MacBook Air 13" Mid 2011 Fan Replacement

Step 1 MacBook Air 13" Mid 2011 Fan Replacement

• Before proceeding, power down your machine. Close the display and lay it on a soft surface top-side down.
• Remove the following ten screws:
• Two 9 mm P5 Pentalobe screws
• Eight 2.6 mm P5 Pentalobe screws
• The special screwdriver needed to remove the ten 5-point Pentalobe screws can be found .
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Step 2

• Wedge your fingers between the display and the lower case and pull upward to pop the lower case off the Air.
• Remove the lower case and set it aside.
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Step 3
• As a precaution against accidental discharge or shock, disconnect the battery connector from the logic board.
• Grab the clear plastic pull tab attached to the battery connector and pull it toward the front edge of the Air to disconnect the battery from the logic board.
• Be sure to pull the connector horizontally toward the battery, and not straight up from the Air, or you may damage the socket on the logic board.
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Step 4
• Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the I/O board cable connector upward out of its socket on the I/O board.
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Step 5
• Carefully peel the I/O board cable from the top of the fan.
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Step 6
• The following connector has an especially deep socket. Use care when disconnecting it.
• While gently pulling the I/O board cable upward near its connection to the logic board, use the tip of a spudger to pry upward on alternating sides of the connector to help "walk" it out of its socket.
• Remove the I/O board cable.
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Step 7
• Use the tip of a spudger to carefully flip up the retaining flap on the fan cable ZIF socket.
• Be sure you are prying up on the hinged retaining flap, not the socket itself.
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Step 8
• Peel the rubber gasket off the adhesive on the top of the fan.
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Step 9
• Remove the following three screws securing the fan to the upper case:
• One 3.6 mm T5 Torx screw
• One 2.7 mm T5 Torx screw
• One 3.6 mm T5 Torx screw with a short head
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Step 10
• Lift the fan out of the upper case and carefully pull the fan ribbon cable out of its socket as you remove it from the Air.
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Author

System

Member since: 09/24/09

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