How shall I select and install an electric fan system?

[sport71]

I'm in need of the same advice Robroy, I'm glad you posted it. I'm putting the a/c next week so it will put more heat twords the radiator. I wonder if they had heating problems from the factory with the original a/c?

[robroy]

Good evening Ruben, thanks for replying!

I'm in need of the same advice Robroy, I'm glad you posted it.

Fantastic! Hopefully we can both benefit from the great FORDification wisdom that's sure to follow.

I'm putting the a/c next week so it will put more heat twords the radiator. I wonder if they had heating problems from the factory with the original a/c?

This I'm not sure! Perhaps an experienced member has the answer.

My guess is that the difference in heat production is negligible relative to the safety margin we'd naturally want with regard to the fan's capacity (CFM). In other words, we'd probably want to select fan(s) with an overkill cooling ability regardless of whether or not A/C's involved. But let's see what the experts say!

Ruben, thanks again for your great reply!
Robroy

[fordman]

yes i think you are right. fan size of cfm is the important question here. proper blade direction is also another matter. but they should all spin in the correct direction. i myself do not know the correct CFm. i do know that getting one to fit and work properly with our trucks is another major decision that has to be made.

[basketcase0302]

Robroy,

An A/C tech for life (lots of airflow expierence) , sorry but I can't help you with the fan CFM question. I would however recommend that you use a fused relay circuit to power your new fan instead of just a direct wired toggle switch type circuit.
I ran an old 16" electric fan on my old style Bronco (and then as a swamp buggy for another 10 years) and really liked the benefits of the extra cooling. Mine came from a Fiero and was two speed (I had both speeds wired in). The electric fan was really good for my 6 foot deep water hold crossings I made when hunting from the swamp buggy. Simply turn the fan off when entering the water / then turn it back on (yeah...I 'd forget every once in awhile to turn it back on)!
So the thermostat is an excellent idea!

[fitzwell]

how about the t-bird fan setup? Run it with the new Painless controller that will control fan speed relative to temp, or a/c demand. You might have to fab some mounting brackets, but the 'bird fan is a proven player.

[Ranchero50]

The flex a lite is a good product, but the mounting can be a bit cheesy. Did one for a friends '88 turbo coupe V8 swap with the thermostat setup and it was decent. I did have to weld the brackets differently to get a good solid mount to the radiator. The controller assy. didn't have an OEM feel to it but hasn't failed yet through to winter summer cycles. It just felt chessy like it wanted to fall apart and you have to mount it under the hood due to the thermo bulb.

How close are you to the Nevada Summit store? I would suggest a trip out there to make sure the fan would fit the radiator you have chosen.

For wiring I would suggest circuit breakers rated at 1.25 x the max running amps of the fan for overload protection with a thermostatic controller to come on at 210` if you are running a 195` thermostat turning on and off a seperate pair of relays rated at 1.5 x the max runnung amps of the fans. That way the fan will cycle on and off as needed. If it comes on too early the fan and thermo are fighting each other. Also running a CB vs. a fuse means it will turn back on if it over loads once it cools down a bit, with only a fuse you are screwed on the side of the road...

When you chose to wire it, run one gauge larger wire than recommended, solder every joint and smear the exposed conductor and connector with dialectric grease before melting the shrink tubing onto it. As with all high current electrical stuff incorrect installation equals corrosion equals resistance, resistance equals heat, heat equals bad poop happening when you least need it to...

For me being a die hard never fail I like the mechanical clutch fans but the T-bird project runs much better with the electric. I wired it as described and it's working pretty well. The thermostat opens at 195`, the car heats up to 210` then the fan kicks on and cools it to 195` and kicks off. When the fan controller was set to 195` it tried to cool the engine to 180` before it would cut off, thus it always ran once it turned on.

Jamie

[robroy]

Good evening Fordman, Jeff, Fitzwell, and Jamie, thanks for your superb replies!

yes i think you are right. fan size of cfm is the important question here.

Indeed!

proper blade direction is also another matter. but they should all spin in the correct direction.

