Flex-A-Lite Fans

That very question has been debated and re-debated for years. I've read opinions of people who swear that pushers are the way to go, and other who swear that if your fans don't suck, then they suck. So to speak.

This means that nobody has proved without a doubt that either pushers or pullers are DRAMATICALLY superior to the other. Plenty of cars run just fine with pushers or pullers. There are some arguments pro and con for each.

I *believe* that consensus was that if you run with a shroud, then installing it in a pusher configuration partially obstructs the radiator, so the most efficient is to install a shroud, lay the radiator slightly forward, and install the fans behind. This insures that in traffic, when you need the fans the most, the fans "suck" air through the entire radiator.

The truth of the matter is that you'll probably be just fine with either configuration.

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Charlie McCall
1985 DeTomaso Pantera GT5-S #9375
"Raising Pantera Awareness across Europe"
http://briefcase.yahoo.com/gt5s_1985

I believe you can install the flexilite suckers without having to lay the radiator forward. It's tight but they fit.

quote:

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Originally posted by jjd1010:
I believe you can install the flexilite suckers without having to lay the radiator forward. It's tight but they fit.

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I have mine mounted that way and it was a son of a b!^ch to install.

Insisting on running pusher fans, the "proper" clearance unfortunately will be cut-and-try (literally, in a few cases!) Pusher fans are most efficient if they closely approach the radiator core, but due to wind resistence, the blades or fan mounts will flex at speed. This happened not only to a street-driven Pantera as I said, but also to Mike Drew's 427 Cobra replica, using the 'stock' front pusher fans originally specified by Shelby. Mike caught the blade/ mount- flexing during a sportscar run with us a few years ago, before holing his radiator, but even today the scars are quite visible.

But no matter what you do, pusher fans will never approach shrouded sucker fans in effectiveness of cooling. I suggest you make two light aluminum straps 6" long, tilt the radiator fwd and bolt the straps to the rad mounts and the stock body mounts. The stock fan mounts can easily be removed by drilling a few spot-welds out to provide tlit-fwd clearance. The Fluidyne then attaches to your radiator pipes with two 90 dergree 1-1/2" copper 90 degree sweat-solder fittings, $3 each, from any big hardware store.So far, your total outlay is at most another $10. The much more efficient sucker fans with a shroud (Flexilite for instance) also attach to any rad core easily, once there's enough room to get a hand in there. I documented this, with photos, in a POCA newsletter a couple of months ago when I replaced my 20-yr-old brass radiator (tilted fwd in 1984) with an aluminum Fluidyne.

That would be 1-1/4" copper fittings. They are 1-3/8" OD to match our hoses.
Forest

[QUOTE]Originally posted by jack deryke:
[B]Insisting on running pusher fans, the "proper" clearance unfortunately will be cut-and-try (literally, in a few cases!) Pusher fans are most efficient if they closely approach the radiator core, but due to wind resistence, the blades or fan mounts will flex at speed. This happened not only to a street-driven Pantera as I said, but also to Mike Drew's 427 Cobra replica, using the 'stock' front pusher fans originally specified by Shelby. Mike caught the blade/ mount- flexing during a sportscar run with us a few years ago, before holing his radiator, but even today the scars are quite visible.

But no matter what you do, pusher fans will never approach shrouded sucker fans in effectiveness of cooling. I suggest you make two light aluminum straps 6" long, tilt the radiator fwd and bolt the straps to the rad mounts and the stock body mounts. The stock fan mounts can easily be removed by drilling a few spot-welds out to provide tlit-fwd clearance. The Fluidyne then attaches to your radiator pipes with two 90 dergree 1-1/2" copper 90 degree sweat-solder fittings, $3 each, from any big hardware store.So far, your total outlay is at most another $10. The much more efficient sucker fans with a shroud (Flexilite for instance) also attach to any rad core easily, once there's enough room to get a hand in there. I documented this, with photos, in a POCA newsletter a couple of months ago when I replaced my 20-yr-old brass radiator (tilted fwd in 1984) with an aluminum Fluidyne.

Thanks Jack (and everyone else) for advice. I'm sold. It sounds like a little extra effort and minimal additional expenditure. Last thing I want to happen is my beautiful new Fluidyne to be "sliced like a grapefruit". One last question: (actually 2)
When tilted forward, will the bottom pins of the Fluidyne still sit in the grommets/holes securely? Also, will the stock (top) fan shroud still fit?

I recently did a Fluidyne.

1. Get the temp switch listed on Sean Korb's website. It's made for a Jeep or something like that. It fits perfectly, and it controls the fans perfectly. Put it in the "out" tank. Plug the other temp switch hole.

2. Do NOT mount fans with those plastic things that go through the fins. They will probably cause a leak. I attached angle aluminum to the radiator (pop rivets), then attached the fans to the angle.

3. I did mine in the stand-up position with sucker fans that are thicker than the flex-a-lite fans. The biggest problem was running the pipes. They rub the the fan on the lower right. You could make this easier by mounting the fans as far to the left as possible. That may not be good Karma, but you'll probably never see it anyway.

3. I doubt there's any cooling difference between lay down and stand up. I went stand up because I want to mount my A/C condensor in front, and I wanted more room in the front of the radiator.

4. The nipples on the radiator are 1.5". The Pantera pipes are 1 3/8" (or thereabouts). I used 1 3/8" elbows to hook up my pipes. You have to heat 'em up in hot water, plus lubricate them with radiator fluid, but they do fit. 1.5" hoses will fit too, but they are a loose fit on the pipes.

I've had mine for about 3 months now. I haven't seen the temp gauge go over 195deg.