Macbook Pro 13 Retina Display Early 2015 Fan Replacement Repair Guide

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

Time Required

                          20 minutes - 1 hour

Sections

Lower Case
3 steps
Battery Connector
3 steps
Heat Sink
4 steps
Fan
5 steps

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BackMacBook Pro 13" Retina Display Early 2015
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Introduction

Don’t forget to follow our thermal paste application guide before you reinstall your heat sink.

What you need

Step 1

              Lower Case

Remove the following ten screws securing the lower case to the upper case:
Two 2.3 mm P5 Pentalobe screws
Eight 3.0 mm P5 Pentalobe screws
Throughout this repair, keep track of each screw and make sure it goes back exactly where it came from to avoid damaging your device.

Remove the following ten screws securing the lower case to the upper case:

Two 2.3 mm P5 Pentalobe screws

Eight 3.0 mm P5 Pentalobe screws

Throughout this repair, keep track of each screw and make sure it goes back exactly where it came from to avoid damaging your device.

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Step 2

Wedge your fingers between the upper case and the lower case.
Gently pull the lower case away from the upper case to remove it.

Wedge your fingers between the upper case and the lower case.

Gently pull the lower case away from the upper case to remove it.

Step 3

The lower case is connected to the upper case with two plastic clips near its center.
During reassembly, gently push down the center of the lower case to reattach the two plastic clips.

The lower case is connected to the upper case with two plastic clips near its center.

During reassembly, gently push down the center of the lower case to reattach the two plastic clips.

Step 4

              Battery Connector

If necessary, remove the plastic cover adhered to the battery contact board.

If necessary, remove the plastic cover adhered to the battery contact board.

Step 5

Use the flat end of a spudger to lift the battery connector straight up out of its socket on the logic board.
Be sure you lift up only on the connector itself, not the socket, or you risk permanent damage to the logic board.

Use the flat end of a spudger to lift the battery connector straight up out of its socket on the logic board.

Be sure you lift up only on the connector itself, not the socket, or you risk permanent damage to the logic board.

Step 6

Bend the battery connector up out of the way to prevent accidental contact with its socket during your repair.

Bend the battery connector up out of the way to prevent accidental contact with its socket during your repair.

Step 7

              Heat Sink

Carefully remove the rubber fan bumper from the edge of the heat sink.
The fan bumper wraps around the heat sink and fits into slots in the fan duct. During reassembly, be sure to fit the tabs into the notches in the fan duct.

Carefully remove the rubber fan bumper from the edge of the heat sink.

The fan bumper wraps around the heat sink and fits into slots in the fan duct. During reassembly, be sure to fit the tabs into the notches in the fan duct.

Step 8

Use the flat end of a spudger to peel the four foam stickers off of the heat sink screws.

Use the flat end of a spudger to peel the four foam stickers off of the heat sink screws.

Step 9

Remove the following screws securing the heat sink to the logic board:
One 2.7 mm T5 screw (silver)
Four T5 screws (black)

Remove the following screws securing the heat sink to the logic board:

One 2.7 mm T5 screw (silver)

Four T5 screws (black)

Step 10

Remove the heat sink from the laptop.
When reassembling your computer, follow our thermal paste application guide to reapply the thermal paste.

Remove the heat sink from the laptop.

When reassembling your computer, follow our thermal paste application guide to reapply the thermal paste.

Step 11

Fan

Use the tip of a spudger to push on either side of the the iSight camera cable connector to walk it out of its socket on the logic board.

Use the tip of a spudger to push on either side of the the iSight camera cable connector to walk it out of its socket on the logic board.

Step 12

Peel the iSight camera cable off the fan housing to fold it out of the way.

Peel the iSight camera cable off the fan housing to fold it out of the way.

Step 13

Use the tip of a spudger to flip the tab on the fan’s ZIF connector.
Carefully pull the fan cable straight out of its socket.

Use the tip of a spudger to flip the tab on the fan’s ZIF connector.

Carefully pull the fan cable straight out of its socket.

Step 14

Remove the following screws securing the fan to the upper case:
One 5.0 mm T5 Torx screw
Two 3.6 mm T5 Torx screws

Remove the following screws securing the fan to the upper case:

One 5.0 mm T5 Torx screw

Two 3.6 mm T5 Torx screws

Step 15

Lift the end of the fan closest to the display hinge and remove the fan from the upper case.

Lift the end of the fan closest to the display hinge and remove the fan from the upper case.

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

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                                                                                      77 other people completed this guide.

Author

                                      with 4 other contributors

                    Andrew Optimus Goldheart

Member since: 10/17/2009

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David Tyra - Oct 4, 2016

Very good instructions, just completed the fan replacement, no issues -

Ethan Tarquin - Mar 23, 2017

Fantastic instructions, brilliant depictions for assistance. Thank you!

Ethan Tarquin - Mar 24, 2017

I completed this guide and it was brilliant, so thank you Andrew Optimus Goldberg and your contributors! I have a question about the Macbook’s heat post-installation of a new fan.

I replaced the fan last night, and put everything back together. Today, the new fan is responding well under activities that would previously make the fan extremely loud and cause intense heat to build up on the bottom right of the Macbook: so far so good.

However, it seems heat is now being distributed to the keys and directly below the screen, and I can even feel it underneath the trackpad, and this is from simply turning the Macbook on with no applications straining the CPU.

Is this something to worry about? Have I possibly made a mistake in my installation, or is this normal for an ordinary working fan?

Thanks for any help that may be given. Appreciated

Nikolay - Mar 26, 2017

Is the fan you replaced the original one with the exact same model? While im no expert on this stuff my guess would be that it distributes air differently. I hope it works out for you though.

Donald Kelly - Sep 16, 2017

Just completed the fan replacement. Great clear instructions. No issues. Thank you so much.

Introduction#

What you need#

Team#

Introduction

What you need

Team