96 DEGREE CPU TEMP?

I'm assuming you mean °C (if you mean °F - if it's °F, 93-96 is cold so stop worrying 😉 ).

The maximum thermal tolerance of your Intel CPU is 100 °C - reaching that temp should trigger a hard shutdown. When you are in the 93-96 range, are your fans spinning at maximum (6000 rpm)? Are you using the MBP on a hard surface (i.e. a table, not a couch or the carpet)?

93-96 °C is very warm - too close to the thermal rating for my comfort, certainly. If your fans are spinning at max and still not cooling properly, I'd suspect blockage. The only real way to confirm that would be to open up the case.

Hope this helps...

Is there a way to check the ventilation to the fans? I have cats and its possible the fans are clogged.

While there's no easy way to check the airflow thru the fans, at least you can check if they're spinning fast enough with the [iStat Pro widget|http://islayer.com/index.php?op=item&id=7]. In this case design, the airflow in and out seems to be restricted to the hinge area, around the rubbery insert at the back of the MBP and there's no reliable way to 'feel' if enough air is moving inside.

Like Neuro points out, it is important to keep the computer on a hard surface, so that there is at least a slight separation and air can also flow underneath. I use an Podium Coolpad at work and a Traveller Coolpad at home, both from [Roadtools|http://www.roadtools.com>; these lift and separate the Mac from the work surface, allowing much more ventilation.

Given the steps you have taken to keep your machine cool, it certainly seems there is something else going on, e.g. blocked airflow. Opening the case could potentially void your warranty, yes. I'm not sure about Apple's policy on use in "dusty" environments, but you might visit a Genius bar (if there's an Apple Store close by) and let them take a look at the computer.

I don't see that applying a vacuum to the vents would harm anything, but it might not help. As you can see from this iFixit.com image (probably quite obvious, but the fan is the round silver object at the top right; there's another top left behind the hand), debris blocking the fan might not be accessible to the vents at the back/clutch area.

Hope this helps...

On the track of opening the case- would this void my warranty?

Only if you screw up and damage the thing... 😉

If you decide to do it yourself, my local AASP has warned me that when removing the top case, extreme care must be taken when disengaging the clips holding down the front edge. If they bend or get damaged, it will be very difficult to close it up flush with the bottom case and hence voiding the warranty. Try to get authorized service first...

Unfortunately, gauging from the pictures on various disassembly manuals, it seems unlikely that dust, lint or cat hair can be successfully dislodged and removed without removing the top case.

I don't know if anyone else has a similar experience to mine, but my MBP was consistently running hot, and also crashing far too frequently. On a whim, I bought a laptop cooling stand for about $39 from Office Depot. Wow, what a difference. The laptop stayed cool to the touch after having been almost always virtually too hot to touch. And the crashes almost completely disappeared. Sound similar to what anyone else has experienced?