Jump to content

The Myth Of The Electric Fan


brerben
 Share

Recommended Posts

linky no worky

 

 

Link is still dead.

 

What is the myth he claims to be debunking?

 

OK, the link works now. I had typed ".html" instead of ".htm" :puterpunch:

 

A lot of people here want to convert their Pathy's engine-powered fan into a battery-powered fan claiming that it will free up some HP from the engine. I am no expert but before I saw this article I was very very close to putting one in myself. But now I'm not.

Edited by brerben
Link to comment
Share on other sites

OK, the link works now. I had typed ".html" instead of ".htm" :puterpunch:

 

A lot of people here want to convert their Pathy's engine-powered fan into a battery-powered fan claiming that it will free up some HP from the engine. I am no expert but before I saw this article I was very very close to putting one in myself. But now I'm not.

 

Hmm, good read, but i was under the impression that the greatest advantage for off road efans was that you could switch the fan off for water crossings, thus eliminating busted fan blades when they suddenly encountered the additional force caused by the water as they try to spin. I've never heard the increase in HP claim. Not really a concern for my 3.5. :shrug:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

His main point is to debunk the HP gain thing. Well, if someone was claiming 17hp gain, I think I would be skeptical also. His other point is that it isn't any more efficient either.Yet he is making efficiency claims he can't even back up. He says himself he has no idea the CFM of the stock fan.

 

And yes, water crossings are probably a rarity for an RX7. Being able to turn the fan off and keep it from flinging water everywhere and or breaking fan blades off is very nice.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

His main point is to debunk the HP gain thing. Well, if someone was claiming 17hp gain, I think I would be skeptical also. His other point is that it isn't any more efficient either.Yet he is making efficiency claims he can't even back up. He says himself he has no idea the CFM of the stock fan.

 

And yes, water crossings are probably a rarity for an RX7. Being able to turn the fan off and keep it from flinging water everywhere and or breaking fan blades off is very nice.

 

 

Except that there are dyno tests showing that there is a small but noticable gain in RWHP when an electric is fitted.

 

I wouldn't do it for horsepower reasons on its own - as stated, water crossings are an issue; after-shutdown cooling and better idle cooling are also good reasons to convert. Extended water pump life on some cars has also been noted.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Had a Taurus E-fan, loved it:

#1 Colder AC

#2 Better Acceleration

#3 Got Better Mileage (maybe 2mpg?)

#4 Felt that it was more fail safe than the clutch--though I understand that they run all the time when they go bad, not stop running.

#5 Controlable (I am a control-freak?!)

 

bah, that does it for me!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
Had a Taurus E-fan, loved it:

#1 Colder AC

#2 Better Acceleration

#3 Got Better Mileage (maybe 2mpg?)

#4 Felt that it was more fail safe than the clutch--though I understand that they run all the time when they go bad, not stop running.

#5 Controlable (I am a control-freak?!)

 

bah, that does it for me!

 

 

This is the prefect thing for a control freak such as yourself. I just did my efan mod with dual maxima fans and used this controller. I mounted it on the side of my ac box. under the glove box. It works off of the stock gauge sending unit and has a ext turn on wire for the ac. Works AWESOME.

 

http://www.centechwire.com/catalog/cooling/fc2p.shtml

 

Mark

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is the prefect thing for a control freak such as yourself. I just did my efan mod with dual maxima fans and used this controller. I mounted it on the side of my ac box. under the glove box. It works off of the stock gauge sending unit and has a ext turn on wire for the ac. Works AWESOME.

 

http://www.centechwire.com/catalog/cooling/fc2p.shtml

 

Mark

 

 

After owning a chrysler daytona with an electric fan for 4 years, and all the fan electrical cr*p that came with it not working properly, I will NEVER switch to an electric fan again! :angry:

But then again it WAS a chrysler... LOL! :lol:

I was SOOO happy to get rid of it! :ar15:

And to think those STUPID traders gave me $700 bucks for it! SUCKERS! :/

 

As a matter of fact, when i went looking for a pathy, that was the third thing i checked for.

 

Now... I can't get enough of my Pathy! :aok:

 

see you aon the trails!

 

al

Link to comment
Share on other sites

from the end of the linked article.

"There you have it. For the most part, electric fans are not recommended as an upgrade unless you have a very specific reason to do so. They provide inferior ..."

 

Also, RX-7's will very rarely get a body lift that makes it impractical to retain the stock mechanical fan.

 

So, yeah, I hope no one on this forum is putting in an electric fan because they want more HP or CFM.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 11 months later...

Been reading through multiple articles all over the web regarding this very issue on different types of vehicles. I have built a few rock buggies and various other higher than normal performance vehicles with E fan swaps and have had great results. I have achieved a small increase of MPG's as 98silverpathy said earlier, on quite a few vehicles by doing similiar swaps. Just from a hypothetical view, in theory removing the drag from the clutch and the fan will free up some "power" (LOL). Thus reducing the amount of petrol to run the motor because it is not having to cut the air...A little more strain on the alternator, yes, but its no more drag (from the fan) on the v-belts! A huge increase? No. Small...yep, and EVERY bit helps when petrol is as high as it is...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I used to be BIG into rx-7's and knew Aaron (the guy who wrote the article) through the rx7club.com...he is a very smart man. He knows the Wankel rotary engine inside and out, but I disagreed with him on this. I had a turbo RX-7 in Houston that continually ran hotter than it should, I went back and forth trying to decide on what to do. Aaron (and others) said that I would be worse off going with an efan...to make a long story short, I was on a road trip and the fan clutch went out and I was in a bind, there were no 7's in the local junk yards where I was stranded so I went to Pep Boys and bought a Black Maxx efan and installed it to get me home. I never had another temp issue after that, so I left the efan on! It was a great fan, I got the big one (300cfm's I think).

 

Point being, I definitely gained better cooling by doing an efan.

Edited by OffroadFreak
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Point being, I definitely gained better cooling by doing an efan.

 

Where an e-fan shines is in stop and go traffic where your at low RPMs and not moving very fast. The e-fan is going to run at full (unless wired otherwise) speed no matter what RPM the engine is going.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

...eFan shines in stop and go traffic...

 

Unless you've got an abundance f mud and leaves gunked up in your radiator...or multiple coolers added you shouldnt have any issues while in motion at standard highway speeds...

 

I have never had anything but good results with electric fans. Even the aftermarket t-stat/relay kits work great.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

my clutch fan engages way too hard when offroading in hot weather. It makes the engine bog down when i need it the most and i am 100% sure an e-fan is the way to solve that problem...

 

But the article is right about one thing - an efan should be hooked up to an electric thermostat and a relay.... putting it on a switch is too ghetto

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Putting it on a switch, regardless of whether or not it's hooked up to a thermostat is a good idea. Shut it off before water crossings :aok:

 

That said, mine's not done with a thermostat. The main fan comes on when I start the truck, the secondary comes on when I turn on my AC.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...
Hmm, good read, but i was under the impression that the greatest advantage for off road efans was that you could switch the fan off for water crossings, thus eliminating busted fan blades when they suddenly encountered the additional force caused by the water as they try to spin. I've never heard the increase in HP claim. Not really a concern for my 3.5. :shrug:

 

 

I think people are confusing a 17hp gain with actually getting the 17hp the water pump driven fan robs back by switching to electric.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...