Electric Fan Kit?

[vbrad511]

I recommend this: https://www.therangerstation.com/tech/volvo-electric-cooling-fan/

Also, the 2 speed Taurus fan from middle 90s is an excellent fan with plenty of air flow to keep the Ranger engine cool.

Have you done this conversion? Has it been reliable?

 

[franklin2]

Have you done this conversion? Has it been reliable?

I am using the Taurus fan on my 2.8, and then the 2.9. It is two speed, I wired it for the high speed only. I also have a mechanical temp gauge, when the fan kicks on, I can watch the temp needle fall right down till it cuts itself off. This is on the hottest days.

This is the temp switch I am using. It's made to directly control the fan power. I first used it when I bought aftermarket fans at the store. I bought a 16 inch fan, and it would not keep the little v6 cool.

Amazon.com

I then went to the junkyard and bought the Taurus fan. I noticed the aftermarket store fan amp draw was about 8 amps when it ran, it was only one speed. I then experimented with the Taurus fan, on low speed it did not draw enough air, and it only used about 6 amps of power. On high it really cools well, but it draws 10-15 amps of power. I was afraid this would be too much for the temp switch I bought, so I kept using the same temp switch, but I use it to activate a 30 amp relay. The relay does the work, the temp switch just has to turn the relay on and off.

I also wired it to a ignition on wire when I went to the relay. Before I just went from the battery to the temp switch. So when I turned the truck off the fan would cycle by itself as the truck got hot just sitting there with no coolant flow. But this never seemed to hurt anything and never ran the battery down. It only ran a few times before it quit running altogether. Some older cars were like this from the factory.

 

[rubydist]

I have the Volvo fan setup ready to go into the 66, but its not in yet. I have used the Taurus 2 speed fan w/ Volvo relays on a couple of rigs in the past with excellent results. As Franklin states, the high speed on the Taurus fan moves a ton of air! Conversely, I have had less than stellar results with any of the aftermarket fans I have tried to use - either the fan dies, or they don't move enough air to keep the engine cool.

 

[billfrank85]

Would ya'll happen to have installation pics of that Ebay fan kit? I'm interested, but would like to hear from anyone who has installed it of what their impression is with its performance etc.

Thank you!

 

[superj]

I had it saved on my ebay to purchase and install in my ranger but haven't gotten around to that yet. I think there is pics in the tech section though

 

[O No 3.0!]

I am using the Taurus fan on my 2.8, and then the 2.9. It is two speed, I wired it for the high speed only. I also have a mechanical temp gauge, when the fan kicks on, I can watch the temp needle fall right down till it cuts itself off. This is on the hottest days.

This is the temp switch I am using. It's made to directly control the fan power. I first used it when I bought aftermarket fans at the store. I bought a 16 inch fan, and it would not keep the little v6 cool.

Amazon.com

I then went to the junkyard and bought the Taurus fan. I noticed the aftermarket store fan amp draw was about 8 amps when it ran, it was only one speed. I then experimented with the Taurus fan, on low speed it did not draw enough air, and it only used about 6 amps of power. On high it really cools well, but it draws 10-15 amps of power. I was afraid this would be too much for the temp switch I bought, so I kept using the same temp switch, but I use it to activate a 30 amp relay. The relay does the work, the temp switch just has to turn the relay on and off.

I also wired it to a ignition on wire when I went to the relay. Before I just went from the battery to the temp switch. So when I turned the truck off the fan would cycle by itself as the truck got hot just sitting there with no coolant flow. But this never seemed to hurt anything and never ran the battery down. It only ran a few times before it quit running altogether. Some older cars were like this from the factory.

I use a big flex a lite fan thats about 25 yrs old now, with the cheap ebay temp sensor. It pulls more than the rated amperage but it has hung tough. Ive replaced it once in 6 yrs.

 

[franklin2]

I use a big flex a lite fan thats about 25 yrs old now, with the cheap ebay temp sensor. It pulls more than the rated amperage but it has hung tough. Ive replaced it once in 6 yrs.

Simple is better in my book. Every relay, switch and wiring connection is a opportunity for a failure. The full load temp switch is very simple if it's large enough to handle the power of the fan running through it.

 

[bhgl]

I'm going to be installing the electric fan + shroud from a 2006 2.3 ranger tonight.

A note for those interested in doing this, you'll need to trim about 80MM off the 2.3's shroud, as it was made to encompass the clutch fan on the front of the duratec as well as house the e-fan.

I've already tested the fan and wiring setup and I'll be honest I think the e-fan moves almost as much air as the current clutch fan.

Another note too is that the shroud for the e-fan is a better design overall, it's sealed at the top and bottom meaning all air is basically forced back and through the radiator by the fan.

I installed an amazon adjustable thermostat kit with relay and it works great, and by attaching it to the AC Clutch relay it runs when the AC is turned on.

When it's installed I'll have some pictures and details on my main thread, but I'll give you guys an update on here as to the performance.

