Electric or OEM fan?
Electric or OEM fan?
- Thread starter Grumpa
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OEM-
Electric fans are noisy, and really suck up current.
OLG
Electric fans are noisy, and really suck up current.
OLG
caveman
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If you plan to do some water crossings then you need to be able to shut the fan off. I've seen the fins pulled out of a radiator from crossing water with a fan. It wasn't pretty. If you decide to go electric, don't go cheap. I've proved that the cheap ones don't work well or for very long. "twice". Go with the Ford twin fan conversion. Can't remember which car its from. Maybe the Taurus. A lot quiter and less battery draw. Lots of info on the interweb about it. I use a clutch fan and have been fender top deep with no problems but I did it at an idle.
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gr8dain
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I did the contour electric fans with switch to turn it off. My fans were from Dorman (new). I am very happy with them. And as for noise, I don’t hear them over the engine, but notice them when I turn the Jeep off and they stay on for a minute. They gave me the room I needed since the mechanical clutch fan was really close to the radiator.
Kane
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Ian Johnson did a pros and cons on extreme off road once. His preference was a mechanical clutch fan. They do not rob much if any horsepower, they will stall in water crossings to protect the radiator and use zero battery.
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CJ
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Hello, I added a BOTH category to your poll.
My contours fans work great but that is conjunction with my belt driven fan.
My contours fans work great but that is conjunction with my belt driven fan.
berserk71
Jeeper
Mechanical fans,
Pros: Simple, reliable and, in some situations, more efficient.
Moves more air at high RPM, better CFM.
Cons: Always on, even when engine is cold. Could slow down engine warm up.
Not as effective at moving air at low RPM. Could cause over heating at low RPM
with a high load.
Always robs power especially during acceleration.
Fording is more difficult. Not impossible. I knew a guy that delivered supplies to
remote places in South America with a Range Rover. He said it was common
practice to remove the hood and wedge it in between the winch and grill creating
a deflector. Works as long as you don't stall. Some people would use tarps in the
same way.
Electric fans,
pros: Depending on the effectiveness of your cooling system it can increase mileage
Better CFM, than mechanical, at low RPM
belts are a little easier to change especially if mechanical fan has a shroud.
Can be install in front or behind the radiator or both.
Can be made to turn off with a switch. Makes fording easier.
Only on when engine needs it, making warm ups faster.
Dual fans offer better efficiency if wired to come on at different temps.
Secondary fan can be wired as an emergency back up when primary fan dies.
Continuous to cool after engine has shut off
It can give a little more power to the wheels when accelerating especially if fans
are not on when accelerating.
More efficient on a colder days.
Offers more control at regulating engine temp.
You can install an override switch to turn both fans on if you know engine is
going to overheat going up a steep hill on a hot day, giving the cooling system a
head start.
Cons:
More complicated, less reliable.
Can be less efficient on hotter days.
Less CFM, than mechanical, at high RPM
Needs a fan shroud to get the most out of it.
"Aftermarket" electric fans are not that great, poor quality and weak CFM. Most don't even come with a shroud. I prefer a good used OEM fan. The Ford contour dual electric fan fits perfect on my 1977 258 CJ5 radiator and has an integrated fan shroud. They make new aftermarket Contour fans but quality and price seems to be all over the spectrum depending on the manufacturer.
I vote dual electric on most vehicles, if done right. Just overall more efficient. Kind of makes it a micro hybrid. The stock 232 could probably use a little extra power/efficiency.
I vote mechanical for towing rigs or any vehicle with an over stressed cooling system. Just can't beat the CFM and reliability of a mechanical fan.
Pros: Simple, reliable and, in some situations, more efficient.
Moves more air at high RPM, better CFM.
Cons: Always on, even when engine is cold. Could slow down engine warm up.
Not as effective at moving air at low RPM. Could cause over heating at low RPM
with a high load.
Always robs power especially during acceleration.
Fording is more difficult. Not impossible. I knew a guy that delivered supplies to
remote places in South America with a Range Rover. He said it was common
practice to remove the hood and wedge it in between the winch and grill creating
a deflector. Works as long as you don't stall. Some people would use tarps in the
same way.
Electric fans,
pros: Depending on the effectiveness of your cooling system it can increase mileage
Better CFM, than mechanical, at low RPM
belts are a little easier to change especially if mechanical fan has a shroud.
Can be install in front or behind the radiator or both.
Can be made to turn off with a switch. Makes fording easier.
Only on when engine needs it, making warm ups faster.
Dual fans offer better efficiency if wired to come on at different temps.
Secondary fan can be wired as an emergency back up when primary fan dies.
Continuous to cool after engine has shut off
It can give a little more power to the wheels when accelerating especially if fans
are not on when accelerating.
More efficient on a colder days.
Offers more control at regulating engine temp.
You can install an override switch to turn both fans on if you know engine is
going to overheat going up a steep hill on a hot day, giving the cooling system a
head start.
Cons:
More complicated, less reliable.
Can be less efficient on hotter days.
Less CFM, than mechanical, at high RPM
Needs a fan shroud to get the most out of it.
"Aftermarket" electric fans are not that great, poor quality and weak CFM. Most don't even come with a shroud. I prefer a good used OEM fan. The Ford contour dual electric fan fits perfect on my 1977 258 CJ5 radiator and has an integrated fan shroud. They make new aftermarket Contour fans but quality and price seems to be all over the spectrum depending on the manufacturer.
