Fan shroud - Yes or no?

[TBone1209]

So I'm having a new(larger) radiator made for my clone and I wanted to get some thoughts on running a full fan shroud/ pull fan which I can have made at the same time. 

 

I've read anything over ~25-30 mph and the shroud/fan combo can actually reduce cooling effectiveness.

 

Thoughts? 

 

Background: It's a Ford 2.3L turbo motor (88 Thunderbird turbo coupe) without an intercooler so the reason for the larger radiator is to run a small intercooler in front of a portion of the radiator. I tried an IC with the current radiator but it didn't work. IC blocked too much airflow resulting in overheating. 

[CarlB]

It depends on the size of the opening for the fan. You also need to think about the where the air gets out of the car.

[MV8]

Much to consider.

I don't know your chassis size. If a 442, do you not have room for the oem Turbocoupe/SVO intercooler? Are you running enough boost that it is worth the trouble to fit an IC? Do you have the rocker switch to select the level of boost or some other type of waste gate controller?

Engine driven fans are very effective at low speed but also make a lot of noise, especially at higher speed if there is no fan clutch and the parasitic power loss is considerable.

There is an excess of airflow available at speed. Electric fans with a shroud are also restrictive at speed. That's why oem puller shrouds have rubber flaps overlapping holes in the back of the shroud that are normally closed and when the fan is on creating lower pressure behind the radiator and open when the pressure inside the shroud exceeds the air pressure behind the shroud.

I'd probably run no more than 7 psi to keep it tidy, no throttle delay, less heat to cool, then fit a high amp electric fan with a relay, thermo switch, and toggle back up.  

[TBone1209]

Thanks for the replys. On the airflow question the sides of the engine compartment area has two large vents and the entire bottom of the engine bay is open. 

 

Regarding the size, it's pretty tight on top of engine. There's lots of area in the nose. The motor sits well behind the front axle. It's a well thought out clone.

 

It already has a relay and a toggle which I just leave on 98% of the time.

 

The waste gate does have a vacuum adjustment so it's runs from a stock 5lbs to 14-15lbs of boost when dialed up. My thought was to run a small 15"x 6" intercooler to cool that charge when on hard runs or at the track. 

 

 

Edited July 2, 2024 by TBone1209