electronic fan v viscous fan

Back in the old days when lots of cars ran viscous fans fitting a Kenlowe electric fan was a popular mod that was supposed to increase power and improve fuel economy.

Has anyone tried replacing the viscous fan with an electronic one (like this one)? Did it make any difference? There's nothing wrong with my fan, I'm just curious...

i was thinking the same mate could i put a 12v fan on as well as viscous fan for when i do lanes can switch it on as some lanes we are doing 20miles plus at a time and keep it cooler and bonnet vent

an electric fan was a popular mod on big engined 4wds to improve economy. cant really see much point on a jimny though. additional cooling i can see the benefit of but is there room ? maybe better to try keep the rad clean.

The electric fan replaces the viscous fan so I can't see lack of room being an issue, although presumably you need a shorter fan belt as it won't need to drive the fan any more. In theory it should be more economical because the engine isn't constantly having power sapped driving the viscous fan. What I was wondering was if the theory is borne out in practice - i.e. has anyone fitted it and found a noticeable improvement in power and economy?

There is no requirement to find a shorter belt, just remove the fan and bolt the pully back on. This is a very important pully as it spins your water pump :woohoo:

The kit comes with absolutely everything you need, no other parts or mods required.

RB
ORA

There are 2 main reasons why people change over to elecrtric fans.

The first being economy,however, I'm not sure you will notice it, but have not done it. My old SJ410 had a fixed fan with no viscous coupling and if that could get by with a 1.0 engine and the fan at whatever the engine speed was, it couldn't have been that power sapping, thus uneconomical or the little engine would not have got by!As I say though, I've not fitted an electric fan and measured fuel consumption, so I can't make a valid comment really.

The other reason is to stop the fan flicking water everywhere when wading. You would fit a manual overide cut off switch so the fan can not work when switched off and thus can not flick the water.

This is especially important on distributor powered cars - but all Jimny's have waterproofed ignition by way of coil packs. It's like having Megasquirt from the factory but far far better!

The LR V8 boys use Megasquirt on Ford coil packs to waterproof them. So other than reducing the amount of water flicked onto the alternator, which may be academic if the water is getting that deep, stopping water flicking has few benefits on a Jimny. Furthermore, if the water is that deep, it will stall the fan and the viscous coupling anyway.

One down side to elecrtric fans is that they are electric and electricity and water and not good bed fellows. If the water dowsn't stop it running whilst wading, it may stop the fan working later when it's corroded it's important parts. Some expensive versions you can buy are better waterproofed, but they all die in the end.

A dead electric fan can cause overheating and a warped head or worse and stop without warning. A failing viscous unit usually does so slowly so you can see the engine temperatures slowly going up over time and can be fixed in place as Martin has as a temporary or permanent fix.

So I think as a personal opinion, only buy an electric fan if it's mainly for road use and won't see much water. If you offroad alot and go wading, stick with the viscous and to hell with the fuelefficiency as you've probably blown that with the tyres you're running!

Kirkynut