Okay, makes sense! I think this part is pretty easy to determine, since the fans are listed as "puller" or "pusher" type fans. And since I'll be mounting this on the back of the radiator, I'll want a "puller."

i myself do not know the correct CFm.

I may have some kind of answer to this question (more later in this post).

i do know that getting one to fit and work properly with our trucks is another major decision that has to be made.

Yes, it seems that way! This seems tricky now, but will probably seem simple once I've fumbled through it.

An A/C tech for life (lots of airflow expierence) , sorry but I can't help you with the fan CFM question.

Thanks anyways Jeff! I suppose I'll just need to go with the fan maker's recommendation.

I would however recommend that you use a fused relay circuit to power your new fan instead of just a direct wired toggle switch type circuit.

I know what you mean, and I'm planning on doing just this. I need to be careful with the large amount of current some of these fans can eat!

I ran an old 16" electric fan on my old style Bronco (and then as a swamp buggy for another 10 years) and really liked the benefits of the extra cooling. Mine came from a Fiero and was two speed (I had both speeds wired in). The electric fan was really good for my 6 foot deep water hold crossings I made when hunting from the swamp buggy. Simply turn the fan off when entering the water / then turn it back on (yeah...I 'd forget every once in awhile to turn it back on)!
So the thermostat is an excellent idea!

I see! Thanks for that great story--I'll definitely be going with a thermostat setup!

how about the t-bird fan setup? Run it with the new Painless controller that will control fan speed relative to temp, or a/c demand. You might have to fab some mounting brackets, but the 'bird fan is a proven player.

Thanks for this suggestion Fitzwell! In order to install a Thunderbird fan, would I need to source one from a salvage yard? Or do people sometimes buy replacement OEM Thunderbird fans from NAPA, for instance?

I'll look at the Painless controller--thanks for that suggestion as well!

And about the brackets, my fabrication skills are extremely limited, yet it might be simpler to hold one of these fans in place than my imagination says it is.

Also, is the main reason people go with OEM fans (like the Thunderbird fan) to save cash (instead of spending $300 to $500 on a Flex-a-Lite)? Or is there some other benefit that I'm not aware of (besides keeping the Ford "all Ford!")?

The flex a lite is a good product, but the mounting can be a bit cheesy.

Interesting!

Did one for a friends '88 turbo coupe V8 swap with the thermostat setup and it was decent. I did have to weld the brackets differently to get a good solid mount to the radiator.

I see. Did that fan mount directly to the radiator core somehow, or did it use brackets that supported it by attaching to the radiator support?

The controller assy. didn't have an OEM feel to it but hasn't failed yet through to winter summer cycles. It just felt chessy like it wanted to fall apart and you have to mount it under the hood due to the thermo bulb.

Okay! So is the thermo bulb the device that regulates the fan speed depending on the engine temperature?

And in this situation, how did that device actually connect to the engine?

How close are you to the Nevada Summit store? I would suggest a trip out there to make sure the fan would fit the radiator you have chosen.

That's a great idea, yet I'm 304 miles away from the Nevada Summit, and Google says that would be a 5 hour and 17 minute drive. With that kind of distance, it would probably be more efficient to "risk it" by ordering a part that I might need to return!

For wiring I would suggest circuit breakers rated at 1.25 x the max running amps of the fan for overload protection with a thermostatic controller to come on at 210` if you are running a 195` thermostat turning on and off a seperate pair of relays rated at 1.5 x the max runnung amps of the fans. That way the fan will cycle on and off as needed. If it comes on too early the fan and thermo are fighting each other. Also running a CB vs. a fuse means it will turn back on if it over loads once it cools down a bit, with only a fuse you are screwed on the side of the road...

That's a great suggestion Jamie, thanks for mentioning it! I wouldn't have thought of using circuit breakers for this type of setup--I didn't even know they existing for these applications.

My brain's not able to immediately absorb your advice regarding relay and circuit breaker sizing, but I think this will make more sense to me when I'm sitting down to design the circuit, and when there are more "knowns" about the equipment I'll be getting my hands on.

When you chose to wire it, run one gauge larger wire than recommended, solder every joint and smear the exposed conductor and connector with dialectric grease before melting the shrink tubing onto it.

