3rd Gen Ford Explorer V8 Under-Drive Pulley and Electric Fan Installation | Page 2 | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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3rd Gen Ford Explorer V8 Under-Drive Pulley and Electric Fan Installation

So I finally got around to doing this and love the mod.

However I have one issue, looks like the controller is set to about 197, and once it gets to that temp, the fan is cycling on and off. Once it gets to 197(reading off ScangaugeII), the fan comes on for 5 secs then off, 10 secs later same thing. Scangauge shows temp stays constant while this is happening.

Any tips? My initial thoughts on this is when the fan kicks in it is cooling the temp probe down making it switch off.
 



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So I finally got around to doing this and love the mod.

However I have one issue, looks like the controller is set to about 197, and once it gets to that temp, the fan is cycling on and off. Once it gets to 197(reading off ScangaugeII), the fan comes on for 5 secs then off, 10 secs later same thing. Scangauge shows temp stays constant while this is happening.

Any tips? My initial thoughts on this is when the fan kicks in it is cooling the temp probe down making it switch off.

If you are using the FAL controller, my initial thought would be the location of the temperature probe. Get it close to the coolant inlet, without being in the shroud to keep it out of the flow of the fan.

I would also set the fan control temperature above the thermostat temperature by about 10°F to make up for any tolerances and variances.
 






Thanks Josh, I re-calibrated the controller to 203 and it now works as it should. I have the sensor positioned pretty much exactly the same as yours and I still think that the fan is cooling the probe, however now that the controller is dialed in correctly, the fan hardly ever comes on. So far I have only done around town driving but 197 seems to be the maximum temp (i recently drained and refilled radiator, adding in some Water Wetter). I'm so happy with this mod, using the scangauge and message centre it looks like I have made some excellent gains in fuel efficiency but I'll know for sure once I fill up and start measuring my usage correctly.

Some notes on my install

I didnt install the alternator pulley as I was concerned with the voltage drop. Keeping the stock pulley, I think I lost about .3 (according to scangauge). Prior to install the reading was 14.2, now its about 13.9/14.0

I paid a guy to install the controller. While I was confident I could have installed it, it would have been no where near as 'neat' as having it professionally done.

I used the Taurus 3.8 fan and mounted it inside the stock shroud similar to Hitchhikingmike's, although I did not add any material to the shroud. I am reconsidering this now, as I dont think the shroud is that effective anymore. I'm lucky that we have a real mild climate here but I'm concerned if we do have a real hot day...


EDIT* Checked running charge at the battery terminals using a voltmeter. 14.4
Maybe I could have installed the alt pulley too.
 






Josh - I'm getting ready to do the fan install, and am considering the pulleys as well. What is your long-term opinion of the pulleys? Any issues with charging or coolant flow?
 






Josh - I'm getting ready to do the fan install, and am considering the pulleys as well. What is your long-term opinion of the pulleys? Any issues with charging or coolant flow?

No issues. I have run it through stop-and-go traffic in the heat without issues. A month ago I pulled a 2-ton trailer with ease. :thumbsup:
 






Probably a dumb question, but since you didn't mention it, do you run the same drive belt as stock, or is it a different size?
 






Probably a dumb question, but since you didn't mention it, do you run the same drive belt as stock, or is it a different size?

As long as you swap all the pulleys you keep the stock belt.
 






hey guys, fyi I only swapped the waterpump and crank pulleys, didnt do the alternator. Reused the stock belt with no issues. (I did have a new one on hand just in case)
 






Finally got around to doing a fuel mileage calculation (highway driving only). My pullies and efan have netted me 2.15MPG :D
Will report back when I can do a city driving calculation.
 






Finally got around to doing a fuel mileage calculation (highway driving only). My pullies and efan have netted me 2.15MPG :D
Will report back when I can do a city driving calculation.

Awesome, that is about the best I have done with my mods. That was fully loaded with family and luggage as well as doing ~75MPH as much as possible.

Are you guys on US or Imperial gallons down there?
 






We are actually use l/100. But I have converted to MPG (US Gallons) for ease of reading. :)
 






Hard to tell from this pic - does the back of the fan sit above or below the water pump snout?

