efan vs clutch fan?
efan vs clutch fan?
I think I've finally chased down my cooling gremlin to be the fan clutch... I started pricing out new ones and I can't seem to find one even remotely below $200! That's ridicilous!
I'm considering giong with an efan kit but I want to know 2 things:
Which to get?
and how hard are they to install? I figure if you guys tell me 2 hours I should be able to do it in 6
I'm considering giong with an efan kit but I want to know 2 things:
Which to get?
and how hard are they to install? I figure if you guys tell me 2 hours I should be able to do it in 6
Read through the 1st gen archives....there are a couple of good articles. Some have used the Ford Tarsus e-fan others have used one from an MR2....either way get a good harness and wire it up properly with the correct relays.
There are a lot of opinions about this on this board but imho the black dragon kit does not cary sufficient cfm. My favorite setup and the one I am currently running is a flex o lite fan that pulls 2800 cfm (overkill I know) and a variable speed fan controller by the same company. It starts the fan @ 60 % power and speeds it up as the temp rises. This helps conserve amps and also is more quiet. I also take advantage of two switches on the trans from a california car. (They were for some unknown emissions feature) and switch a circuit through two switches in the tranny, one on fourth and one on fifth that kills the fan in those gears. You don't need it at highway speed, its just a waste of electriciry. This setup is a little pricey but it does a wonderfull job of cooling my ported 13b with ac in hot alabama heat w/o letting the temp creep up at all, even in stressfull situations like traffic jams or climbing grades. I really like not having to to be anxious about my temp guage. 2 cents....
An efan should only take an hour or so to hook up. Go to the junkyard and get
a Taurus efan from an early 90s Taurus/Sable. It will be a 2 speed fan. You can run
it on high speed and use a thermal control stuck in the radiator to switch it on or off.
I know a lot of folks running these and they fit, have no issues and are easy enough
to install.
Personally, I have the MK1 MR2 dual fans and I have them wired up independently
so they both won't fail if I lose a motor or relay or fuse on one. They are way
over kill but really get the job done.
An efan will net you some better mpg depending on how its controlled and it may
make the car feel like its gained a some small amount of HP, like maybe 5 HP.
a Taurus efan from an early 90s Taurus/Sable. It will be a 2 speed fan. You can run
it on high speed and use a thermal control stuck in the radiator to switch it on or off.
I know a lot of folks running these and they fit, have no issues and are easy enough
to install.
Personally, I have the MK1 MR2 dual fans and I have them wired up independently
so they both won't fail if I lose a motor or relay or fuse on one. They are way
over kill but really get the job done.
An efan will net you some better mpg depending on how its controlled and it may
make the car feel like its gained a some small amount of HP, like maybe 5 HP.
I used the 2-speed Taurus fan on my TII with a thermoswitch and it worked wonderfully. Even in the summer, I only had to use the low setting. This would be ideal for a first gen since the high setting draws a ton of amps and the first gen alternator is really weak. Make sure you wire it up properly with a fuse and relay.
If your fan clutch is bad you should be running hot at idle, but cool down as soon as you reach a steady speed over 30 mph or so.
Easiest fix is buy a used fan clutch. Most who replaced it with an E-fan still have the old one. I know I do.
FWIW I have my fan relay triggered by the neutral switch on the tranny (B-30). That switch is energized only when the tranny is out of gear. Have to remember to take it out of gear when I stop. I have a dash switch for unusual situations. Not a good idea for big city slow rolling traffic or hills, but where I drive in S Florida it works fine.
Easiest fix is buy a used fan clutch. Most who replaced it with an E-fan still have the old one. I know I do.
FWIW I have my fan relay triggered by the neutral switch on the tranny (B-30). That switch is energized only when the tranny is out of gear. Have to remember to take it out of gear when I stop. I have a dash switch for unusual situations. Not a good idea for big city slow rolling traffic or hills, but where I drive in S Florida it works fine.
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I will be ordering the kit on friday most likely. Hopefully this solves my woes... It's nerve racking to spend 80% of my time driving watching that needle creep above half, then dip down, the creep back up.
I'd just go to pick n pull and get the Taurus E-fan! much cheaper. while you're there you can grab a relay out of a ford, too. I JUST did this install less than a week ago, I totally recommend it. you have to do some slight modding to the fan, but it's well worth it. I took the lazy route and used one bolt and 3 big *** zip ties to hold it up, too. works like a charm and adds to the ghetto bozo look my car has been getting recently....
but trust me, it keeps it plenty cool. I can feel the air flow on my legs when the fan is on if i stand by the door of the car with the hood shut.
but trust me, it keeps it plenty cool. I can feel the air flow on my legs when the fan is on if i stand by the door of the car with the hood shut.