These instructions I can most definitely follow! I like nice, heavy gauge wires.

As with all high current electrical stuff incorrect installation equals corrosion equals resistance, resistance equals heat, heat equals bad poop happening when you least need it to...

True! I'll keep these things in mind when I'm designing it!

For me being a die hard never fail I like the mechanical clutch fans but the T-bird project runs much better with the electric. I wired it as described and it's working pretty well. The thermostat opens at 195`, the car heats up to 210` then the fan kicks on and cools it to 195` and kicks off. When the fan controller was set to 195` it tried to cool the engine to 180` before it would cut off, thus it always ran once it turned on.

I see--that sounds like you did a good job of hooking that up! Thanks for letting me know about your experience with that.

Not knowing much about OEM fans (like the Thunderbird fan mentioned by Fitzwell) and where to buy them, I went ahead and began investigating the Flex-a-Lite fans.

The Flex-a-Lite Web site has a vehicle selector tool that picked out two fans for FE-powered Bumpsides: 180 (3,300 CFM single fan) and 412 (2,500 CFM dual fan).

Since Flex-a-Lite lists 57 different fans on their site, I was naturally curious about which other fans might fit our trucks, besides the two suggested by their site. I figured there might be one or more interesting "overkill" options that I could determine using deduction.

And so the deduction began! Here's a list of all 57 fans on the Flex-a-Lite Web site.

Note that in this table, I converted the fractions to decimals, making no effort to correct the artificial precision that's introduced by a straight fraction to decimal conversion. Of course Flex-a-Lite never implied the claim that their product measurements were accurate to a thousandth of an inch!

Also note that in all of these tables, the two fan models recommended for our trucks by the Flex-a-Lite Web site are peach-colored.



I'm making the inference that because Flex-a-Lite's Web site didn't recommend any setup with an air-moving capacity under 2,500 CFM, that they're recommending at least 2,500 CFM for our trucks. Maybe that's a foolish assumption but I had to start somewhere!

Based on a minimum capacity of 2,500 CFM, I reduced the candidates to from 57 to 36.



Next, I removed all the application-specific fan models, such as fans made to fit Toyotas or Dodges. I'm assuming that those models wouldn't be good choice for our trucks, since they come with hardware customized specifically for these other vehicle bodies.

Showing only universal-fit models, the number of candidates was reduced from 36 to 14.



Next I removed the fans from the list that push air, since I'm only interested in a "puller." I also removed the fans that were obviously much too large for my radiator size.

This reduced the list from 14 to 9. And to this list, I added columns with the current Summit prices, and the number of fans in the models.



So there are nine Flex-a-Lites left to choose between! Or, if I insist on having dual fans, there are two to choose between. That narrows it down quite a bit!

Next, I'll call Flex-a-Lite and chat with them on the phone about these different fans. I want to make sure that they're all USA-made, since I'll be able to remove any that aren't USA-made from the list.

Fordman, Jeff, Fitzwell, and Jamie, thanks for your most excellent replies!
Robroy

[convincor]

I had a 2175cfm DeraleTornado in my car and that had no problem keeping it cool. it has a 18.4 amp draw http://www.summitracing.com/parts/DER-16516/
I was going to make a new shroud and replace the fan at the same time.(Just to make improvments with the shroud)
Did a lot of research and found the Zirgo fans used less amperange and produced the most cfm, and had a resonable price.
the ZF16S is rated at 3000cfm. You can go to the ZFU16S for 3630CFM @10amps
Sold the car before it went in, so no real life exerience with it.... Still got it though..
Here's there website http://www.thehoffmangroup.com/zirgo/
Summit also sells them http://www.summitracing.com/search/Prod ... word=zirgo

oh, and the company is based out of USA (201 SE Oak Street Portland, Or 97214 USA) but can't say were they manufacture...

[robroy]

Good day Convincor, thanks for replying!

