Bob

Thanks for the help gentlemen.
I still didn't get the damn thing off. I wound up removing the two top radiator mounting bolts & bushings. This allowed me to tilt the radiator just enough to slip the belt on.
As far as removing the shroud only, that won't work either. With the clutch fan still in place, there is not enough room to remove the shroud. (I haven't been able to make it work, maybe someone else has.)
I also was not able to jam anything in behind the pulley-maybe I need to get that special tool.

Thanks again,
Dan

You would be better off removing the plastic fan shroud to replace the belts. This allows much more room to get at them. Otherwise, you'll need a special tool to hold the pulley in place while you remove the fan bolt; usually done only to replace the distributor cap or water pump.
Good luck
Chuck/88 535i/102k

Does anyone have any good ideas for removing the fan?
My '88 535i has the single, large nut (24mm I believe)holding the fan to the water pump. Yesterday, I lost the fan belt & I'm trying to install the new one today.
I can't get the new belt past the fan without damaging the radiator, and I can't get the pulley to stop spinning when I try to loosen the nut (reverse thread, correct?)in order to remove the fan.
If anyone has any tips, I sure could use them right about now.

TIA,
Dan

Get a long screwdriver to lodge against the fan mounting screws on the back of the fan clutch. This will hold the fan in a bind and let you loosen the mounting nut.