I'd just go to pick n pull and get the Taurus E-fan! much cheaper. while you're there you can grab a relay out of a ford, too. I JUST did this install less than a week ago, I totally recommend it. you have to do some slight modding to the fan, but it's well worth it. I took the lazy route and used one bolt and 3 big *** zip ties to hold it up, too. works like a charm and adds to the ghetto bozo look my car has been getting recently....
but trust me, it keeps it plenty cool. I can feel the air flow on my legs when the fan is on if i stand by the door of the car with the hood shut.
but trust me, it keeps it plenty cool. I can feel the air flow on my legs when the fan is on if i stand by the door of the car with the hood shut.
do I nee just the fan and the relay (and some spare wire?)
all you really need is the fan, a relay, and some wire with some connectors, yes. Tomorrow morning before work I can snap a picture or ten for you. It's a simple process, really. took me about an hour - and that was with me goofing around.
this weekend I'm going to get OCD on it and mount the relay and run wires and such.
and i might have read over it, but in the write up it doesn't tell you what bolts to use to attach the pulley back on after you take the fan off. Take the 4 off of the clutch fan on the back side - they're 10 mm and they're the exact size you need and they even have washers.
when you grab relays grab a FOAB -14b192-aa. that's a 30 amp. I grabbed like 6 because you can never have too many.
will do. it's pretty straight forward - I have it wired currently so that it's always on as long as they key is in the "on" position.
make sure you get a fan from a 3.8 litre taurus. the 3.0 use a larger fan that doesn't fit as easily or in some cases, at all. leave yourself as much wiring as you can, it'll help. i cut mine on the other side of the plug so i could unplug it if i had to remove it without pulling all the wiring.
make sure you get a fan from a 3.8 litre taurus. the 3.0 use a larger fan that doesn't fit as easily or in some cases, at all. leave yourself as much wiring as you can, it'll help. i cut mine on the other side of the plug so i could unplug it if i had to remove it without pulling all the wiring.
Last edited by Mr_Miles; Jun 9, 2011 at 12:24 AM.
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 3,740
Likes: 6
From: Las Vegas, NV
I'll stick with my clutch fan. I've pushed my 13b GSL hard as hell for 4 consecutive years in Vegas summers(up to 115 degrees F) with my original 28 year old 1 row radiator. Now i'm going turbo with a brand new 3 row radiator(from a SA) and still my clutch fan. I don't think I'll have problems. We'll find out soon...
alrighty, nabbefd a bunch of pic's for you.
heres the one bolt that i was able to use - you'll need a nut for it, that hole didnt have any threads on the radiator.
Here's a clearance shot.
my zip tie's holding it up. i just drilled a hole in the fan so it'd hold. no big deal. i did it while it was in the car, too. you can see the i cut in the bottom of the fan, too. now that i look at it - i think i might have gotten away with not cutting it. give it a shot, see what happens!
The other side's one zip tie, lol.
A shot of the fan's wire - try and cut it a little farther on that side of the plug if you want to go that way, i didn't realize i'd like that there until i started wiring it.
that's the trip switch for the relay - gets voltage when the key is on so it knows to start the fan. excuse the messy wiring, i haven't cleaned it up in a while, and I'm relocating the relay tomorrow - this was just to get it to work right now.
I just shoved it all down there atm. you can see the two ground wires also - one comes straight from the fan and one from the relay. the one on the positive also goes to the relay.
There's a view of my mess and the relay. yep, used all the same color wire - but i know where they all go so i didn't care. I usually color code but i was far to lazy this time.
and one more overview / clearance shot. (Don't open radiator caps hot, they spew)
It's pretty nice imo. works good. My gf painted it before i put it in to add to the looks, but hey whatever.
for wiring it, on the relay:
87 - fan power. So relay to the fan wire.
86 - switch. So relay to coil.
85 - Battery -. relay to negative on battery. :p
30 - battery +. relay to battery positive :p
the other wire on the fan is for the ground - negative on the battery. or body ground, i guess? I'll likely do body grounds later just because they look better imo - i hate a bunch of stuff on the battery.
i'm probly' going to relocate most of it for a clean look, i'll take pics of that, too.
If you've never used a relay before, the bottom has those numbers by all the spades(87, 86, 85, 30, and "87a". we don't use that one - it's the middle spade. no touchie). ford has like 4 different kinds, one of which has clear off white plastic on the bottom. i can't hardly read the numbers on it since I need glasses and the plastic is almost clear. lol. the ones with the black bottoms are much easier to see, I can read those.
here, have a crappy video of the fan running. they key is in the "on" position, so if i would have started it, the engine would be running too. but i wanted just the fan's noise.
heres the one bolt that i was able to use - you'll need a nut for it, that hole didnt have any threads on the radiator.