I had a 2175cfm DeraleTornado in my car and that had no problem keeping it cool. it has a 18.4 amp draw http://www.summitracing.com/parts/DER-16516/
I was going to make a new shroud and replace the fan at the same time.(Just to make improvments with the shroud)

Okay, thanks for letting me know about this fan! I couldn't find Derale's phone number but I filled out a form on their Web site to ask them where their fans are made. This is interesting!

Did a lot of research and found the Zirgo fans used less amperange and produced the most cfm, and had a resonable price.
the ZF16S is rated at 3000cfm. You can go to the ZFU16S for 3630CFM @10amps
Sold the car before it went in, so no real life exerience with it.... Still got it though..
Here's there website http://www.thehoffmangroup.com/zirgo/
Summit also sells them http://www.summitracing.com/search/Prod ... word=zirgo

oh, and the company is based out of USA (201 SE Oak Street Portland, Or 97214 USA) but can't say were they manufacture...

Thanks for that suggestion also! I spoke with The Hoffman Group on the phone moments ago and heard that all of the Zirgo fans are made in China, so my search continues.

EDIT: Convincor, I truly appreciate your suggestions and don't mean to sound like I'm criticizing them or shooting them down, it's just that the USA-made aspect is a strong personal preference of mine. Thanks for understanding!

I'll speak with Flex-a-Lite today and let y'all know what words of wisdom they offer!

Convincor, thanks again for your great reply!!!
Robroy

[convincor]

Anytime!! sorry there not american...but they are a nice fan..

[fitzwell]

Thanks for this suggestion Fitzwell! In order to install a Thunderbird fan, would I need to source one from a salvage yard? Or do people sometimes buy replacement OEM Thunderbird fans from NAPA, for instance?

I'll look at the Painless controller--thanks for that suggestion as well!

And about the brackets, my fabrication skills are extremely limited, yet it might be simpler to hold one of these fans in place than my imagination says it is.

Also, is the main reason people go with OEM fans (like the Thunderbird fan) to save cash (instead of spending $300 to $500 on a Flex-a-Lite)? Or is there some other benefit that I'm not aware of (besides keeping the Ford "all Ford!")?


Robroy

yep. Just got back from a quick salvage yard trip, saw a couple of Mk VIII's & t-birds, with fans, connectors etc. 15-20 bucks a piece.

Brackets aren't that tough on our trucks, i can send some pics of the ones i did in my '69. Nothing fancy, but they work.

Main reason i would imagine would be cost for most folks. When i started in this "hobby" wrecking yard stuff was the way to go. Get the latest greatest Detriot stuff & adapt it to what you had. Guess i just never got out of that mode. Another point to consider, however, is that Ford engineered these units to go 100k without failure. Not that the aftermarket doesn't test, but i seriously doubt that thir testing procedures are as rigorous as Fords . Keeping your Ford ALL Ford is a bonus . These things move about 42-4500 cfm,at high speed,2500 on low, depending on who's test you read. The closest i saw in your charts were the 292-295 units. For that kind of $$ you can get the fan, aftermarket relay & have change left to take the wife out for a nice dinner..... gotta grease the wheels when you get the chance

Added Plus. If you do get a wrecking yard unit & the motor does fail, replacement motors are 60-75 bucks. Add a Painless 30100 70 amp relay kit...you're done.


as always...

[FreakysFords]

Throw another vote in for the junkyard FoMoCo method. On our bricks, the big thing is to go grab Taurus fans. The thing I really like about this setup is that you can find (I really don't remember what years, but fan size wouldn't be right anyway) the setup that has the FORD fan fuse and relay junction under hood and wire it in pretty much factory.

The reason I mention this is that I plan to do the same with Darlin. Whatever fan (will be Ford) I use, if the donor fan doesn't have the fuse and relay center, I'll be grabbing that from on of the Ford cars that does.

Luckily, the Taurus's temp sensor (the one for the fans) is pretty much a direct bolt in for the bricks, but I do know of other guys doing the same thing using adapters and tees on older engines (which I plan to do).

On my installs, I use the factory wiring (obviously) and tie into switched power for one wire and constant power for another (the setup I'm thinking of uses both, but different models may be different and either way, tracing their function and wires would be easy), then I ground all ground wires, run the sense wire to the sensor, plug the fans in and you're ready to go. In my case, I run one to the A/C switch circuit as well and on the rally cars we ran a toggle switch (I do the same on all off roaders) in this circuit to provide fan operation should something else fail.

