Took electric fans off a donor car. I have the radiator and the fans attached.

What is the best way to hook them up in our cars (1985) these days? Planning ahead (thinking about all the parts I need) for possible electric fans install.

p.s.I have fans on other car and they run all the time (with the a/c on for example).

 

Cannot help with fans, but have to ask ...is that actual bailing wire there?

 

That was the donor car.

 

It's pretty easy to wire up a fan using a relay and a temperature switch. You can wire it up to come on with the AC as well.

If you have an '85 I would leave the stock auxiliary cooling fan to handle the AC function and replace the belt driven fan with electric. What fans did you take off the donor car though? There are much better electric fan options available aftermarket...

I was actually about to write up a DIY for installing an electric puller fan on an 85/86 so let me know if you need any help.

 

I know the lincoln Mark VIII fan fits with some spacers in the stock shroud and is very powerful. More so than most aftermarket fans and is very inexpensive.

 

Are you talking about the pusher in front?

A relay and temp switch is a horrible way to go for the main radiator fans. I know.

 

The 'bailing wire' in the pic of the donor car appears to be going to temperature sensors embedded in the radiator fins. By seeing that, the owner of that car had some aftermarket controller in the cooling system. You should have some type of temp sensor/controller in your system and not just MAX fan at all times through a simple relay.

 

Here is my setup, put the two stage controller where the lens washer bottle was located, the sensor in the upper radiator hose. Original fan comes on when AC is on. Controller power off the jump post.

 

antsmands,

Thoughtful job. Nicely wired.
I located my dc controller in the same location after my final stage failed. For those interested I had a recent thread on its install.
It is important to have your fan(s) respond to coolant temperature, and have your other fan activators (AC switch, intake temp, torque converter ATF temp if auto, high pressure refrigerant temp) tied into to fan control as well. One shouldn't have fan(s) MAX on/off only. The nuances of how your controller manages fan speed (i.e. variable speed) and hence engine temp, and how it manages/inputs triggering from the other temp sensors will depend on which controller unit you choose.

 

Another option is using the stock temp sensor in the lower front in the radiator.

The thread is shared with almost every VW from the 70's and 80's. This means there are multiple different sensors at different temperature levels and they are two stage switches to activate multiple fans at different temps.

Anyone installing a lower thermostat should also replace this sensor with a lower temp one so the fans come in relation to when the new thermostat opens.

 

Any cooling fan should be wired using at least one relay. And there are numerous ways of controlling when the fan runs. A simple on off temp switch is the easiest if you aren't concerned about running the fan at varying speeds.

What fitting are you using in the radiator hose?

 

That's why using the stock sensor / switch in the radiator works so well. You retain the stock fuses & relays and you can adjust what speeds you want the fans to come on using different sensors.

I'm only running one fan in my 79, a modified S4 unit. It's plugged into the connector for the stock front fan and by installing a different sensor in the radiator, my fan comes on at 180F.

 

That could be done, but is an overly simple way to do it. In order to have fan speed to provide high level of cooling when it is needed, you would be locked into to having this as your default and only speed available. You can/will over exert the fan bearing by having it run at the default MAX speed continuously. It will be also not electrically energy conscious in our old 928's, and will be loud when it doesn't have to be.

 

What fitting are you using in the radiator hose?[/QUOTE]

Flex-A-Lite 1-3/4 inline adapter with 2 sensor inputs. One for the controller and one for a 2nd temp gauge I installed. The controller is a Flex-A-Lite 31163 Variable Speed Control Module. Works great!

 

I control my dual fans with DC Controls unit.

About $150.

Love it.