electric cooling fan on my '93 3.8L?

I noticed something on my friend's Mustang - he has the same engine as I do, but with an electric fan, instead of a clutch fan like mine.

Can I put one of those in my bird? I'm just trying to reduce some of the stress on my engine, as well as reduce some noise.

I imagine it can be done, but what about powering this thing?

Thanks in advance!

IMO, it's not worth the effort to change. Save your time and money for something else.

okay, thanks. I guess you're saying that there's more to it than I thought. ;)

have you checked out flex fan options?

Nope...not familiar with those

:eek7:

The stock fan isn't that much of a load the only real advantage would be less wear on the bearings in the water pump, but if you really want an electric you'd need at the very least the fan, a toggle switch, and a relay. If you do go that route I'd suggest using a thermostatic switch so there are no worries about forgetting to turn it on. You REALLY need to run a relay with it, otherwise the risk of fire and burning up switches and wiring is ridiculous. I'm not big on flex fans, memories of the olden days when they'd fly apart at high RPM still deter me from running them. I hear that modern manufacturing has pretty much solved this. An electric fan would be plenty adequate to keep it cool, the 4.6 birds ran them too, and I run one to cool the 406 in my GTO. Just make sure you get one that will pull enough CFM. Also note whether its a pusher or a puller when you mount it, it wil dictate which side of the radiator you mount it to. Your best bet would be a puller mounted on the motor side of the radiator so you're not trying to push air through the condenser to cool the radiator.

overl0rd, I heard about the problems flex fans had. When I installed my flex fan on my bird, I to was under the impression that those problems were corrected. But when I took my car to a shop to fix my A/C this past summer, the mechanic there said that the flex fans are still faulty and still can break apart. My previous 3 cars all had Imperial Flex Fans and the only problem I had was getting my current flex fan to fit inside my shroud.

Do you suggest that I get rid of the Flex Fan? I did notice a slightly improved throttle response after installing it. But if its gonna fly apart on my, I'll take my chances with an electric fan.

thanks for the info, overl0rd - I'll consider my options.

Well, I suppose it would depend on what kind of shape your fan is in, check it over and make sure it doesnt have any signs of stress, because thats wht will cause failure. You don't have to run out and replace it just yet, just be careful of it.

just one more quick question overl0rd. If I did decide to switch to an electric fan, what size fan should I use for a Standard 3.8 V6 TBird? I've noticed they come in all different sizes, but I wasnt sure if the electric fan should be the same size as the OEM fan or not....

Thanks again

just one more quick question overl0rd. If I did decide to switch to an electric fan, what size fan should I use for a Standard 3.8 V6 TBird? I've noticed they come in all different sizes, but I wasnt sure if the electric fan should be the same size as the OEM fan or not....

Thanks again

The parts store should be able to get you the fan rated for what you need based on what kind of power you're making and whether or not you have a/c, my guess would be around 2000 CFM would work well in your application. The fan doesnt necessarily need to be the same size as your stock fan but it needs to flow the same or more air. Running an electric fan also gives you the ability to trim up the shroudso that will give you more room for working/tinkering in the front of the motor.

I see. thanks again overl0rd

Personally I feel that an electric fan is the way to go on high performance set-ups. However I do not believe that it would be worth the hassle in your case to switch to an electric fan. The stcok fan works fine with the 3.8L. If you ever want to see the versitilty of an electric fan then check out most modern day hot rods and street rods. The reason so many run them is bacuse that is one of the few options that can actually keep a Chevy big block cool.

intrcptrbird, the only reason I would consider going with the electric fan setup is because I have already removed the OEM belt driven fan because it was damaged, along with the OEM shroud. I went with a flex fan and aftermarket shroud, but then I learned of the problems the flex fans had in the past. From what I understand, they no longer have those problems, but i'm still a little nervous about it, and may decide to do away with it. and to go back to the OEM fan and shroud will cost almost as much as an electric setup. thats why i thought if i do remove the current flex fan, the electric would give me the most for my money, especially in those hot humid summer days when the a/c doing overtime, and i'm stuck in the middle of city traffic...

Ahh see you left that part out. The electric fan is a really good option if you have the mechanical and wiring skills neccessary to do the job. It would be a fairly large job but if done right would work really well.

really??? the websites where u can purchase electric fans from would have u think installing it is an eas project. well if worst comes to worst, i'll just shop around the junkyards. the OEM fan shroud is really all i would need to convert back to the original equipment. only thing is, Ford wants over $100 for the shroud alone. the OEM fan and fan clutch i should be able to find at a parts store in my area.

I gotta blame overl0rd. Hes got me all on edge about the flex fans coming apart. I just hope thats a problem of the past....

Im not really sure what radiator you have and if it is at least similar (im not all that familiar with the similarities or differences between some of the 3.8 equipment and the 4.6 equipment) to the 4.6 radiator but if it is you could possibly swap in an electric fan from a 4.6 from a wrecking yard or something.

So...switching to an electric fan wouldn't exactly be plug-and-play? I was hoping that my 93 might have an existing 'outlet' for it - but probably not...

:P