[burch]

Hi all,

Ever since summer rolled around, and it's been hot (95+ degrees), I've had trouble keeping my car cool at idle. It'll run at 180 degrees all day long on the highway (or above 50mph), but once you slow down, the temps would climb up to about 215-220 degrees before stabilizing.

So... This week I purchased and installed an electric fan:



It's a 16" SPAL fan, sold by Be-Cool specifically for my application. It came with an extremely nice wiring harness, with a 30 amp relay, a thermostatic control (turns on at 195, off at 185), and an inline fuse holder.

Total installation time was about 3 hours, including wiring a manual override switch in the console, and fighting with the outrageously overpriced aluminum fan brackets.

I haven't driven the car yet, but hopefully I'll get it out this Sunday. After all the wiring was done, I switched the fan on, and walked inside to announce my success to my wife. As I walked in the door, she said "what were you using the shop vac for in the garage?" The fan is that loud! It moves a TON of air though. It is rated at 2360 CFM, and if you're sitting in the car when you turn it on, it's like a cool breeze suddenly picked up.

[burch]

Hi all,

Ever since summer rolled around, and it's been hot (95+ degrees), I've had trouble keeping my car cool at idle. It'll run at 180 degrees all day long on the highway (or above 50mph), but once you slow down, the temps would climb up to about 215-220 degrees before stabilizing.

So... This week I purchased and installed an electric fan:



It's a 16" SPAL fan, sold by Be-Cool specifically for my application. It came with an extremely nice wiring harness, with a 30 amp relay, a thermostatic control (turns on at 195, off at 185), and an inline fuse holder.

Total installation time was about 3 hours, including wiring a manual override switch in the console, and fighting with the outrageously overpriced aluminum fan brackets.

I haven't driven the car yet, but hopefully I'll get it out this Sunday. After all the wiring was done, I switched the fan on, and walked inside to announce my success to my wife. As I walked in the door, she said "what were you using the shop vac for in the garage?" The fan is that loud! It moves a TON of air though. It is rated at 2360 CFM, and if you're sitting in the car when you turn it on, it's like a cool breeze suddenly picked up.

[firebird72_4-ME]

nice.

[Robert Williams]

I like it, let us all know how it works out for you.

[larry davis]

They are real nice!

Been using one on my 78 T/A for years w/ no problems.

[Philcol]

Who sells this fan?

Phil

[David Jones]

Jon-If you want to be real cool, you'll need to get some paint on that alternator bracket! Fan looks great!
David

[Robert Williams]

http://www.dewitts.com http://www.becool.com

[burch]

Well, the verdict is still out, but so far my impressions are mixed.

First, it was *EXTREMELY* hot today. My thermometer read about 110 degrees F in my driveway at 2pm. In this weather, the car ran at a maximum of 205 degrees F on my trip to the gas station (5+ miles), and didn't seem to creep at idle like it did with the mechanical fan.

However, I'm disappointed that the fan doesn't seem to cool the car down at idle once it's gotten hot. Hopefully, with more reasonable outdoor temperatures, things will be better.

Now, on the bright side, I did a quick cool-down test to simulate what happens in the staging lanes around here, and from 200+ degrees it only took about 15-20 minutes to get the car back down to 170 degrees (which was absolutely impossible with the mechanical fan).

[ July 02, 2002, 04:56 AM: Message edited by: Jon Burchmore ]

[Roger C]

www.ramchargers.com had a dual fan with a shroud on sale right now for 79.99 or with wiring harness its 139.00,I bought the fan without the harness I can Idle for as long as I need be and my temp gauge stays at 160 with an electric water pump(moroso) .Go check it out it is a quality piece...
Later,
Roger

[burch]

Interesting results today... I drove the car to work (30+ miles each way, with mountains, highways, and slow level driving), and it hit a peak of about 215 degrees, and was hot pretty much everywhere (at idle, at cruise, on the highway at 80 MPH, etc...), so I stopped at the local AutoZone on the way home and bought a new Robert Shaw thermostat.

I pulled the old t-stat out, and stuck both of them in a pot of water on the stove. Both were rated at 160 degrees, and both opened more or less exactly the same time. The only difference was that the new Shaw thermostat opened much *LESS* than the old one, and has a slightly smaller orifice.

Stuck the new t-stat in, and took the car for a testdrive. Never got above 190 (even with my wife beating on it ). In nearly identical weather and driving conditions last night it was running at 205. I guess there might be some truth to the theory that you have to slow the flow through the radiator to give the heat time to disperse.

I'm pleased with my new $4.95 thermostat. Slightly less pleased with my new $300+ electric fan setup, but hopefully it'll earn its keep at the dragstrip on Saturday.

[David Jones]

Thank you Jon for the tidbit on the thermostat. Information like that about the size on the Robert Shaw thermostat opening is very helpful. I had read that the Shaw thermostat was the best but couldn't see why one brand was any different than the other. Had also read that sometime slowing coolant flow was beneficial. Bingo! Shazam! Autozone on the way home. Thanks again. David

[sviguy]

a quick way to drop temp......my cousin races pure street 71 torino gt on asphalt 3/8 mile banked oval track.....between heat races (20 minutes), we drop temp from 220-230 when he comes to pits by turning off car, putting bag of ice on a towel on top of the radiator.....20 minutes later, start car and coolant temp is 175.....the other teams thought we were nuts....until they figured out it worked better than all their more technical contraptions......now, you see about 25 cars doing same thing so we have lost our 2nd heat advantage

[Dave A]

With the new Shaw t-stat featuring a smaller opening and less opening distance than the OEM style t-stat, it will change the coolant flow balance between the radiator and recirculating through the engine.

The radiator bypass from the intake manifold coolant crossover to the water pump through the timing cover must have 'balanced' flow with what coolant actually passes through the t-stat and into the radiator.

Increasing the t-stat restriction will reduce the flow rate through the radiator somewhat, but will INCREASE the flow rate through the engine.

I would guess that in your case the Shaw t-stat made for a better flow balance between engine and radiator. For the most part, increasing coolant flow helps with cooling (up to the point to where you're getting enough turbulence to cause severe cavitation and reduce the flow rate), and you have to use the limited flow you get from the water pump wisely.