electric fan installation
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Senior User
Joined: Feb 2003
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From: Pennsylvania
electric fan installation
thinking of going with an electric fan. i saw some on summit that arent too expensive. before i take the plunge, i just want to ask some others who did this a few questions:
-do you have a temperature switch on the fan, or do you have it wired so its runnung constantly?
-anyone pull one out of a used car from a junkyard? any pointers for this?
-was the installation easy? i saw that for some of the fans, you have to seperate some of the fins in the radiator and secure it by putting a bolt through the radiator to a nut on the other side.
-did you run into any other mounting issues? have any tips?
i just want to know what im up against if i do this. much appriciated.
-do you have a temperature switch on the fan, or do you have it wired so its runnung constantly?
-anyone pull one out of a used car from a junkyard? any pointers for this?
-was the installation easy? i saw that for some of the fans, you have to seperate some of the fins in the radiator and secure it by putting a bolt through the radiator to a nut on the other side.
-did you run into any other mounting issues? have any tips?
i just want to know what im up against if i do this. much appriciated.
Freshman User
Joined: Dec 2005
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Although its not a ford I put one from a junkyard on my jeep and wired it to a switch. The only timed I turned it on was off road or in heavy traffic as it stayed at normal temp all other times. I think this is what I willl do with my 150 this weekend. If you wire it to run all the time it will take longer to heat up in the morning too. So I would at least wire it to a temp switch. I used wire ties through my radiator to hold it on as the ties will slide through the fins without distorting them.
Senior User
Joined: Aug 2005
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If you want an electric fan on the cheap, look for early 90's taurus/sable with the 3.8L & A/C. These things crank! I put one in my T-bird with a moderately built 302. Around town, it runs between 170 & 180 as the thermostat cycles. The highest its gone was on a steaming hot July day in bumper to bumper traffic with the A/C on. It hit 210 and held solid. Also, remember a Turbocoupe has no grill. A truck will have much better air flow. I paid $35 for the fan from a you pull it. They even tested it for me before I paid for it. The wiring, thermostat, and relay brought the total to about $100. This thing pulls about 40 amps, so your alternator may need an upgrade.
Senior User
Joined: Mar 2005
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From: Powhatan, Virginia
I agree with those who suggested electric fans...I changed over my son's '87 f150 short bed 4wd 5.0L to electric and they work great. Improved gas mileage, power and a whole lot less fan noise. I bought the fans at Advance Auto Parts along with a wiring kit with a thermostat that cuts them on when needed and also makes them run when the a/c is on. Per the manufacturers instructions, it required 2 16" fans. They were easy to install and it took about 2 hours. Good luck!
Tuned
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 436
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From: MI
Cheap ones at auto parts stores do not flow much and are not worth what they ask IMHO. Like turbocoupe said, the ones from the taurus/sable are very good fans. There are also several ones on eBay. I got a used one on there that came off a Volvo. It puts out over 3500 cfm, which is way more than I need. My fan is on a temp switch and rarely comes on. When it does, its on for a minute or less and turns back off. Made a decent difference in my low end and raised my city mileage up a bit. I spent about $100 total on everything.
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Joined: Nov 2004
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From: Florida
RC Dan, I am running pretty the same thing as rdw516 and have had no problems at all.
Been running it that way for well over 2 years now and the only time it has attempted to over heat was when a connection come loose. And you can see what I am putting the truck through every weekend in my gallery.
Been running it that way for well over 2 years now and the only time it has attempted to over heat was when a connection come loose. And you can see what I am putting the truck through every weekend in my gallery.
Tuned
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 436
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From: MI
I was just stating, in my opinion, that those fans from auto parts stores aren't what they are said to be. Yes, they function but, they aren't cheap either. And you get what, 2000, 2500cfm? Many have less than that. Because they don't flow alot, you must use 2. Now, there are some out there that do flow alot and you only need 1 but they cost quite a bit. Or, you can get a large used one in great shape that doesn't cost as much, and you only need 1. I run 1 15" fan that flows in excess of 3500 cfm. The fan cost me $35.
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From: Claremore, Ok 74017
I paid 60 for a wiring kit, had another relay and wired mine in automatic with a manual override switch in the cab with a light to show when it is on. Works good, fan rarely kicks on. I used a junkyard fan that cost 25 bucks. Always have them test if before you buy it.
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Senior User
Joined: Feb 2003
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From: Pennsylvania
Just went to the junkyard yesterday. I looked at a bunch of different fans on a bunch of different ford cars. in particular, some taruses and a 3.8L mustang. some questions that i have are:
1) there are three wires coming from most of the fans. these wires split into 6, then they connect with more wires to a square box mounted near the radiator. can anyone tell me what the purpose of the box is? also, where is the thermostat and relay? can i just not use the box and use the three wires instead?
2) MOUNTING! all of these fans are designed to mount up to the radiator in the specific cars. how did everyone mount the fan from the car to the truck radiator? pics? this bugs me the most because it seems like the biggest challange.
1) there are three wires coming from most of the fans. these wires split into 6, then they connect with more wires to a square box mounted near the radiator. can anyone tell me what the purpose of the box is? also, where is the thermostat and relay? can i just not use the box and use the three wires instead?
2) MOUNTING! all of these fans are designed to mount up to the radiator in the specific cars. how did everyone mount the fan from the car to the truck radiator? pics? this bugs me the most because it seems like the biggest challange.
Senior User
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 383
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From: Newport News USA
I'm using a dual fan setup from an LS1 motor, using a Flex-A-Lite fan controller and except for the fan controller going out on me once, I've not had a single case of the motor even coming close to overheating. I think I paid $75 for the fans, and $80 for the controller. And believe it or not, but I use the stock fan shroud, trimmed a bit to open it up more, to hold the dual fan assembly on. It works great! 
Senior User
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 383
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From: Newport News USA
I'm using the 31165. It works great and very easy to hook up.
http://www.flex-a-lite.com/auto/html...cessories.html
http://store.summitracing.com/defaul...-31165&FROM=MG
http://www.flex-a-lite.com/auto/html...cessories.html
http://store.summitracing.com/defaul...-31165&FROM=MG
Senior User
Joined: Dec 2004
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From: Midwest Illinios
I'm considering switching to an electric fan on my 1995 f-150 (302 v8) Does anybody know how much air a fan needs to flow to keep the engine cool? Ive been looking at a 2500cfm 18 in fan with a switch that kicks it on at 155 degrees. Does this sound like something that would work or would dual fans be more adaquate?