electric fan

[jvandyke]

The motor in our electric fan grenaded.  I can't find much info on 24v fans vs. 12v.  I'm assuming if it's a 24v fan it needs a voltage converter of some sort?  I'm going to try to rebuild it for fun but when that fails (it's pretty fried) I'll get another,.

[Neverdone]

You 100% sure the fan is 24 volts? Nearly every electric fan out there is 12 volts.

[jhm]

The fan controller should convert the voltage internally.  If your car did not have a controller, or if it did not have the correct controller for your fan, it was just running off 12V.

 

What kind of fan is it?

[jvandyke]

It was a dual speed fan from an old Ford it seems.  I found a nice Flex-a-lite for sale and ordered it up only to realize it was 24v so I cancelled it.  I just ordered a cheap replacement to graft onto the old shroud.  It should work out fine.  My kid is driving around without any fan, but since it's cool here now and he doesn't go far enough to worry about getting caught in slow traffic he should be alright.  The PO had rigged up the old fan using what I thought were some original relays (bolted on inner right fender right under the trouble light) but I don't see these in any 240z engine bay pics so they must also be added relays.  They are huge metal things.  Anyway, I tore down the old fan motor, being stubborn I wanted to try to revive it but the magnets had let loose and jammed the motor, causing blown fuses and melted wires all through the circuit, after rebuilding it all the motor won't spin up, the commuter rubs the magnets somewhere and it's not worth the hassle anymore.  This is the old motor, NLA I guess.

https://www.surpluscenter.com/Electrical/DC-Motors/DC-Fan-Motors/1650-2400-RPM-12-VDC-Fan-Motor-Ford-Power-Motion-Mfg-F00U-8K621-BA-PM254X-10-PM254X.axd

[Neverdone]

That motor is a 12V. If it's a dual speed Ford fan, it's probably from a Taurus or Thunderbird.

 

If you don't mind a used one, they're pretty plentiful in nearly all junkyards. Just take some measurements and see if they match up with what other people have posted online before you head out there.

 

Or just order a new one.

[jvandyke]

Now that you gave me hints I think it might be from a '95 3.8, but it doesn't match up perfectly, even so the odds of finding one of those in a junk yard here are slim I think, too old.  Rockauto has whole new assemblies for $45!  Oh well, if this doesn't work, I can always get one of those new....maybe.

[Miles]

 

[jvandyke]

Ended up with an inexpensive 16"

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014KK7LDY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

It fit inside the opening for the old fan so I bolted it to the old shroud, only 1 speed but works okay, don't know if it pulls enough air but it never had a problem over heating (new aluminum radiator).  the shroud doesn't really fit so if it can't keep up I'll work on sealing the shroud seams, if it still can't keep up will upgrade

[Michael]

One gathers, at least anecdotally, that for a well-flowing modern aluminum radiator, fan-requirements (CFM across a given pressure-drop) are surprisingly low.  The above-cited fan supposedly flows 3000 CFM, but across what pressure-drop?  And at what oncoming flow speed (basically the driving-speed of the car)?  The reason for my skepticism is that the label purports that the fan only draws 80 Watts.  That's not even 7 amps.  But if it works, it works.

 

Back in the proverbial good-old-days, the default solution was the "universal fit" Flex-a-Lite "Black Magic" fan; something like this: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/flx-168?seid=srese1&cm_mmc=pla-google-_-shopping-_-srese1-_-flex-a-lite&gclid=Cj0KCQjw7YblBRDFARIsAKkK-dIQeVohN8W2bXWd_eUn3Zd_7oQ4kn7sadbhZGekgV3KwmX1bVOABAgaAgnPEALw_wcB .  It has about the same CFM and similar physical size, but is listed as drawing 19.5 amps (234 Watts).  I can report good results with that fan, on a large-ish Griffin two-row aluminum radiator.