EMPI Welded Race Cooling Fan — 56 Welds, Statically Balanced, 36.9mm | Air-Cooled VW Type 1 Doghouse (98-2006-B, Bulk)

EMPI Welded Race Cooling Fan — Built for High-RPM Air-Cooled VW Engines

The cooling fan is one of the most important — and most overlooked — components on an air-cooled Volkswagen engine. A bent fin, a hairline crack, a worn hub, or a fan that has gone out of round costs you cylinder head temperature first and an engine second. EMPI's Race Fan takes the late-style doghouse fan and welds it solid: 56 welds, 28 per side, laid down in an alternating pattern, then statically balances it so it stays true at engine speeds a stock riveted fan was never designed to see.

If your motor spends time above roughly 5,500 RPM — a stroker, a big-bore dual port, a Baja or dune buggy engine, or any build that lives near the top of the tach — this is the fan that belongs behind your shroud. This is the bulk-packed version of part 98-2006: the identical fan as the boxed 98-2006-0, supplied without retail packaging.

Vehicle Fitment

• 1971–1977 VW Beetle (Standard)
• 1971–1979 VW Super Beetle
• 1971–1974 VW Karmann Ghia
• 1971 VW Bus / Type 2 (1600cc upright engine)
• 1973–1974 VW Thing / Type 181
• Any air-cooled upright engine running a 1971-and-later stock doghouse shroud, an EMPI 36HP-style shroud, or a Ram-Air shroud

Late / wide style only. This fan will not fit a pre-1971 narrow non-doghouse shroud — for those engines use the early fan, EMPI 98-2003-B. Type 3 pancake engines use a different fan entirely and are not covered by this listing.

Key Features

• 56 welds — 28 per side, alternating pattern. The blades cannot walk loose the way stock rivets eventually do.
• Statically balanced after welding for smooth running and reduced hub and bearing load at high RPM.
• Late doghouse profile: 34.7mm inner fan width, 36.9mm outer fan width — the part the trade calls the "36mm" or "37mm" fan.
• Steel construction with a corrosion-resistant finish.
• Direct bolt-in replacement — no shroud modification required.
• Sold each, without hardware.

Technical Specifications

What Else You May Need

Hardware is not supplied with this fan. Most installs also need the fan hub hardware kit (EMPI 00-8898-0, also cataloged as 111-198-123A), which carries the hub, spring washer, shims and screws. Fan-to-hub shims are used to set blade clearance inside the shroud.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why weld a cooling fan?
A stock fan is riveted. At sustained high RPM the rivets work loose, the blades shift, the fan goes out of balance, and it can eventually come apart inside the shroud. Welding every blade — 28 per side — removes that failure path.

Do I need this fan on a stock 1600?
Not usually. A healthy stock fan is fine for a stock-RPM engine. This fan earns its keep on high-RPM and race builds, and on any engine where fan failure would be expensive.

Will it fit my early non-doghouse shroud?
No. This is the wide late-style fan. Pre-1971 narrow shrouds need EMPI 98-2003-B.

What is the difference between 98-2006-B and 98-2006-0?
Packaging only. The -B is bulk; the -0 ships in EMPI retail packaging. The fan is identical.

Is hardware included?
No — the fan is sold without hardware. Hub kits and shims are separate parts.

Is this genuine EMPI?
Yes. Washburn's Metal is an authorized EMPI dealer, so this is a new genuine EMPI part.

⚠️ Prop 65 Warning

WARNING: This product can expose you to chemicals which are known to the State of California to cause cancer and reproductive harm. For more information, go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov. All parts legal for use on pre-pollution controlled vehicles only.