pusher vs. puller fans

MARLIN JACK

You are welcome to try that but it�s been done before and as I recall the results were not good. Believe me, with all the stuff Ford and de tomaso tried to improve cooling, if changing the inlet to the top worked, it would have been one of the factory TSBs.

Getting good cooling results with a Pantera only takes a few things; a correctly functioning radiator with a lot of air moving through it, the correct thermostat system, the correct water pump, a tight water pump drive belt, a pressure cap that functions correctly, the overflow tank system working correctly and the correct coolant. Some people get all super paranoid about bleeding air out of the system but that�s never been a big deal with my Pantera in Hot Atlanta! Getting the air out of the system is pretty easy and not complicated. For safety, make sure all of the coolant hoses are changed every few years.

All the factory really needed to do in the 70s to fix the cooling system was to fix the radiators that had the incorrectly installed or loose baffles and install larger fans to move more air. I guess the larger fans were not in the Pantera fix-it budget at that time!

The Pantera TSBs and service manuals can be purchased through the PI club store and are a must have item for every Pantera owner. The TSBs are interesting reading and provide some valuable insight into the mods that were tried and then changed or restated.

One thing to consider is the pusher only blows air through a circle in line with the fan blade. Sucker fans with proper shrouds will draw through the whole radiator.

MARLIN JACK:

The TSBs do make interesting reading though. Sometimes almost comical they way they tried and tried their very best to fix stuff.

Most Panteras only have an heating problem at stoplights and traffic jams, where one depends on the fans to create airflow. Above 25 mph, all is fine. I once borrowed an anemometer and checked my Pantera; stock fans each pushed 325 cubic ft per minute of air thru the stock core. I believe that to simulate a 25 mph breeze, you need at least 900 cubic ft per minute, through the whole radiator. Thicker cores such as the Phoenix, will be more resistive. As 'Jim' said, pusher fans only affect a small area directly in front of the blades while shrouded pullers affect the whole surface of the radiator. A rad shop will likely charge you $25 to lengthen the inlet/outlet tubes, and if you're gonna do this, why not lay the radiator down to make working on it easier? The same rad-shop can desolder the mounts, reverse them front-to-back & side-to-side, and presto! All the stock mount bolts & grommets still fit, the hoses reach but the rad now lays fwd about 6". The shrouded fans are now easier to deal with, the hoseclamps are in reach etc. Be sure you get beaded ends on the modified rad pipes or you risk having the hoses blow off when hot & under pressure.