Hello everyone!
I am looking to change out my heavy fixed steel radiator fan and hopefully after this discussion myself and hopefully others who will read this in the future will be able to make an educated decision. I've come to try and find an answer to the question, "Which Radiator fan type is best for a daily driver application?". Mainly i'm here to hear your opinions and what you guys think on the topic. I've been digging around the internet for a whole week for answers but in the end come up with a lot of contradicting answers(mainly of electric fans).
For starters my daily driver is a 74' 4door ford maverick, 250cid L6, a fairly stock engine with mild improvements(porting), DUI dizzy, 2V conversion with a holley 350, power steering and AC(I feel like AC is a big factor when it comes to engine cooling), and an 100 amp alternator(Comes as a factor if electric fan cooling is the path to go with). The car is well tuned, it runs well and it doesn't over heat.
My steel fixed fan is a 4 blade fan which is for some reason asymmetrical which concerns me.
My main concerns with my current setup are:
-The possible loss of power.
-The stress it puts on the water pump(since it's asymmetrical).
So there's a number of options when it comes to radiator fans:
-Fixed fan: A simple fan that is belt driven.
-Fixed flex fan: A fan that flattens out at higher RPMs to reduce engine drag, it is belt driven.
-Clutch fan: A fan that uses a clutch system to determine it's rotation.
-Electric fan: Uses sensors to determine when to turn on or off.
The following points are what i have in mind and why i'm torn in choosing the right system for my application, needless the say whatever fan type is chosen a proper fan shroud will be used(fabricated by me).
Fixed fan
-Cooling: I think it cools the best, a massive metal fan moving air, how can it not be the best?
-Reliability: Most reliable and basically bullet proof. While odds of something happening to it are slim, it puts stress on the water pump which may cause it damage especially if the fan isn't balanced properly(like in my case). You can imagine a laundry machine where you bolt some 10kg weight to the inside of it and make it spin, there will be high centrifugal force where the high weight is which will cause stress to machine.
-Horsepower: people claim it makes you lose a lot of horsepower because of the effort it takes to move it around, and i'm not sure about that! well sure, maybe when you're stationary it does, but my theory is when the car is moving at high speed the wind itself helps propel the fan, reducing the stress and effort on the belt system.
-Fuel economy: If it really causes the loss of HP then fuel economy is hurt as well, it seems like the worst choice for fuel economy of the four.
Noise: No clue.
-Price: Usually costs slightly more than flex plates, and you do need a spacer to clear out the pulley system. in general cheap.
In conclusion I chose to replace my fixed fan with one of the other 3 options, so i say no to having a fixed fan.
Fixed flex fan
-Cooling: Probably same as a regular fixed fan? may be a little worse since it changes it's shape at higher rpms, but on a daily driven car you high rpm at highway speeds. The wind probably plays a bigger factor in cooling than the radiator then.
-Reliability: It's a solid 2nd place in reliability, what is concerning about these flex fans is that they are made of a thin metal or nylon(plastic basically). And when spinning thin riveted metal at high RPM there's always the possibility one of the blades can break off, while very unlikely to happen in a daily driven car it is still a possibility.
Other than that they cause less stress to the water pump since they flex out at high RPM and basically flatten, reducing drag.
-Horsepower: I can't imagine a nylon flex fan which weighs less than 1lb causing much more horsepower loss than an electric fan.
-Fuel economy: Thinks it corresponds to the loss of horsepower.
-Noise: People claim it's the loudest
-Price: Slightly cheaper than the heavier regular fans, still need that spacer. Nylon fans are dirt cheap(16$ on summit racing for my car).
Been thinking of using a flex fan, it's reliable, no clutch or electrics, odds of getting you stranded and near zero, and it's cheap to replace. after a few years of use the nylon may become brittle, but what's 16$ for a new fan...
Clutch fan
-Cooling: Probably exactly what is needed, since the clutch system engages and disengages depending on heat it knows when it should engage and disengage .
-Reliability: Less reliable than the last two. While the clutch doesn't suddenly goes bad, it does deteriorate over time and eventually will stop working, when the clutch is shot the fan won't provide any air pulling and the engine will overheat.
-Horsepower: Since it disengages when it's cold, at higher speeds, it's probably the same as the electric fan since it's basically disconnected and not putting stress on your engine.
-Fuel economy: It disconnects itself when not needed, sounds good for fuel economy i guess.
-Noise: No clue
-Price: Not as cheap as the last two, clutches are expensive and more likely to need replacing than flex fans.
