Electric Fan

[mgmoore7]

Dannym
I am not sure I follow your post. First you say the aftermarket electric fans are terrible since they don't pull enough CFM and then go on to say that the electric fan is better than the engine driven fan because it pulls more CFM and can be controlled.

This flex-a-lite pulls 4600 CFM when running at 100%. That is more than the Lincoln fan. I don't see how this could be considered terrible. I have not read that anyone is unhappy with a flex-a-lite but have read quite opposite and some have stated that they saw an increase in MPG.
http://www.flex-a-lite.com/auto/html...-electric.html

[carrfamilynj]

Yes, it appears that DannyM is contradicting himself. Which is it-they're good, or they're not? I'm going to pick up a 16" puller with shroud, it's a Flex-a-Lite 180 Xtreme, supposed to be good for 3300 CFM, with variable speed control.

[83Van]

20 amps of power is nothing... your headlights will draw 30 amps on high beam. That 20a is only needed when the fan is running, and if you have the thermostat switch set right it won't come on at all on the highway. My van has the standard factory 60amp alternator and I've had zero problems running everything at once.

Flex-a-lite fans are about the best in the CFM per amp drawn category, their motors are high quality and very reliable. They're also very thin on many models. When you're choosing a fan setup you need to pay attention to available depth with your particular vehicle/ engine combo. A single 16" would fit my radiator but be too deep and interfere with the accessory drive belts. The dual 12" fans are thinner by 2" and leave plenty of clearance.

[Dannym]

Originally Posted by mgmoore7

Dannym
I am not sure I follow your post. First you say the aftermarket electric fans are terrible since they don't pull enough CFM and then go on to say that the electric fan is better than the engine driven fan because it pulls more CFM and can be controlled.

This flex-a-lite pulls 4600 CFM when running at 100%. That is more than the Lincoln fan. I don't see how this could be considered terrible. I have not read that anyone is unhappy with a flex-a-lite but have read quite opposite and some have stated that they saw an increase in MPG.
http://www.flex-a-lite.com/auto/html/27inch-electric.html

First off the Lincoln fan is not aftermarket crap, it's a stock vehicle part. I'm saying this fan does have benefits over engine-driven fans.

Perhaps I did over-generalize on the aftermarket stuff. I do believe most of the stuff out there is crap. All I've seen at the parts store have laughable CFM ratings and I recall seeing people here who installed them only to start overheating. But, that certainly doesn't mean a quality part can't be in the aftermarket.
They're misrepresenting it as a 27" fan. A dual 13.5" is 364.5 sq in, which only a bit higher than the 18" Lincoln Mk VIII's 324 sq in. But, if it pulls 4600 CFM that's not bad at all. I'd use it. In fact being a bit more spread out like this might give it better cooling for the CFM.

[CalEx4x4]

[img]aolemb://10C063F6-7ED7-449C-87B1-EFDEB44870B3/100-0017_IMG.JPG[/img]

Here are two Flex A Lite #398's that cool my 6.8L Excursion
The controllers are two stage and only one fan at a time comes on.
Less amp draw that way. The Alt is the typical 130 A. You might look at the Lightning forums. Lots of fans there. . .

[CalEx4x4]

Sorry, I tried to cut-and-paste a pic of the above mentioned fans. . . . didn't work.
I do have a photos in my gallery for anyone interested.

[carrfamilynj]

So I ended up going with the 16" FAL Black Magic puller, with adj. thermostat. Rated at 2800 cfm, it does the job so far, we'll have to see how it goes next summer, with the ac on full, in the heat.

[Purdue Offroader]

Just an FYI it sounds like we (Bosch) finally got the F-150 business so I'd imagine w/in the next year or two you'll see some nice electric fans on the stock F-150. We've made the GMT900 GM truck fans for years and they are pretty nice peices.