I vote dual electric on most vehicles, if done right. Just overall more efficient. Kind of makes it a micro hybrid. The stock 232 could probably use a little extra power/efficiency.
I vote mechanical for towing rigs or any vehicle with an over stressed cooling system. Just can't beat the CFM and reliability of a mechanical fan.
Posi
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If stock and a road only Jeep I like to keep it original with the mechanical fan.
Anything more then 50% offroad I want an electrical fan.
If you have a low crawl ratio on a hot day crawling along at 400rpm the mechanical fan just doesn't turn fast enough for efficient cooling.
I have a contour 2 speed fan that stays on low 90% of the time I can't hear it running.
For those who crawl I would upgrade the alternator to increase charging at low speed. The stock alternator does not charge enough at low idle.
Also, I don't like working around mechanical fans I know folks that have lost tips of their fingers. I've had minor scrapes on my knuckles working around fan blades in the past (think setting timing on a V8).
Although rare, blades do break. I've heard of a few guy getting hit and killed by the blade when rivets come loose while working on running engines. Also stories of them coming loose and denting the hood while driving.
Hope this helps
Anything more then 50% offroad I want an electrical fan.
If you have a low crawl ratio on a hot day crawling along at 400rpm the mechanical fan just doesn't turn fast enough for efficient cooling.
I have a contour 2 speed fan that stays on low 90% of the time I can't hear it running.
For those who crawl I would upgrade the alternator to increase charging at low speed. The stock alternator does not charge enough at low idle.
Also, I don't like working around mechanical fans I know folks that have lost tips of their fingers. I've had minor scrapes on my knuckles working around fan blades in the past (think setting timing on a V8).
Although rare, blades do break. I've heard of a few guy getting hit and killed by the blade when rivets come loose while working on running engines. Also stories of them coming loose and denting the hood while driving.
Hope this helps
RiverandSand
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Since I don't have an AMC engine in my CJ, I didn't want the hassle of messing with spacers. I chose electric.
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I understand that electric fans maybe better in every way, but I just cant get over the idea of completely relying on a piece of Chinese plastic to keep my CJ from overheating. Its hard enough as it is!! 
hole
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I like mechanical from a simplistic angle, and have no need or desire to ford water how and where I wheel. I've also never personally had any overheating issues during low speed crawling, even on hot days in the desert, but my 8 runs cooler than any of my buddies rigs for whatever reason. I think everyone's suggestions/reasons are all valid and each way has its plus'es and minus'es, it kinda boils down to how you plan to use it.
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Now that we have a 3rd choice-I do have both.
Have an ele 'pusher' fan that helps when rock crawl'n on those hot dayz we see here in the Mojave.
The OEM does a great job
Make sure you use a shroud if you run the OEM fan. Really makes a difference.
LG
Have an ele 'pusher' fan that helps when rock crawl'n on those hot dayz we see here in the Mojave.
The OEM does a great job
Make sure you use a shroud if you run the OEM fan. Really makes a difference.
LG
007
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I agree with Posi, and in my experience (especially at altitude) the OEM fan works fine, but the electric fan I have is definitely cooler. It IS a pretty decent current draw, so an upgraded/modified alternator is necessary, especially when creating heat at low RPMs where charging is at a minimum.
Here's the model for your CJ as you have it listed in your profile.
https://www.flex-a-lite.com/direct-...iable-speed-controller-for-72-86-jeep-cj.html
I have a simialr Flex-A-Lite bolt-in unit in my CJ. Literally bolts right in where shroud would bolt in, covers the entire radiator.
Here's the model for your CJ as you have it listed in your profile.
https://www.flex-a-lite.com/direct-...iable-speed-controller-for-72-86-jeep-cj.html
I have a simialr Flex-A-Lite bolt-in unit in my CJ. Literally bolts right in where shroud would bolt in, covers the entire radiator.
jp360cj
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I like the simplicity of the OEM fan. Most (actually I think all) of the 6 cylinders I ride with have the basic fixed fan, 4 blade I think. The 2 V8s (a 360 and 304) run OEM 7 blade clutch fans. Only overheating issues have been on the trail/beach in 4low at low speed when the fan clutches were bad on the V8s. No issues since the clutches were replaced.
If I were building a trail rig, I would go with electric because of the high flow regardless of engine RPM.
If I were building a trail rig, I would go with electric because of the high flow regardless of engine RPM.
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jay59l
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Dual countour fan here and it works great. Would have left the mechanical fan alone if It was working properly but the PO swapped in a XJ 4.0L and a cheesy single fan.
jay59l
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jay59l
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I used a Derale PWM controller rated at 65 amps. Was expensive but works great. Fans come on slow and ramp up as needed so no huge amp spikes. Fans are very quiet. I have a write up on another site if interested.
ttbiker
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For my LT1 conversion a bought a radiator with dual electric fans for around $370. Definitely not the best fans, but if they are not enough I will get the flex-a-lite fans for it. Reliability should be pretty good since they will be controlled by the original LT1 computer (runs them in two stages depending on temp). The aftermarket fan controllers are usually what fails on an e-fan conversion.
A huge benefit of electric is the space savings. This has made my engine swap so much easier! I can have the engine a bit further forward now. If I were going carburetor I would probably stick to the mechanical. I've had controller failures before. Although, a controller failure is easily bypassed to get you home.
A huge benefit of electric is the space savings. This has made my engine swap so much easier! I can have the engine a bit further forward now. If I were going carburetor I would probably stick to the mechanical. I've had controller failures before. Although, a controller failure is easily bypassed to get you home.