Smoking and then a small fire in the right hand fan, looking from the front (the fan on the left side looks different - do they have different functions?). Been quoted +£300 for the part, with fitting close to £700 total, so how difficult / easy is it to DIY? Direction to on-line guides / instructions appreciated......

haha, £700 for an engine cooling fan?

get a second hand part and fit it yourself/

few cars breaking in forsale section

I think one's for engine cooling, and the other for air con rad?? Not sure, though.

I think one's for engine cooling, and the other for air con rad?? Not sure, though.

Both fans are wired in parallel and both blow through the radiator and condenser (if a/c fitted). Rectangular radiator, round fans. This arrangement also has the advantage that if one fan fails, you don't lose all the cooling.

Check the part number - hopefully available on the burnt one. But fans seem available on eBay for around £30. Assuming no wiring damage, could be a relatively easy DIY...

I'd be interested to know what's involved in changing the fan.

Mine is on the blink too.

you could do like many 106 owners seem to be doing and put 2 huge cooling fans behind the bumper .... by huge i mean something that wouldnt look out of place on a wind turbine

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=106+twin+fan&aq=0&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hl=en&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=E9-bUZeaNu3L0AX99IFY&biw=1137&bih=554&sei=b9-bUfCFL_Sr0gWG4IFQ#imgrc=HG6ibP8GyDaIMM%3A%3BPpmFsnl7AovB2M%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fi109.photobucket.com%252Falbums%252Fn62%252Fsi-gti%252F31122007282.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252F106owners.co.uk%252Fforums%252Fshowthread.php%253F22757-twin-radiator-fans%3B800%3B600

Easy job, but a bit slow as you need to unhook fogs etc. Remove front bumper and you'll see how it is screwed together. Haynes has a guide and there are quite a few on-line. You don't need to remove the radiator. Be careful handling any burnt electrical bits as the chemicals created can be very nasty.