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Red Fan vs. Yellow Fan

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I have long used a 'pusher' fan as an auxillary w/o any overheating problems. Controlled manually, I only use it for long stops in very hot weather.

Agree that those 'zip ties' provided with the fans are not a good idea -- I mounted mine with clamps made from 1/4" bolts (decapitated and bent into an L).

fan8.JPG


Sam is right that 3s & 4s at least do not like to have the fan removed completely, though I have heard that it is the big hub that must be left in place for balance, the fan blades can go (usually required if converting to R&P steering).

Finally, if an electric is controlled by a thermostat switch I think you want to mount the sensor on the bottom rad hose -- not the top as I have often seen. If you think about how a radiator works and when you want the fan to come on I think you'll see that the bottom hose temp is what matters.
 
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Finally, if an electric is controlled by a thermostat switch I think you want to mount the sensor on the bottom rad hose -- not the top as I have often seen. If you think about how a radiator works and when you want the fan to come on I think you'll see that the bottom hose temp is what matters.

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That actually makes things easier on a TR6, as the lower rad hose is two pieces with a steel pipe in the middle. You could have the threaded fitting for the sensor welded right into that pipe without having to come up with one on your own. Are the other TR cars similar to the 6 in this lower rad hose configuration? Just trying to expand my knowledge of the other earlier cars where ever possible.
 
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Are the other TR cars similar to the 6 in this lower rad hose configuration?

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Yes, a bent pipe about a foot long connects 2 hoses that together make up the return to the water pump body.
 
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and they just attach to the front of the radiator.

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If by this you mean the type that has some sort of plastic fasteners going through the radiator core, they will likely, over time, wear a hole through the very thin (about .004 inches thick) radiator tube walls. The mass of the fan assembly WILL vibrate against the radiator a bit. Much better to use some good solid brackets to the surrounding sheetmetal.
D

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Yes, I agree. Mounting the fan directly to the radiator is a bad idea. Mine (Imperial 16") mounts to the surrounding sheet metal like you said.


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I also have a connection to a guy that makes a fan eliminator kit, which is basically a round plate/bolt that replaces the fan mounting thingy on the crank. All thats left is to fit a fan switch that will cut it on/off at the correct temps. I'm told Napa sells a good one.

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This is not a good idea, running just an electric fan. Electric fans are NOT meant to cool the car, just to help out. I definitly do not recommend this under any circumstances.
 
Electric fans are most definitely made to cool, tens of thousands of front wheel drive cars function with them every day. I modified my TR4 a few years ago to use an after market harmonic balancer and and a narrow belt, which necessitated the use of an electric fan, in this case a pusher. I have had no problems with overheating not even on long 100 mile trips at over 100 degrees, including some in town traffic. I have to say that under extreme heat conditions the car functions better than the driver.
 
Webb, I have to disagree, my elecric fan puts out 2200 cfm, I wager that it would easily out blow the stock fan. Besides, I haven't seen a new car in several years with a belt driven fan. If you do research, and get the right parts then you'll have yourself a quiet cool car.

-Shannon
 
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...my elecric fan puts out 2200 cfm, I wager that it would easily out blow the stock fan...

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Especially that stock fan on the TR3s & 4s. I think that thing was designed for a summer day in Coventry. My inexpensive electric blows a mini hurricane compared to what the stock fan can do at idle.
 
Part of the problem, at least with the 6's IMO, is the darn fan shroud that Triumph put on these cars, it's on the wrong end. If you think about it, the shroud being on the front of the rad is only helping to direct airflow into the rad when the car is moving. But at a crawl in traffic it's not doing squat to help direct the airflow. At low speeds or when stopped the car needs a shroud which surrounds the fan itself and encloses that space between the fan and backside of the rad. This way the fan is prevented from pulling in air from it's perimeter and all the air that the fan draws would have to come in through the rad.

Another thing I've noticed on my 6, make sure your temp sensor is functioning properly. I had thought my car was running nice and cool for a long time, then my temp sensor died. When I replaced it the temp was reading way higher than it ever had before. I consulted a few people in my club and it turns out the first sensor was reading way low, and the new one was accurate. That really scared me, because I figure I was near overheating a few times in traffic and probably never knew it.
 
Dotanukie,

I agree, as a matter of fact I was talking with my radiator shop about that very same thing yesterday when I dropped it off to have a a fitting for my temp sensor installed. He actually recommended fabricating a small shroud to do just what you're taking about, but with the crossmember in the way I don't see it happening unless the I have a new crossmember fabricated... BUT, since I choose a 16" fan, the sections of the radiator not having air sucked through are very small... just the extreme corners since the fan covers the entire width and height of the radiator.

Kinda scary about your sensor not working, I need to rig up some test when I get everything back together. I should have my radiator back on next Wednesday, I'll take pics of the modifications.

As always, your mileage may vary,
Shannon
 
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