 

[franklin2]

Problem with E-fans, they tend to interfere with the air going through the radiator when they are not running. Some people call it the windmill effect. If the radiator is large enough it usually doesn't come into play. The engine fans do not have this problem, they run all the time.

 

[bhgl]

Problem with E-fans, they tend to interfere with the air going through the radiator when they are not running. Some people call it the windmill effect. If the radiator is large enough it usually doesn't come into play. The engine fans do not have this problem, they run all the time.

Clutch fans aren't driven by the engine all the time unless the clutch is broken/worn out. They're activated by temperature just like an e-fan.

They do still spin when not being driven due to the air pressure directed onto the fan, the same goes for e-fans generally.

If either fan isn't running it's because the engine temperature is too low, and as a result the fan running isn't necessary in the first place.

 

[franklin2]

The clutch fan is driven somewhat all the time. That is obvious when you are sitting still and the fan is turning with the engine running, and the engine is not up to temp yet. For testing purposes I would not recommend trying to grab a unlocked clutch fan and try to stop it.

 

[superj]

most places say to use rolled up paper to check the fan clutch operation. to not get cut up, put it from the backside.

i generally use my fingers on the backside. as i touch the blades, they either slow down or stay going strong. since its from the back side, the blade flat surfaces is hitting your fingers instead of hte leading edge that would try to cut through you

 

[bhgl]

Update, I installed the 2.3 Ranger e-fan and shroud! So far so good, the truck maintains temp and seems happy with the performance boost.

To avoid double posting, here a quote from my trucks main thread:

Howdy folks!

E-fan has been installed! Sorta...

Forgive appearances, things need to be routed, mounted (without double side tape), put into flexible looms e.t.c.

I've read quite a few posts about people using all kinds of different new, and salvaged fan units and shrouds in order to convert their Rangers, at the same time, I found out that 2.3 Rangers generally came with E-Fans, alongside clutch fans. Alongside those posts were folks claiming that these trucks were overcooled, and would get colder sitting at stop lights by noticeable amounts, and other folks would drive with only one or the other fan.

Since all 98+ Rangers (I'm pretty sure) have the same exact radiator, I figured I would just pull the shroud and fan unit from 2.3 ranger in the junkyard, and that oughta do the job! Sure enough, two bolts hold the shroud and e-fan in place, I was even able to salvage the unit without removing the donor's clutch fan with some shimmying.

The only modification necessary to put this on my 3.0 truck was to trim the shroud, since on the 2.3 trucks they encompass 2 fans, and extend further back considering engine is much shorter. I didn't do this super accurately, but I cut down approximately 80mm using my wheel of death, in the truck this thing JUST barely fits after modification, which is good, the longer the shroud extends back, WITHOUT touching any pulleys or belts the better, but you may want to trim some in order to more easily access the belts and pulleys. Here's a poorly shot before and after:
View attachment 110155
View attachment 110156

This is thermostat/relay kit I used.

View attachment 110154

I went for one of the thermostat/temp sending units with a probe and an adjustable thermostat for experimentation, and ease of installation given that I couldn't find a location to install a 3/8ths unit, nor wanted to buy a inline adapter. I don't know if I'd recommend most to use this unit given the added complexity, and the fact that the thermostat I received was slightly different in design from the one the instructions are for, and I'm pretty sure the dial unit shouldn't even be under the hood. I'm going to run it through to the interior, and create a place under the hood to securely mount things like relays and circuit breakers.

I wired it in by pulling getting ignition activated power via the fuel pump relay, I also connected the AC clutch relay so the fan comes on when the AC does, however, it is only on when the AC clutch is activated. For AC performance, this isn't ideal, for efficiency however, it's better than it running constantly when the AC is. Obviously the fans only turn on when the coolant gets up to temperature, the dial isn't very accurate, but I've been able to find tune it to allow for the highest safe operating temperature.

The temperature unit also allows you to close the circuit manually, so that the fans run always when the ignition is turned on, this could be useful in some applications, like towing, heavy grades with payload, since the transmission cooler is also mounted in front of the radiator.

Here's a bit clearer of a picture of the whole thing:

View attachment 110157

View attachment 110158

Performance:

We did a small test drive, a little bit of highway, but mostly some parking lot/drive-thru idling to make sure that the truck would in fact stay cool. It was a cool day (10-13C) and quite humid, but cars can still overheat at -20C, so we can at least have a little confidence that the truck is being cooled sufficiently.

Cooled sufficiently is exactly what we got! I actually had to adjust the thermostat to be closer to where the dash temperature indicated with the clutch fan installed.

Some things I noticed:

• Power steering is lighter! I wasn't expecting this, but it's nice to notice less drag even in the other accessories.
• The truck doesn't sound like a vacuum cleaner! There's so much noise that is no longer generated, even when the e-fan isn't running, I can actually hear my engine while I drive!
• It's all placebo I'm sure, but I think it might actually be a tiny bit faster and more responsive.

No data yet! I'll be sure to keep you guys posted.

I'll also keep you guys updated on reliability should anything come up.

Thanks for info as always!