The whole clutch parts sounds like a reliability issue, i don't have part stores in my country where i can just go get a new clutch. if on a road trip and the car starts overheating because the clutch went bad, Trip's done for. Kind of scares me.
Electric fan
-Cooling: Probably best of them all, there are different options to fans, 1 or 2 speed, different CFM ratings, quite easy to pick what's right for you.
-Reliability: All the electronics if wired properly will probably work well until the don't. An electric fan won't warn you before it goes bad, it just will. I'm not sure how frequent such thing is but considering today's cars run electric fans, they do seem superior to everything else while they do work. Getting a readily available fan will make your life easier since you can always replace it if it goes bad instead of rewiring everything to work with other fans, or better yet, fans with a replaceable motor.
-Horsepower: People claim that out of all the options electric fans steal the least amount of horsepower but I'm skeptical. When electric fans work, they draw a lot of amperage which basically puts stress on the alternator. When an alternator is at stress it causes it to act like a brake, causing more effort to spin it. I don't know much about the gains in horse power using an electric fan.
-Fuel economy: Seems to be the most efficient, no need to move some metal fan around. Only thing that seems to hurt mileage is the fact that it puts stress on the alternator.
-Noise: Kinda loud, i think? maybe some can be quiet?
-Price: The least cheap option, Fans are expensive, the more CFM the higher the price(Not always though). you'll need to do some electrical work and upgrade your alternator if you haven't already.
I've been considering the electric fan route, but two things are stopping me. which fan is right? Reliability is a big factor, can't have a fan go out after 500 hours of driving.... Second, I'm not sure if it's normal but i have 4 inches of space from my radiator to my pulley while my radiator core is only 2 inches .
It's really hard for me to choose, personally i'm torn between a flex fan or an electric fan. I really want to read what you people think, and what you guys use! I'm sorry that this post is really long, but my intentions are good and hopefully others will also learn something about radiator fans. While they're not as fancy and exciting as upgrading your engine's performance or the car's suspension they're a crucial part of the car which is why is why i brought this all up
I'll apologize in advance if i made something hard to understand, English isn't my native language but i did try my best!
I am looking to change out my heavy fixed steel radiator fan and hopefully after this discussion myself and hopefully others who will read this in the future will be able to make an educated decision. I've come to try and find an answer to the question, "Which Radiator fan type is best for a daily driver application?". Mainly i'm here to hear your opinions and what you guys think on the topic. I've been digging around the internet for a whole week for answers but in the end come up with a lot of contradicting answers(mainly of electric fans).
For starters my daily driver is a 74' 4door ford maverick, 250cid L6, a fairly stock engine with mild improvements(porting), DUI dizzy, 2V conversion with a holley 350, power steering and AC(I feel like AC is a big factor when it comes to engine cooling), and an 100 amp alternator(Comes as a factor if electric fan cooling is the path to go with). The car is well tuned, it runs well and it doesn't over heat.
My steel fixed fan is a 4 blade fan which is for some reason asymmetrical which concerns me.
My main concerns with my current setup are:
-The possible loss of power.
-The stress it puts on the water pump(since it's asymmetrical).
So there's a number of options when it comes to radiator fans:
-Fixed fan: A simple fan that is belt driven.
-Fixed flex fan: A fan that flattens out at higher RPMs to reduce engine drag, it is belt driven.
-Clutch fan: A fan that uses a clutch system to determine it's rotation.
-Electric fan: Uses sensors to determine when to turn on or off.
The following points are what i have in mind and why i'm torn in choosing the right system for my application, needless the say whatever fan type is chosen a proper fan shroud will be used(fabricated by me).
Fixed fan
-Cooling: I think it cools the best, a massive metal fan moving air, how can it not be the best?
-Reliability: Most reliable and basically bullet proof. While odds of something happening to it are slim, it puts stress on the water pump which may cause it damage especially if the fan isn't balanced properly(like in my case). You can imagine a laundry machine where you bolt some 10kg weight to the inside of it and make it spin, there will be high centrifugal force where the high weight is which will cause stress to machine.
-Horsepower: people claim it makes you lose a lot of horsepower because of the effort it takes to move it around, and i'm not sure about that! well sure, maybe when you're stationary it does, but my theory is when the car is moving at high speed the wind itself helps propel the fan, reducing the stress and effort on the belt system.
-Fuel economy: If it really causes the loss of HP then fuel economy is hurt as well, it seems like the worst choice for fuel economy of the four.
Noise: No clue.
-Price: Usually costs slightly more than flex plates, and you do need a spacer to clear out the pulley system. in general cheap.
In conclusion I chose to replace my fixed fan with one of the other 3 options, so i say no to having a fixed fan.
