Sparky_Spit

I upgraded my Mk3 Spitfire fan using the motor from a Smart Two/Four, which I suspect is the same as a normal Smart Car one. The fan that comes with it is far too big but you can use your existing fan by re-drilling the centre hole to fit the new motor's spindle (1/4" I think, but measure it to be sure). You need to make 3 spacer tubes to attach the motor to the heater case with bolts to get the right spacing for the spindle length. This sounds tricky but is obvious once you have the parts in your hand. There's plenty of space behind the dash for it to fit. The new motor is much more powerful than the original Smiths one and if you add a 12v speed controller (very cheap from China via ebay) you get an infinitely variable output. It is very effective and quickly warms up the interior and screen in winter.

Hi Anglefire - Are you sure that the pins are in there "tight" tight? Not just a bit stuck from sitting on the shelf for a few years? I ask as I put new Hepolite pistons in my 1500 and the pins were just a push fit with circlips, but needed a bit of a tap initially to get them out of the loosely assembled pistons in the first place. No heat needed. They'd been stored in greased paper for quite a while I reckon, but cleaned up perfectly.