Electric fans Mark VII, Ramcharger-Taurus--Explorer bracket kits available also--

[jd4242]

Is there a difference in a single speed and 2speed?

[Maniak]

I've never actually "held" a 2 speed mark vIII fan, but my friend who has the mark vIII fan in his f-150 bought his from a dealer friend in Maine. The Dealer guy said the appearance of the single and 2 speed was the same (same shroud etc).

The motors are different but I can't tell you if the amp draw of high on a 2 speed is less than on a single speed. If you started a 2 speed on low, then brought it to high you would have less of a amperage spike than if you just started it on high speed from a dead stop.

~Mark

[CDW6212R]

Originally Posted by ssp.interceptor

FYI for all you guys.

This is the fan you want...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BIG-20-SUPER...sories&vxp=mtr

OEM Police Crown Vic 19" Electric Fan. 4" from motor to face. Fits in the stock shroud with no trimming. And for under $100.

This looks like the best possible OEM choice for a late 302 Explorer, but the thickness is key. Who will test it, to fit?

[ahodges]

Originally Posted by Trolling

do any of you guys have pictures of the fan/install? What controller are you using for it?

wow, a lot happened on this thread in the last 2 days! I used the contour dual fan set up with the painless dual fan controller. If you look back in this thread you will see my write up of the install, mostly pictures.

[Trolling]

Originally Posted by CDW6212R

This looks like the best possible OEM choice for a late 302 Explorer, but the thickness is key. Who will test it, to fit?

I'm more than willing to test fit this and thoroughly document the whole process (i have the oem radiator sitting in the backyard and an aftermarket single core one in the truck right now) but i'm financially not able to do so. It about $100 just for the fan I'm hoping to do the conversion under $120.

Now if we can start a thread to raise funds then that would be something ...

Originally Posted by ahodges

wow, a lot happened on this thread in the last 2 days! I used the contour dual fan set up with the painless dual fan controller. If you look back in this thread you will see my write up of the install, mostly pictures.

I actually went back through the thread and saw your write-up. Very helpful ahodges, thanks.

[ssp.interceptor]

.

[willzilla]

Any thoughts on this controller?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/DAKOTA-DIGIT...item3a73040f1f

Price seems good.

[Maniak]

Originally Posted by willzilla

Any thoughts on this controller?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/DAKOTA-DIGIT...item3a73040f1f

Price seems good.

We installed the PAC-2000 from Dakota Digital on my friends f-150. Its been running great. He loves the cooldown feature.

I didn't spend the money on that controller when I installed a Mark VIII fan on the Van. I just hooked it up so it will run with the ignition off or on when the radiator temp was high enough.

The pac-2700 ebay link you posted also comes with a relay. Its a different kind than we used on the pac-2000 install we did but still a big relay.

The PAC-2700 alone won't support 70 amps. I don't know what the difference is between the 2000 and 2700 but they look very similar.

Here is the thread with some pics from the install on my friends truck.
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/...d.php?t=219176

~Mark

EDIT: I just noticed.. I think phoenix tuning (from ebay link above) is also where we got the pac-2000 from

Edit 2: I just found this.

The PAC-2700 has the same features and digital readout as the PAC 2000 plus it includes a 70-amp relay.

[willzilla]

So, the 2700 is exact same as the 2000 but it comes with a 70A relay and no other differences? And yeah, I used the link in the thread to the guys store to look for the 2000, saw none, only seems to be selling the 2700

[Maniak]

Originally Posted by willzilla

So, the 2700 is exact same as the 2000 but it comes with a 70A relay and no other differences? And yeah, I used the link in the thread to the guys store to look for the 2000, saw none, only seems to be selling the 2700

I can't say its the exact same, but the first few places I saw that mentioned both said the 2700 is the 2000 with a relay. That makes sense since the pac-2000 can't run a fan directly anyway.

~Mark

[Cobraguy]

Originally Posted by willzilla

Any thoughts on this controller?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/DAKOTA-DIGIT...item3a73040f1f

Price seems good.

That is a damn good looking controller! I would like to know if it uses PWM for speed control. That is what separates the good ones from the also rans. They are pretty straight forward in telling you to mount it inside...that's good. I might have to get one of those and try it out.

[Maniak]

Originally Posted by Cobraguy

That is a damn good looking controller! I would like to know if it uses PWM for speed control. That is what separates the good ones from the also rans. They are pretty straight forward in telling you to mount it inside...that's good. I might have to get one of those and try it out.

The pac-2000 does not use PWM and from what I can tell, neither does the PAC-2700. It just turns on a relay for you. You have great control on when it turns on the fan relay but it is just flipping a switch to control a relay(2).

~Mark

[Cobraguy]

That's too bad. I don't like voltage spikes like that...but you can protect your system if you're careful.

[willzilla]

Could build your own fan controller...

http://alan-parekh.com/projects/pwm-fan-controller/

Modify it for vehicle use instead of PC and it's PWM.

[Cobraguy]

That would be cool! I doubt it could be made to stand up to the rigors of automotive use, but it would be a great, fun project to try and see.

[College Student]

According to pullaparts website there are a few contours in the lot.
Is their fan really strong enough to cool our x's?
If I bought one I would only need a PWM controller, or build one myself?

[albi1cnobi1]

I have been running a contour fan in my mounty for 2 years now with no cooling issues whatsoever. I also run a pwm controller from DC Controls and it has operated flawlessly as well. In the summer heat in traffic the hottest it's ever gone has been 210-215*. According to Ford the contour fan pulls 3500 to 3800 cfm. I've no way of measuring but it pulls plenty.

[ahodges]

I wanted to post back with an update on my contour electric fan setup. I recently completed a V8 swap that got out of control in my explorer! It has a supercharged 347 stroker with a stock V8 radiator and the same electric countour fan setup that I used with the V6. I've been running it for about a month now idling and driving around in 85+ degree heat without any problems of over heating. The only thing I haven't done yet is run the A/C but that's just because I haven't charged it up yet.

All the clearances work fine (half inch to spare) even with the thick radiator.

[desertsky]

I am trying to figure out this voltage spike thing everyone keeps talking about. I have been in the aerospace electronics industry for 30 years so I think I have a pretty good handle on these things.

A few ground rules:

The fan power comes directly from the battery. The positive power lead is the one that is switched.

When a relay closes to turn on a fan, there isn't any spike. There may be a slight dip in battery voltage due to current draw until the alternator catches up. The battery acts as the current buffer.

There will not be any back EMF when the fan relay opens since the motor windings will be isolated to ground at that time. There will be a slight bit of noise in the system due to the arcing when the contacts open but this will be minor. You might get a slight voltage rise at the battery until the alternator regulates to the lower load on the battery but that will be very quick.

The most likely cause of failure in a simple relay system will be the relay contacts themselves. The arcing will erode the contacts over time and increase the resistance across them until the fan just can't draw enough current to operate properly.

I have had an oscilloscope attached to the battery to monitor these things and I have never seen anything that could be considered destructive under normal conditions.

[Maniak]

Hrm.. I'm going to have to hookup my o scope and see what I get. I do know there is a big amperage spike on startup but it never occured to me to hook up the 'scope and look for a voltage spike.

~Mark