Fixed flex fan
-Cooling: Probably same as a regular fixed fan? may be a little worse since it changes it's shape at higher rpms, but on a daily driven car you high rpm at highway speeds. The wind probably plays a bigger factor in cooling than the radiator then.
-Reliability: It's a solid 2nd place in reliability, what is concerning about these flex fans is that they are made of a thin metal or nylon(plastic basically). And when spinning thin riveted metal at high RPM there's always the possibility one of the blades can break off, while very unlikely to happen in a daily driven car it is still a possibility.
Other than that they cause less stress to the water pump since they flex out at high RPM and basically flatten, reducing drag.
-Horsepower: I can't imagine a nylon flex fan which weighs less than 1lb causing much more horsepower loss than an electric fan.
-Fuel economy: Thinks it corresponds to the loss of horsepower.
-Noise: People claim it's the loudest
-Price: Slightly cheaper than the heavier regular fans, still need that spacer. Nylon fans are dirt cheap(16$ on summit racing for my car).
Been thinking of using a flex fan, it's reliable, no clutch or electrics, odds of getting you stranded and near zero, and it's cheap to replace. after a few years of use the nylon may become brittle, but what's 16$ for a new fan...
Clutch fan
-Cooling: Probably exactly what is needed, since the clutch system engages and disengages depending on heat it knows when it should engage and disengage .
-Reliability: Less reliable than the last two. While the clutch doesn't suddenly goes bad, it does deteriorate over time and eventually will stop working, when the clutch is shot the fan won't provide any air pulling and the engine will overheat.
-Horsepower: Since it disengages when it's cold, at higher speeds, it's probably the same as the electric fan since it's basically disconnected and not putting stress on your engine.
-Fuel economy: It disconnects itself when not needed, sounds good for fuel economy i guess.
-Noise: No clue
-Price: Not as cheap as the last two, clutches are expensive and more likely to need replacing than flex fans.
The whole clutch parts sounds like a reliability issue, i don't have part stores in my country where i can just go get a new clutch. if on a road trip and the car starts overheating because the clutch went bad, Trip's done for. Kind of scares me.
Electric fan
-Cooling: Probably best of them all, there are different options to fans, 1 or 2 speed, different CFM ratings, quite easy to pick what's right for you.
-Reliability: All the electronics if wired properly will probably work well until the don't. An electric fan won't warn you before it goes bad, it just will. I'm not sure how frequent such thing is but considering today's cars run electric fans, they do seem superior to everything else while they do work. Getting a readily available fan will make your life easier since you can always replace it if it goes bad instead of rewiring everything to work with other fans, or better yet, fans with a replaceable motor.
-Horsepower: People claim that out of all the options electric fans steal the least amount of horsepower but I'm skeptical. When electric fans work, they draw a lot of amperage which basically puts stress on the alternator. When an alternator is at stress it causes it to act like a brake, causing more effort to spin it. I don't know much about the gains in horse power using an electric fan.
-Fuel economy: Seems to be the most efficient, no need to move some metal fan around. Only thing that seems to hurt mileage is the fact that it puts stress on the alternator.
-Noise: Kinda loud, i think? maybe some can be quiet?
-Price: The least cheap option, Fans are expensive, the more CFM the higher the price(Not always though). you'll need to do some electrical work and upgrade your alternator if you haven't already.
I've been considering the electric fan route, but two things are stopping me. which fan is right? Reliability is a big factor, can't have a fan go out after 500 hours of driving.... Second, I'm not sure if it's normal but i have 4 inches of space from my radiator to my pulley while my radiator core is only 2 inches .
It's really hard for me to choose, personally i'm torn between a flex fan or an electric fan. I really want to read what you people think, and what you guys use! I'm sorry that this post is really long, but my intentions are good and hopefully others will also learn something about radiator fans. While they're not as fancy and exciting as upgrading your engine's performance or the car's suspension they're a crucial part of the car which is why is why i brought this all up
I'll apologize in advance if i made something hard to understand, English isn't my native language but i did try my best!
Glad I was able to be of some help. Yes I have been a "Fan" of the "Clutch Fans" (pun intended) ever since they stated making them in the later 1960's. But seriously they combine the best of the simple fixed fan with a thermostatic controlled clutch that allows it to freewheel when the engine temps are cool enough, once its set up it does this job without a though just like the fixed and flex fans. I don't know of a set up that fits on the Mavericks but am sure there is one that will work off one of a Ford or aftermarket. Granted with the advent of the electric fans they have lost some of their appeal but it's still a good system.