. Of course you have to factor in your time since you can't image a T40 to a T60 - all apps would and should be reinstalled from scratch.

All that being said, $20 for a fan is fine. As RBS sugggested, upgrading the memory and hard drive would also make a noticeable performance difference. I would assume that your drive is only 4200 rpm. I would at least consider upgrading the RAM to 1GB (you'd only need one 512MB stick) and the drive to a 5400rpm unit. Figure $20 for a fan, $15 for the memory, and $35 for a 40GB 5400rpm drive. Also, upgrading the CPU from a 1.6 to anything less than a 2.0 probably isn't worth it. The 1.6's were fairly good performers.

If you post a looking for ad in the forum marketplace, you'll likely have offers within minutes.

On the extreme side, 2GB of RAM and a 32GB PATA SSD or the 320GB Western Digital PATA 5400rpm drive would make the machine rather snappy. The RAM would be at least $50 and the either drive about $100. Again, the math doesn't work on this (not counting your time) since you can probably sell your machine for $150 or so.

Anyway, I hope this isn't too much information...

[LeoB]

Wow. Thanks guys. I haven't been on this forum in a while, because my X61 and R500 work fine and have never had a problem, but I'd forgotten how much great advice you can get here.

Thanks again.