My sheet metal vendor finally came through with the freebie fan shroud. Just finished tweaking the install this evening:









I'm pretty happy with the way everything turned out, with the exception of a bit of vibration from one of the fans. Get what you pay for I guess.

Now for the questions: Anyone else running the Flex-A-Lite VSC controller? Just wondering if it's normal for the fans to only run about 5 seconds out of every 30? I haven't had a chance to road test yet, but at an idle, it holds the temp pretty good.

On a separate subject - Now that things are a bit quieter, are these motors suppose to sound like quiet diesels when idling? Seems to me that there's a ton of noise coming from the valve cover area on both sides.

Maybe I'm just a bit paranoid.

E...

 

I had the FAL controllers and dumped them for the Mad Enterprizes controller, so far I like it a bit more. The fans stay on as long as necessary to cool the engine at slow speeds, my FAL controller was clicking on and off very frequently too. The fns hold the temp very well according to the temp on the Edge.

As for the quiet diesel, YES, somebody else hears it! It amazed me how much more you could hear the engine after the fan noise was eliminated. I don't know if that is how they are supposed to sound, but mine sure does.

 

I like the fan shroud. i wish we were able to buy them by themselves. Good place to mount the fans.

 

Really Nice, I Like It.... !!!
Is your sheet metal vendor willing to make another one for me, Please check and see, let me know a price....

pretty please with E-Fans on top ...

 

That is a very nice setup. Makes me want to rethink my attitude about e-fans.

 

i want one of those shrouds as well..

Yes they fans click on/off.. And yep mine sounds like a little diesel as well...

 

Ericd, Did you happen to check, I will buy one if its reasonable price.... ???

 

I have a message in to my vendor requesting production run pricing and lead time. As soon as I hear something, I'll contact you off site.

If you're looking for a full kit, click here.

My dash swap is a little more important right now, so I need to liquidate the prototype.

E...

 

ok, excuse my ignorance but what is the point for e fans??

 

You're excused...

The main reason for E-Fans is added HP. Generally speaking, you can save anywhere from 5-10 HP by pulling the stock clutch and fan. On our trucks for example, at 2500 RPM, with the clutch dis-engaged, the fan spins at around 1800-2000 RPM, and draws around 5 or so HP. Engage the clutch and spin the fan faster (say 4000 RPM), the fan will easily steal 10 HP or more from the rear wheels.

A side benefit is fuel efficiency. With some load removed from the engine, It's possible to see a 1-3 MPG increase afterwards. Granted, all of this varies depending on the engine, vehicle, owner driving habits, etc.

Hope that makes sense.

E...

 

Also..... Improved A/C in 'stop and go' slow driving.

 

a few questions if I may..
is sheet metal shroud located in factory shroud mounting holes?? if not...how did you mount it?? can't tell from your pictures
also is there some sort of cushion/gasket between it and the radiator
and lastly have you done any research to see if this is even needed with e-fans??

BTW looks like a very nice clean install

thanks in advance

 

there is a TSB for the noise, something about valve lash adjusters.

Gotta go now but here is the number 0647

 

Yes - Everything mounts to the factory locations.

Yes - The shroud is designed to be 1/4" away from the surface of the core. There is a 3/8" x 3/8" strip of EPDM foam around the entire perimeter. (First and second pic above show a bit of it.)

Now for the long-winded part. My only research is from my experience at my job. I'm the product manager for a company that designs and manufactures industrial cooling systems for engines ranging from 15 HP up to 700+ HP. http://www.srfamerica.com It's been my experience in the past that an electric fan mounted direct to the radiator core not only degrades the core over time, but also provides less cooling performance compared to a fan mounted away from the fin surface. Basically is boils down to the amount of the core surface area utilized by the fan.

For example, in the case of our trucks, taking 2 16" fans and mounting them direct to the core wastes approx. 25% of the rad's surface area. (Well, not exactly because there is still the ram air factor when the vehicle is in motion, but much more intelligent people than myself would have to work out those numbers.) By pulling them away from the core and sealing it, air can be drawn through just about every sq inch of the core's surface.

Sorry for the novel, but I hope that answers your question.

E...

 

Im not a mechanic, but how does the core degrade with having fans mounted directly. I can see maybee damage caused by mounting the fans.