The advantages to my way of thinking are keeping it more Ford. Simple easy wiring. Easy parts availability for any future component replacement. Fan cuts off at speed when engine temp says it doesn't need to be on (something I forgot to mention here is that the donor's sensor may not be at same heat rating as your engine, but the parts store can fix ya up). Two speed or single - twin operation (depending). Ease of adding later options without having a complete rewire (say you decide to add A/C later, that circuit is already there). Easy to do a clean install. With tighter engine bays and less grill room, the later vehicles need more help to keep things cool, so you're over engineering your system right off the bat. And last bot NOT least is that the factory units are pretty maintenance friendly.

On that last one, I don't remember the name brand that my neighbor's son put on his 4wd, but it's a nightmare and we're heading to the junk yard this weekend to find a factory unit from one Ford or another to replace it.

Sorry for the long post, but with my suggestion of going factory unit, I wanted to explain my reasoning.

Now for the kicker MUCH CHEAPER.

At any rate, there is nothing wrong with going aftermarket either, I just prefer the factory units for the above reasons.

Frank

[Dragon]

I run a 16" 1160 cfm in my truck and it keeps the engine cool it is one an adjustable thermostat. Both my 68s had a 12" and a 10" The 12 was on the switch (I lived in the Desert and a cold day was 55 like twice a year) and the 10" was on a 210 degree thermostat. Neither of those Hot 360s had a cooling problem and even here on a 120 degree day my 16 has no problem.

All my fans come from the same company. http://www.summitracing.com/search/Bran ... utomotive/

[robroy]

Good afternoon Convincor, Fitzwell, Frank, and Dragon, thanks for your quality replies!

Anytime!! sorry there not american...but they are a nice fan..

I heard from their salesman that they sell a lot of them, and he never sees any returns, so I guess they must work well!

yep. Just got back from a quick salvage yard trip, saw a couple of Mk VIII's & t-birds, with fans, connectors etc. 15-20 bucks a piece.

I see!

Brackets aren't that tough on our trucks, i can send some pics of the ones i did in my '69. Nothing fancy, but they work.

I would be rather curious to see that, and perhaps to post them in this thread (if that's OK with you)!

Main reason i would imagine would be cost for most folks.

Okay, understood! That's certainly a good reason.

When i started in this "hobby" wrecking yard stuff was the way to go. Get the latest greatest Detriot stuff & adapt it to what you had. Guess i just never got out of that mode.

I see! I can see the sense in that for sure.

Another point to consider, however, is that Ford engineered these units to go 100k without failure. Not that the aftermarket doesn't test, but i seriously doubt that thir testing procedures are as rigorous as Fords.

I know what you mean--I can imagine this as well, certainly with the less expensive, offshore-made aftermarket fans. Yet I suppose we'll never know unless we go get a job at a place that makes them!

Keeping your Ford ALL Ford is a bonus .

I can appreciate this, yet #50 already has so many non-Ford parts in it that I'm not very concerned, as long as the parts I add are top quality and USA made.

Furthermore, my favorite parts to add are parts that were made by guys I've personally spoken with, or know somehow, like the Autofab mounts made by John Ehmke. Those add so much character to the project, and I enjoy thinking that a degree of true artistry went in to many of the parts.

These things move about 42-4500 cfm,at high speed,2500 on low, depending on who's test you read. The closest i saw in your charts were the 292-295 units. For that kind of $$ you can get the fan, aftermarket relay & have change left to take the wife out for a nice dinner..... gotta grease the wheels when you get the chance

You have a very good point there! $400 to $500 for that fan setup's a significant amount of money if I can get a complete fan setup with similar performance put together for $40 to $100.

Added Plus. If you do get a wrecking yard unit & the motor does fail, replacement motors are 60-75 bucks. Add a Painless 30100 70 amp relay kit...you're done.

These are also good points! I really like the idea of using something from Painless in #50 too.