651.jpg
 






Hard to tell from this pic - does the back of the fan sit above or below the water pump snout?

It is more to the side than anything, but the way I installed it was slightly above.
 






I used a Mark VIII fan this weekend. This write up would have been helpful had i known it was using the same fan. One question though. What type of fan controller did you use? This thing pulls quite a bit of amperage compared to the taurus fan. Dont want it to burn up the hayden controller i used, as well as a 80amp relay. The circuit breaker idea is nice, does it pop when it gets to much flowing to it? Seems like it would be eaiser to just reset a breaker than re-solder a relay back to it.
 






I used a Mark VIII fan this weekend. This write up would have been helpful had i known it was using the same fan. One question though. What type of fan controller did you use? This thing pulls quite a bit of amperage compared to the taurus fan. Dont want it to burn up the hayden controller i used, as well as a 80amp relay. The circuit breaker idea is nice, does it pop when it gets to much flowing to it? Seems like it would be eaiser to just reset a breaker than re-solder a relay back to it.

I used a Flex-A-Lite controller. From the first post:

Fan controller – I used Flex-A-Lite part # 33054. Do NOT confuse this with the 33165. The 33054 is beefier than the 33165, and is the minimum you want for running a Mark VIII fan. I believe Summit has the descriptions the same between the two, which is not correct. You are more than welcome to make your own decision as to what to use and how to use it. There are cheaper options and there are fancier options…I believe the FAL 33054 is the best overall option for simplicity, reliability, and performance.

You absolutely should have some form of circuit protection in the loop. You can use a fuse holder and fuse; they are cheap enough and easy to install. I prefer the thermal breaker as it is self resetting, but I can still easily figure out if the fan is not running.
 






Should have read the top part.. Sorry about that. Skipped it and went straight to the step by steps. A thermal breaker? Not to familiar with those. Where would i acquire one? I had a fuseholder with fuse but apparently it wasnt strong enough and it melted it down to the point of it a ball of molted plastic.
 






One thing i did thought to prevent the fan from being so close to the pulleys was i grinded down the three rivets holding the fan motor in place, relocated it to the other side of the fan shroud(facing the same direction), then used some bolts, washers and nuts to hold it back together. I have about an inch of space between the fan and the pulleys now. Just a little ease and comfort.

http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/boydd1/photo-2.jpg
 






Should have read the top part.. Sorry about that. Skipped it and went straight to the step by steps. A thermal breaker? Not to familiar with those. Where would i acquire one? I had a fuseholder with fuse but apparently it wasnt strong enough and it melted it down to the point of it a ball of molted plastic.

No worries, there is a lot of information in that post. Just a self-resetting breaker:
http://www.autozone.com/autozone/ac...t-breaker/_/N-2690?itemIdentifier=132332_0_0_

If you melted the fuse holder, you most likely either had too large of a fuse or too small of a wire. The first thing is to insure that the wire gauge is proper for the application; 10 gauge or so for this sort of thing is good. Then make sure the fuse is not over-sized; 40A I believe is about right. Too small of a fuse should only result in a blown fuse. Also ensure you have a good connection at any wire junctions.
 






Yeah it was alot of information! And awesome, thanks for the link. Ill be sure to pick one up. If the fuse is to big it can cause problems? I believe it was a 30amp in there before, which is why it melted. Instead of the self-resetting breaker like you did i ran a 40 amp relay, i plan on putting in a 75amp just to ensure on the "spike" during startup it can handle it. Would i be able to incorporate the breaker into this in a manner in which it wouldn't cause problems but be a valuable asset to protect my relays?
 



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Yeah it was alot of information! And awesome, thanks for the link. Ill be sure to pick one up. If the fuse is to big it can cause problems? I believe it was a 30amp in there before, which is why it melted. Instead of the self-resetting breaker like you did i ran a 40 amp relay, i plan on putting in a 75amp just to ensure on the "spike" during startup it can handle it. Would i be able to incorporate the breaker into this in a manner in which it wouldn't cause problems but be a valuable asset to protect my relays?

A 30A fuse should not melt anything, it should just blow and no longer work. A relay is great for being able to trigger the heavier gauge power wires, but is not a protection device. You would need a slow-blow 40-50A fuse or a breaker like the one I used.
 






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