Guys, it's time to do some cooling system word for old red ('79 F100). Does anyone have a truck this age with a cross flow radiator? I'm also 95% sold on upgrading to an electic fan over my four blade boomerang fan. I know there was a recent post about this. Who's converted to electric, and at what cost, how about ease of installation...? LMC lists one, anyone try theirs'?

 

while different years I may be able to help. I have a 95 and I used a perma cool 16" high performance (summitt) with the included 180 degree thermostat it ran around $70. The best thing I have ever done, and I am a very hard person to please. Here is the funny part I installed it last spring when it was cool and it never kicked on nor did my temp go up drastically it did go up a little this summer and of course it was hot/humid outside and I did not use the a/c much I like the windows down, but again the temp was not raising much as far as coolant temp and the fan never came on. I began to think it was the thermostat so I replaced it with one my brother used that I knew worked and I have heard it come on one time after I shut my truck off and it ran for about 3 minutes then quite. So these motors run so cool they don't need the fan or at least that is my experience. Installation is very easy, and I felt a difference when I did it I may have had a bad clutch fan but it seemed ok to me. Made the engine run a lot smoother, of course anyone with the 300 has probably heard the howl of the clutch fan anyways and this gets rid of it. If interested my brother has two used fans 10" perma cool they work great he used them to cool a 10.5:1 468 in an s-10 blazer so they will cool your rig, you would need to purchase a thermostat and installation pieces if you so desire they are not expensive at all. If interested I can give you a price and a fair one at that I would have used them but I had already purchased the one I have now. good luck

 

Will it mount up to the I-6?

 

Forgot to ask, what fan did you get? Happen to know the part number?

 

I haven't had too much of a problem lately, since temps are dropping. I'm going to be finishing my smog restoration in January, and I expect the engine to run a bit warmer. I noticed considerably higher running temps in dry weather compared to humid. I figure an electric fan would be better for those traffic times...I'm having a tough time finding a fan shroud. My radiator has both rows disintegrating badly and I figure a cross flow would be better than the down draft system I have now...any more input guys??

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 17-Nov-01 AT 09:00 PM (EST)]MustangGT221,

The fan I used actually mounts to the radiator itself. I used summit pn# prm-19115 it cost $88.95. I would make a recommendation make some spacers so as that the fan is level with the end of the fan shroud so it pulls air from everywhere. No big deal to do. I can get some pictures if your serious. My brother has two used perma cool he purchased from jegs pn# 771-19120 they are the 10" ones retail $59.99. He will take $55 for both so you save some money he used them on a weekend vehicle that he never drives. That way you could off set them and cool the radiator a little better, again if he had them for sale when I was getting one I would have bought them without a doubt. I can get pictures of them if interested. Only trouble with this mod is getting the old clutch fan off, you need a special tool but any garage should have it and do it for you for nothing. Another thing is you would need a 180 degree thermostat that cost $20 and an install kit although wire would work, he will throw in a used thermostat also. Appreciate it

 

The fan from Summit throws out 2-3,000 cfm and the jegs only throws 900. I think for the extra 25-30 bucks it might be worth it, dontcha think?

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 18-Nov-01 AT 02:33 PM (EST)]Well on paper it sounds better, but again he had those two 10" fans on a 468ci 10.5:1 compression in an s-10 blazer which generates more heat than a six could ever dream of especially in a cramped engine compartment. One way you have one fan that covers one area were as you can take the two and spread them out and offset and it would cool more area and the cfm difference is only like 200-300cfm. Either way would be fine, good luck

 

JW, did you notice any kind of draw on your electrical system? I'm concerned about how my old '79 stock altenator will do with a device that draws over 10 amps?

 

I have yet to have any problems

 

 

I put my new three row radiator in. It's quite a cooling upgrade compared to my old two row. It's still a down draft, but it's thicker and much longer across. The old one had a core just the size of the cutout in the support ('79). The new radiator extends about four inches more towards the driver's side. After all new hoses, clamps, and a thermostat the temp stays quite cool.
I'm still intrested in upgrading the fan to electric, although I think I can find a shroud for this beast of a radiator (2.5 gallons - cap.). I'd like to find a fan / shroud combo type of unit.