Is it true that the Taurus and/or Thunderbird fan systems don't typically come with a Ford equivalent of Painless 30100?

Throw another vote in for the junkyard FoMoCo method. On our bricks, the big thing is to go grab Taurus fans. The thing I really like about this setup is that you can find (I really don't remember what years, but fan size wouldn't be right anyway) the setup that has the FORD fan fuse and relay junction under hood and wire it in pretty much factory.

I see, thanks Frank! I'll have to figure out exactly what models and years had the entire setup ready-to-go.

The reason I mention this is that I plan to do the same with Darlin. Whatever fan (will be Ford) I use, if the donor fan doesn't have the fuse and relay center, I'll be grabbing that from on of the Ford cars that does.

That makes sense, if you can be pretty sure that the parts from different cars will all play nicely together. Maybe they're simple enough that that's not a practical concern!

Luckily, the Taurus's temp sensor (the one for the fans) is pretty much a direct bolt in for the bricks, but I do know of other guys doing the same thing using adapters and tees on older engines (which I plan to do).

Okay! I've never seen one of these temperature sensors so I'm not sure exactly where or how they attach. I'll keep reading related threads and trying to figure it out!

On my installs, I use the factory wiring (obviously) and tie into switched power for one wire and constant power for another (the setup I'm thinking of uses both, but different models may be different and either way, tracing their function and wires would be easy), then I ground all ground wires, run the sense wire to the sensor, plug the fans in and you're ready to go.

That doesn't sound all that difficult, I suppose!

In my case, I run one to the A/C switch circuit as well and on the rally cars we ran a toggle switch (I do the same on all off roaders) in this circuit to provide fan operation should something else fail.

So is it true that the toggle switch on the rally cars was there so the driver could force the fans to come on, if the temperature sensor happened to fail?

Also, for Ruben's benefit (since his truck has A/C), why is it that people like the electric fans to come on when the A/C comes on? Is it because of the added drag introduced by the A/C compressor, or because it pulls air past the radiator-like component of the A/C system better?

The advantages to my way of thinking are keeping it more Ford. Simple easy wiring. Easy parts availability for any future component replacement.

I certainly like the idea of things being easy to work on and replace in the future!

Fan cuts off at speed when engine temp says it doesn't need to be on (something I forgot to mention here is that the donor's sensor may not be at same heat rating as your engine, but the parts store can fix ya up).

Okay, understood. Thanks for pointing that out!

Two speed or single - twin operation (depending). Ease of adding later options without having a complete rewire (say you decide to add A/C later, that circuit is already there). Easy to do a clean install.

Regarding the two speed or single-twin operation point, are you saying that the Ford wiring setup allows you to make that choice when you're putting it together?

Also, if an A/C circuit is already there yet I don't have A/C, does that mean extra wires hanging out that I'd need to bundle up somehow? Or are those wires included in some kind of pre-made wiring bundle?

With tighter engine bays and less grill room, the later vehicles need more help to keep things cool, so you're over engineering your system right off the bat. And last bot NOT least is that the factory units are pretty maintenance friendly.

These sound like great points!

On that last one, I don't remember the name brand that my neighbor's son put on his 4wd, but it's a nightmare and we're heading to the junk yard this weekend to find a factory unit from one Ford or another to replace it.

I see; that's good to know. Would it be possible for you to find out who made the problematic fan when you see him next? I'd just be curious to know whether it's a quality-oriented, USA-made fan or not.

Sorry for the long post, but with my suggestion of going factory unit, I wanted to explain my reasoning.

This is an inclination I appreciate and understand Frank! Thanks for taking the time to offer your detailed guidance, and for backing up your statements with reasoning!

Now for the kicker MUCH CHEAPER.

That's a significant benefit!

At any rate, there is nothing wrong with going aftermarket either, I just prefer the factory units for the above reasons.

Thanks for your detailed reply Frank! Your reasons make sense to me.

I run a 16" 1160 cfm in my truck and it keeps the engine cool it is one an adjustable thermostat. Both my 68s had a 12" and a 10" The 12 was on the switch (I lived in the Desert and a cold day was 55 like twice a year) and the 10" was on a 210 degree thermostat. Neither of those Hot 360s had a cooling problem and even here on a 120 degree day my 16 has no problem.

