i've been fooling with this thing for about 2 years now and still haven't really gotten anywhere with it. i have a cj7 with a 350 and a new 4 core radiator that will getup to 240F or more if i don't shut it down. at 25mph and up it stays about 180F. so it seems i don't have enough air flow from the fan. the problem i have is that when i built it i only left an inch between the water pump and the radiator, which leaves no room for a mechanical fan. the fan i'm using is an 18" x 2.5" electric fan that i bought from autozone. it's mounted as a pusher between the radiator and the grill with no room to spare.

i've thought about cutting away the grille and mounting a taurus fan as a pusher but i've heard that pushers don't work that well.

i've also considered running an auxilary radiator along with the original but not sure if that would work either.

i'm just wondering if anybody has any ideas that could get the temp down in this thing. thanks
jeremy

What CFM does that fan move?

check out the fans at summit racing, they have some electric fans there that move some serious air and don't take up that much room.

I just put a derale fan in mine, 16" diameter, 3.9" thick and moves like 2150 CFM or something like that.

Bite the bullet and move the engine back.

A couple of questions for you since I had a CJ7 with a 350 and couldn't keep it cool. Is it possible that your timing is way advanced or retarded? How about the idea that your tune is way rich or lean? All of that will cause major heating issues. I too had to put a 4 core radiator in mine and still couldn't keep it cool without a mechanical fan and a shroud. You may just have to do like was already mentioned and move it back or switch to a postal grill so you can move the radiator forward. Those work well for that.;)

why dont you put two fans on it? or hell 4 for that matter?

I'm running a 318, 3 core radiator, 2 electric pullers, in 100 degree heat , never seen it over 200 f.

Could the engine be running exceptionally lean at idle/low speeds? might try to richen the mixture some. Just a thought.
Phil

it could be running lean, it dosen't put out any smoke so i doubt that it is rich. the postal grille sounds like a good idea, maybe i'll give that a shot before i move everything back. should i use the cj radiator for that or something else?

if you need more coooling, call Ron Davis performance radiators in Phoenix, they can build you a radiator that will work based on your needs.

Make sure the coolant is running through the radiator center and not just through the tanks. Look into cross flow style radiators or adding a plate along the tanks to force the fluid across the cooling surfaces.

Would a shorty water pump give you the room to mount a good puller or mech fan w/ shroud?

i'll have to check the measerments for a shorty but i think the fan would be to close to my alternator. i had a custom 4 core built for it and seems to work fine when there is air flowing through it. here's a thought. could my headers be causing the problem? at higher speeds the air is blowing through the entire engine compartment sweeping all the hot air out. but at lower speed the air stays in there and the heat radiates raising the temp of everything near them. could this be possible?

4 core sucks- 2 core aluminum -is the way to go- i had problem now i have none- 179.00 made to any size-Jess:D

In my experience a little airflow is worth a LOT of radiator capacity. I'd get ahold of the shorty accessory drive, and put on a thinner radiator with a thicker fan.... Pullers work a helluva lot more efficiently than pushers do.

You didn't say if you had an auto trans or not. If your running stock gears in the t-case or the rear ends and big tires and you are running a trans cooler in the radiator this could be the problem. Cutting inner fender wells helps cool things in the engine conpartment

If you run a postal grill, you can still run the radiator you have but, will need to fab up a bracket system for it. I prefer to mount my own stand for the radiator off the frame so it is independent of the body.

thanks for all these great ideas guys, i'll try them out and see if it helps cool it down a bit.

You could try venting the engine compartment some way. Either through the hood or fender wells. IF you have not already done so. This would let some of the hot ambient air escape.

Originally posted by 1tonyj
You could try venting the engine compartment some way. Either through the hood or fender wells. IF you have not already done so. This would let some of the hot ambient air escape.

thanks for reminding me, i can be forgetful at times. :confused: last year i took the hood off during a wheeling trip right after i installed the new radiator and it never overheated. i thought it was because of the radiator but aparently that was not true. all my problems could be from the ambient temps in the engine bay.

It's all about air flow.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=21025&highlight=Fan

my cj-5 runs a 360 with over the frame headers.amd a 4 row radiator..no problems..I run a black magic fan in it and works great..You just need one with better cfm then what you have.I don't know what kind of fans autozone sells.Does the eletric fan you have now have a fan shroud on it?That too makes a huge difference in how well the fan pulls air..

i SECOND the black magic fan. That is what i am running in my junk, and i never see temps above 180, not that i have run it long either i am STILL trying work the bugs out of the TPI system

The fan shroud and a better fan are probably the best options but here are a couple more thiughts. There is a product used in drag racing called water wetter. Water Wetter increases the coolents rate and ability to cool. It can be purchased form a speed shop or maybe a shop that deals with a lot of towing supplies. You may also want to use a hedder wrap. There are several items on the market used to insulate headers, also a product used in racing.