SO I got a 84 z28, with a thermal fan on it...First questionn is it really worth swappnig over to an electric fan??as in HP gain, and fuel economy..?and what kits out there are available for my car....any sugestions??Im not looking to spend $500 on a fan kit..keep in mind im a college student and on a budget...thanks you guys..

 

If you're on a budget, why not keep the clutch fan for a while?

 

For the minute amount of HP gained/MPG saved, I don't think it's worth it unless you're running into cooling issues or you just "have to have it".

 

Save $60-$80 bucks this winter and get a taurus fan in the spring. Get one from a 91-95 3.8l car. They are two speed and will cool better than anything. If you do mods later like a bigger motor etc then you will be glad you did.

 

All of the thirdgens that I have owned with electric fans make a little more power then the ones that I have owned with mechanical fans. All of the thirdgens that I have owned with mechanical fans have had zero cooling issues. All of the thirdgens I have owned with electric fans have had a tendency to overheat if everything is not 100%. I have owned a bunch of thirdgens over the years.

Cooling issues with electric fans are a constant potential problem waiting to pounce on you at the worst possible time. The electric fan set-up also taxes the charging system to the max, and will work your altenator to death. If you are running AC and a big stereo amp, you will need to beef up your charging system, wiring included. With a mechanical fan, if your charging system fails, you can limp home up to a few hundred miles on the power left in the battery, however with electric fans the battery will go dead in about 30 minutes.

Granted an electric fan is an easy way to free up some HP, however if you are a college student with a budget, and your car is running well right now, why mess with it? Just some pros and cons to consider.

Charles

 

thanks you guys for all the great info....but you kwo what I think i will just stick with my clutch fan...ksu ur right i am a student on a budget and the last thing i want is for it to f*ck up on me....thanks!

 

Does anyone run an electric water pump on the street? If you're racing, that thing is a huge power sucker. The load of a water pump is proportional to the CUBE of the speed (RPMs). It's nothing when putting around, but can suck up 20HP at 5 or 6K RPM. Somebody should devise a thermal clutch or RPM limiter for a mechanical water pump.

 

Look here. VVV

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/engi...n-fs-40-a.html

 

I always think electric fans are worth the expense and hastle installing:

You get some more HP
You get full cooling at low engine RPM (important at low speeds)
You can regulate the temperature they turn on easily (with an adjustable control)

 

That's a deal for somebody, providing the wiring is useable. I have heard that the Taurus fans are the best for a fan mod.

I wonder if the Taurus fans are the same ones as the fans used on the Crown Victoria's? Our DD's are a 2007 CV police with the street appearance package, and a 2008 CV LX. Those things never get hot, it does not matter what sort of driving conditions you put them in. Even idling in 110 F with a 90% humidity with the A/C blasting the cars stay right in the 195F operating range.

Our prevous 1997 Vic came with a mechanical fan and an electric pusher fan. I was told that this is because of the change from Freon 12 in the A/C to 134A. Either way it worked well. In 1999 they went to all electric fans on those cars.

What ever the secret, I wish that I could update my 86 TA to have that sort of extra cooling capicity. My problem is that the car shows in the stock class, and any mods will make the judges reclassify the car as a modded car, which I am trying to avoid.

 

ye thats true...but i think in the end im just gonna hang on to my thermal fan clutch after all..

 

My 82 is set up like your Camaro, and it runs so cool that one can watch the guage and tell when the t-stat is opening and closing. It will also pump 56F air out of the A/C vents at idle at 100F in the sun. It is hard to get a car to cool that effeciently. On the other side of the debate that 145HP LG4 is a gutless wonder on the road. It pulls the car, but there is no extra power available for some excitement.

 

Mine has electric fans and you can watch the thermostat opening and closing going down the freeway and blows about 46F on a 100 degree day ... Whats the benefit of a mechanical fan? Mechanical fans just a waste of power, driving down freeway my electric fans rarely come on. It never gets hot and even with a/c on blizzard it still will not get hot.

O/P buy a twin electric fan setup from a third gen, they are easy to wire up.

 

Yes the wiring is usable...I powered it on at the yard.

 

Yes, I recently converted to a taurus fan and they will cool your car no doubt about it. The wiring on them is huge compared to most fans because of the large amount amp draw they have. You have to have a 40 amp fuse for them because they will blow anything smaller. In 95 Ford made a plug in resettable breaker that I found and installed and it makes life very easy. It actually has two since it is a two speed motor. They are little silver square breakers mounted in an epoxy filled triangle plastic body.

 

electric fan all-the-way!!! find a dual set up from a LS1 fbody!