That's good to know Dragon! Thanks!

All my fans come from the same company. http://www.summitracing.com/search/Bran ... utomotive/

I see--I'll have to investigate their products!

I called Dave at Flex-a-Lite today but was only able to leave a voice-mail at his desk. I made a list of questions to cover when I do manage to get in touch with him; here they are:

1. Are fan kits 412, 180, and 295 all 100% USA-made?
2. What method do you use to calculate the CFM required for a vehicle?
3. Do kits 412, 180, and 295 come with everything I'd need to do a complete installation?
4. Do kits 412, 180, and 295 include wiring to wire the fans such that they fail independently of one another (thus avoiding the vintage Christmas tree light strand effect)?
5. What electric fan concerns do people normally have who have A/C systems? Do they need extra CFM? What's the "A/C relay" part for? (I'll be asking these questions for Ruben).
6. Do the kits include wiring instructions? And if they do, could I receive them in e-mail prior to buying a kit?
7. How long is the warranty on these kits?
8. Given that the Taurus electric fan setup is frequently swapped in to Bumpsides, and given its relatively low cost, what benefits does the Flex-a-Lite system offer that make it worth $300 or $400 more?

One of the most interesting questions to me is the final question. Since these guys are in the electric fan business, they have to be aware of the Taurus fan swap, and they might share valuable information with me in response to this question!

I'll report everything I hear from Dave when I talk with him! If anybody can think of additional questions to ask, let me know and I'll add them to the list.

Meanwhile, I've searched and found a number of good existing FORDification threads on this topic, including:

The Great Electric Fan Controversy
3G & T-Bird fan
electric fan vs stock flexfan is the $$ worth it

The search results returned enough threads for me to realize that I've naively posted a question that's a little worn out! Thanks to everybody for humoring me despite this. I hope to justify the existence of this thread by including detailed photos of the entire selection and installation process, and maybe even a video of the fans running in the end!

Convincor, Fitzwell, Frank, and Dragon, thanks very much for your superb replies!
Robroy

[FreakysFords]

That makes sense, if you can be pretty sure that the parts from different cars will all play nicely together. Maybe they're simple enough that that's not a practical concern!

Nice thing about the way it's wired, it will run any of the 4 basic Ford setups. (they're pretty much all either 2sp or twin single...... the exception being combos of the two). Since the only difference in circuitry is where to hook the wires on the fan, it's pretty simple.

Okay! I've never seen one of these temperature sensors so I'm not sure exactly where or how they attach. I'll keep reading related threads and trying to figure it out!

It's just a temp sender like that in your truck now. Like an "idiot light" setup, it closes circuit at a set temp, thus activating a relay in the box, instead of turning on a light.[/quote]

So is it true that the toggle switch on the rally cars was there so the driver could force the fans to come on, if the temperature sensor happened to fail?

Yup

Also, for Ruben's benefit (since his truck has A/C), why is it that people like the electric fans to come on when the A/C comes on? Is it because of the added drag introduced by the A/C compressor, or because it pulls air past the radiator-like component of the A/C system better?

Pretty much. If the engine's cool enough to not need airflow across the radiator at idle or low speeds, the a/c won't cool well unless it has it's own control over airflow across the condenser.

Regarding the two speed or single-twin operation point, are you saying that the Ford wiring setup allows you to make that choice when you're putting it together?

Exactly. Either you're providing 2 power leads to one two speed fan, or separate power leads to two fans. Either way the wiring is the same.

Also, if an A/C circuit is already there yet I don't have A/C, does that mean extra wires hanging out that I'd need to bundle up somehow? Or are those wires included in some kind of pre-made wiring bundle?

Actually the harness is complete for all acc even if it didn't come with them. The extra wires just dead head in the loom.

I see; that's good to know. Would it be possible for you to find out who made the problematic fan when you see him next? I'd just be curious to know whether it's a quality-oriented, USA-made fan or not.

I'll take a look bud. It actually says right on it, I just don't recall.