Apparently doing this right would involve a new cooling fan assembly from a newer model year truck for $200, a PCM tune for $255, replacing the AC line with one from a newer model to get a pressure reading for the PCM, and that's way out of budget.
The primary reason I want e-fans is quicker warmups. My typical commute is short. If I remove the clutch fan the truck warms up fast... With the clutch fan it takes almost the whole drive to work. This is not good for my fuel economy and it's just annoying.
I'm thinking I just get a junkyard dual speed or dual fan e-fan assembly, use an aftermarket controller with temp sensor, and grab a wire from the AC clutch relay to turn the fan on when the AC is on? Would that work?
01 Suburban e-fans on a budget
- Thread starter dogememe
- Start date
Maybe I'm over thinking this, but until the thermostat is open, there is not much coolant flowing through the radiator. In this case it would not matter if the fan was on or off. You might be better off with a block or oil pan heater and a timer. But that would be somewhat of a hassle also having to plug it in every day.
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Put cardboard in front of the radiator. Pull it out when weather warms up. This is usually only considered necessary in really arctic temperatures.
If the upper radiator hose gets warm at all before the engine is warmed up, thermostat may not be closing fully.
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Originally Posted by mk378
Put cardboard in front of the radiator. Pull it out when weather warms up. This is usually only considered necessary in really arctic temperatures.
If the upper radiator hose gets warm at all before the engine is warmed up, thermostat may not be closing fully.
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I just gotta ask, is this old 'burban used as a commuter bus? If not, just keep it to tow with etc, get and get something less thirsty 
The mechanical fan has no bearing on engine temp when the thermostat is closed
Originally Posted by andyd
I just gotta ask, is this old 'burban used as a commuter bus? If not, just keep it to tow with etc, get and get something less thirsty
Is it really worth the bother to start this project on a vehicle with 290K mi ?
It's a great idea. Don't listen to the nay-sayers that don't even read your post correctly.
I drove my volvo 940 for months without a mechanical fan. They gave me the wrong fasteners with a new water pump. It still had an electric fan (over-engineered car) and that rarely came on.
The only issue I see is if your AC cycles because of the high/low pressure switches, the fan won't run during the cycling, so it might not take away the heat that was causing your AC to cycle off. You could fix this by wiring your relay coil further upstream.
"The primary reason I want e-fans is quicker warmups"
For $50 you can get a remote starter kit from amazon.
For $20 you can get a dipstick heater from NAPA.
"I'm thinking I just get a junkyard dual speed or dual fan e-fan assembly, use an aftermarket controller with temp sensor, and grab a wire from the AC clutch relay to turn the fan on when the AC is on? Would that work?"
YES! This would work, and you could even experiment to see if low speed is adequate for the A/C. If you were really frosty you could maybe figure out a way to slow it down or turn it off over 45 mph when vehicle speed covers the cooling. I suspect you'll see a modest increase in MPG. If you tow heavy, however, you might find limits at the fringe....
Truly aggravating , dead of winter , going to work ( and maybe , coming home ) in the morning and the heater finally starts putting out a tiny bit of heat . Just about the time you get there . :-(
And takes a LONG time to melt ice/snow from the windshield before you can take off in the morning . :-(
How long is this commute?
Have you tracked actual engine temps with an OBDII like Torque?
Is it possible the heater core is clogged? Your symptoms sound exactly like 2 Fords iron blocks I had with clogged heater cores. After 50 minutes, very weak heat.
Think about it. Since when has the Burb ever been made with poor heat?
