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March 10th, 2026 04:44
Pro Max 18 Plus MB18250, BIOS 2.4.0, fans running constantly at idle (48-52°C)
Hello,
Device: Dell Pro Max 18 Plus MB18250 CPU: Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX BIOS: 2.4.0 (installed 05.01.2026) OS: Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (Build 26200)
Issue: Fans are running constantly and loudly at idle temperatures of 48-52°C. There is no thermal justification for this behavior.
What I have tried:
BIOS Thermal Management set to Quiet — no effect
Dell Optimizer Thermal set to Quiet — no effect
Windows Power Plan: System Cooling Policy set to Passive, Maximum Processor State set to 99% — no effect
Uninstalled Intel XTU — no effect
Uninstalled Dell Optimizer — no effect
Booted into Safe Mode — fans still loud, confirming the issue is in EC/BIOS firmware, not Windows or drivers
Important observation: After BIOS 2.4.0 was installed on January 5th, the fans worked normally and quietly for approximately 2 weeks. The fan noise issue started around January 14th. The root cause appears to be in the EC firmware fan curve, as the problem persists even in Safe Mode with no third-party drivers loaded.
Request: Please investigate the EC firmware fan curve behavior in BIOS 2.4.0 and provide a fix in the next BIOS release.
DELL-Daniel V
Community Manager
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223 Posts
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March 10th, 2026 13:37
Contact Dell GHN (Get Help Now) chat technical support Monday through Friday. Click the blue "Get Help Now" on the right to start a private live chat session. Share the private Service Tag with them so that they can verify the ownership and warranty status. This will also generate a unique Technical Support case for your unique Service Tag. I don't see any known issues with the fan or BIOS 2.4.0. Please contact support with your findings as they may provide additional troubleshooting.