So I took my POS Chevy Colorado back to the dealer again this morning, and per the norm, I was given a 05 Silverado extended cab for a rental. (Which BTW is an excellent marketing ploy by GM to persuade people to trade in for a larger truck )

This rental seemed to have a bit more power than ones I've had in the past, so I figured I would investigate. I decided to pop the hood at lunchtime and check it out. Low and behold, attached to the rad was a perfectly engineered, dual electric fan setup, with an injection molded venturi style shound, the fans being molded in place as an assembly.

Why is it that the engineers at Ford, when doing the complete redesign of the 04 F-150, didn't consider something like this? You can actually feel the difference in acceleration when the engine is not slinging an extra 10+ pounds off the water pump.

This totally made up my mind that when I do finally ditch the 'rado and take delivery of a new Ford, the very first mod will be to yank that boat anchor off the front of the engine, and add some e-fans. Hell, I'm half tempted to write down the part number off of the ones on this truck and see how much they cost!

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Reason is money.

 

I thought time was money?

 

You're both wrong - Lately, GAS is money!

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Gas = Evil

 

I have gas, there for I = evil.

 

I remember the 666 thread

 

maybee because since GM doesnt have OHC cam technology they are having to add more things to get more power out of their engines. GM needs to move out of the pushrod erra

 

Last I checked, GM's "pushrod erra" 5.3 was putting out more ponies than Fords state of the art, 3-valve 5.4. Not much, but a little. Probably because of the fans!!!!

Don't get me wrong here - I'm in no way Ford bashing. My forehead bleeds true blue when I'm pounding it off of the steering wheel of the GM Colorado Citris that I own now. I just think that with all of the complaints about fuel economy of a 3-ton brick being pushed through 75 mpg air, little things like this mean a lot.

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That my friend is a NO BRAINER

 

Yeah, I don't see why GM needs to ditch something that works, and generally works better... GM has a N/A 500hp pushrod engine... who else has that kind of power reliably without a blower? Parts are generally cheaper for GM stuff too, so why would they want to change?

 

The engines aren't tested with engine driven accessories attached.

How much low end torque was that 5.3L putting out?

 

Because in the desert with the A/C on max and high-beams on during the hottest part of the day, the electrical system becomes a weak link.

 

check again

5.3 Vortec, engine code LM7 puts out 295 HP @5200, 335 Tq@4000.

Less than Ford's 5.4 300hp @5000 and 365Tq @ 3,750

 

So what you're saying is that GM can do it (has done it), but Ford can't?

I don't buy that. The engineers at Ford have revamped just about every system on these trucks to be top of class. Why not the cooling system? There using the same rad, fan, and clutch that came on the '97 models when the triton was first introduced. I guess I'm putting so much emphasis on the rad because I design these things for a living (On the industrial side though). The first thing I check out under the hood of any truck I see is the rad layout.

On another note - GM must have anticipated failures with these fans as they've molded a handle in the center that allows for easy removal!

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