Clutch Fan - Can you check them?

[thunderbolt 150]

 if i can do it

im shocking with wiring too i just have no interest in it but i do a fair bit of it on my cars just because i have to

[thunderbolt 150]

Yep that's the same thermo housing as mine. Good luck getting that plug out though, I broke an Allen key trying to shift mine.

 

For everyone's reference, Bosch relays have a numbering system:

 

30 - supply

85 - trigger in

86 - earth

87 - to device/load

 

The pin positions can vary, and there are relays that have an extra pin output (87a) for supplying power when not triggered. These are called changeover relays and are used on fog lights, etc when you need the low beam dipped, so it's one or the other.

 

If you learn a bit more about electrics, you can wire up your thermofans to run in series or parallel, giving two speeds. This is how they did it on the EF setup.

they often have a schematic on the side too

[Mr Polson 10,214]

Makes sense now that I know what the numbers mean!

 

Would I need two speeds though? Would've thought one would suffice. For the xflow at least.

[Gav 616]

I reckon thermos are a worthwhile conversion. Did the conversion on my EB Falcon. Not much of a seat o' the pans power gain but I reckon I picked up 50km extra per tank of LPG because the engine doen't need to push a fan all the time - hence a fuel saving. I used EL fans because the wiring up made more sense to me than the EF version. I also used factory wiring/relay blocks and engine bay fuse block because it saved a lot of arseing around. Easy to remove from a wreck and can be used with the Davies Craig switches. I used the variable switch. With regards to those, use the plastic gizmos that enable them to be installed into to top radiator hose (someones pictured it in an earlier post) - it's simply a much neater solution for sensor location

 

My install isn't particularly sophisticated. Both fans come on at once and at a fixed speed but appears to work a treat. Haven't has any issues with cooling since. Takes a little gettting used to not hearing fan roar though - the engine does sound quite different without the added noise....

[Mr Polson 10,214]

Pretty decent fuel saving then! I know someone selling a set of thermos, not sure if they're EF or EL, shouldn't be too hard to suss out though.

 

I was thinking a sensor on the thermostat housing wouldn't exactly be neat, yes it's look factory but not be neat.

 

Majority of the time simpler is better than sophisticated.

[XTREME KARTS XF 1,212]

if you can free spin the clutch fan and hear it lock up its fine, if you cant free spin it, bin it and buy another hub.

[gerg 10,871]

Free spinning is not an indication that it's fine.

 

2 things can happen to a viscous clutch fan:

- constant lockup (seized)

- constant freewheel (loss of fluid/drive)

 

To test when cold, rotate blade with engine off. You should feel some resistance. This is because the fluid has collected at the bottom of the clutch housing, causing drag on one side of the clutch. As you rotate it more and more, the fluid is spread evenly around the unit and becomes more free to rotate. This shows that the fan still has its fluid inside. The same thing happens when you run the engine from cold. You'll hear the fan working for maybe 10 seconds then it will slow down to a point where you can't hear it. It should stay that way until the engine is well and truly warm, then should cut in at a reasonably fast rate, and able to be heard.

 

To test it hot, get it right up to temp (say over 2/3) and shut it off. The fan should be locked solid. If not, it's stuffed.

[gerg 10,871]

Makes sense now that I know what the numbers mean!

 

Would I need two speeds though? Would've thought one would suffice. For the xflow at least.

You only need one wire going to the sender, the rest, including the relay, you can hide anywhere you like.

 

You can wire it up for one speed, like I did with my 302. It's running them at half speed (in series) and as said before, hasn't yet gone over 40% on the gauge.

 

If on yours, the temp still creeps up when you're say towing or sitting in shitty traffic in a hot day, you can simply change the terminals over to be in parallel (full speed). Just make sure your alternator is ok to keep up with the load.

[Mr Polson 10,214]

I think it's locked up, I tried spinning it before pulling it off and it was hard to spin, a lot of resistance. And it didn't go away.

 

Now to just figure out how to fit the thermos (they're 94DA, so EF I think??)

 

Normally you have to cut the fan thread from the water pump, correct?

[LTD083 278]

I think it's locked up, I tried spinning it before pulling it off and it was hard to spin, a lot of resistance. And it didn't go away.

 

 

Now to just figure out how to fit the thermos (they're 94DA, so EF I think??)

 

 

Normally you have to cut the fan thread from the water pump, correct?

 

If it was locked up it would be spinning constantly and therefore cooling... You mention ute was getting warm when idling and going up a hill. Have you also ruled out blocked radiator? Fan shouldnt make a lot of difference once your moving.

94DA is EF.

 

Sent from my GT-I9100T using Tapatalk 2

[Mr Polson 10,214]

It was still spinning...

 

I didn't even check the radiator, I'm just going on the assumption its good? It doesn't leak or anything... and wasn't blocked when I flushed it at the start of the year when I done the water pump...

[LTD083 278]

A radiator can be blocked and you not know until the symptoms youve got start. Flushing will never dislodge all the shit especially if the radiator has been empty of water for a while before being used again. The water will flow through all the large parts of the radiator but its the small bits that block and cause issues.

 

Sent from my GT-I9100T using Tapatalk 2

[Mr Polson 10,214]

Its not sat with no water in it...

Came out of one of the parts ute the day the motor did, and into mine two days later...

 

Any way to check for blockages besides symptoms?