Here's a clearance shot.
my zip tie's holding it up. i just drilled a hole in the fan so it'd hold. no big deal. i did it while it was in the car, too. you can see the i cut in the bottom of the fan, too. now that i look at it - i think i might have gotten away with not cutting it. give it a shot, see what happens!
The other side's one zip tie, lol.
A shot of the fan's wire - try and cut it a little farther on that side of the plug if you want to go that way, i didn't realize i'd like that there until i started wiring it.
that's the trip switch for the relay - gets voltage when the key is on so it knows to start the fan. excuse the messy wiring, i haven't cleaned it up in a while, and I'm relocating the relay tomorrow - this was just to get it to work right now.
I just shoved it all down there atm. you can see the two ground wires also - one comes straight from the fan and one from the relay. the one on the positive also goes to the relay.
There's a view of my mess and the relay. yep, used all the same color wire - but i know where they all go so i didn't care. I usually color code but i was far to lazy this time.
and one more overview / clearance shot. (Don't open radiator caps hot, they spew)
It's pretty nice imo. works good. My gf painted it before i put it in to add to the looks, but hey whatever.
for wiring it, on the relay:
87 - fan power. So relay to the fan wire.
86 - switch. So relay to coil.
85 - Battery -. relay to negative on battery. :p
30 - battery +. relay to battery positive :p
the other wire on the fan is for the ground - negative on the battery. or body ground, i guess? I'll likely do body grounds later just because they look better imo - i hate a bunch of stuff on the battery.
i'm probly' going to relocate most of it for a clean look, i'll take pics of that, too.
If you've never used a relay before, the bottom has those numbers by all the spades(87, 86, 85, 30, and "87a". we don't use that one - it's the middle spade. no touchie). ford has like 4 different kinds, one of which has clear off white plastic on the bottom. i can't hardly read the numbers on it since I need glasses and the plastic is almost clear. lol. the ones with the black bottoms are much easier to see, I can read those.
here, have a crappy video of the fan running. they key is in the "on" position, so if i would have started it, the engine would be running too. but i wanted just the fan's noise.
There is no match for the Taurus 2 speed fan. I always use the Taurus fan on my Rx-7s, and I wire it to the high speed setting. I can feel the fan blowing 10 feet behind the car. It's an absolute beast. You will never have cooling problems again if you wire it up right. I recommend the painless fan wiring kit from Summit Racing.
Jamie
Jamie
Lives on the Forum
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 11,359
Likes: 14
From: Grand Rapids Michigan
Search MR2 fans. 10 minute installation. Only two holes need to be drilled (in the housing of the fans) and they bolt right up. I've got a thread with pictures of the install around here somewhere.
The controller I use is also detailed there ($18.00 from Autozone).
Total set up cost me just over 30 bucks, and they really kick ***.
.
The controller I use is also detailed there ($18.00 from Autozone).
Total set up cost me just over 30 bucks, and they really kick ***.
.
Search MR2 fans. 10 minute installation. Only two holes need to be drilled (in the housing of the fans) and they bolt right up. I've got a thread with pictures of the install around here somewhere.
The controller I use is also detailed there ($18.00 from Autozone).
Total set up cost me just over 30 bucks, and they really kick ***.
.
The controller I use is also detailed there ($18.00 from Autozone).
Total set up cost me just over 30 bucks, and they really kick ***.
.
Lives on the Forum
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 11,359
Likes: 14
From: Grand Rapids Michigan
https://www.rx7club.com/search.php?searchid=9674637
Learn a bit more about the search function. It can be extremely useful once you know just a few things about how it works. Seriously, it took me about 20 seconds to find that page full of very excellent results. Check out the ones with photos (look for the paperclip).
Good luck.
Learn a bit more about the search function. It can be extremely useful once you know just a few things about how it works. Seriously, it took me about 20 seconds to find that page full of very excellent results. Check out the ones with photos (look for the paperclip).
Good luck.
https://www.rx7club.com/search.php?searchid=9674637
Learn a bit more about the search function. It can be extremely useful once you know just a few things about how it works. Seriously, it took me about 20 seconds to find that page full of very excellent results. Check out the ones with photos (look for the paperclip).
Good luck.
Learn a bit more about the search function. It can be extremely useful once you know just a few things about how it works. Seriously, it took me about 20 seconds to find that page full of very excellent results. Check out the ones with photos (look for the paperclip).
Good luck.
I've spent quite a while searching specifically the 1st gen section for things like "efan" "e fan" "electric fan" etc and didn't find quite enough information to feel properly informed...
however, mr miles' post was extremely informative and helpful.