Electric Fans Vs Clutch Fans

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

thompsoj22

Full Access Member
Joined
Jul 21, 2018
Posts
689
Reaction score
717
Location
california native "REPUBLICAN" high desert
Just my 02, Leave the viscous clutch setup as it truly is HD which is what the engineers had in mind with the 2500. Every big rig diesel on the road has a clutch fan, allthough electrically controlled it is capable of moving more air than any electric fan setup. your setup should not overheat at slowspeeds/stop and go. You did use an ACDELCO replacement clutch right? cause if youve opted for a dorman i would start there. Is the belt tensioner in good condition? with the tension indicator centered or biased to the tight side? you could throw one of those cool gates belts at it that are designed to drive on the smooth side as much as the grooved side to prevent slipping on the waterpump, they might be snake oil but they look cool. do you have an aftermarket trans cooler in front of the radiator?
 
OP
OP
Nap73

Nap73

Full Access Member
Joined
Dec 15, 2018
Posts
182
Reaction score
102
Just my 02, Leave the viscous clutch setup as it truly is HD which is what the engineers had in mind with the 2500. Every big rig diesel on the road has a clutch fan, allthough electrically controlled it is capable of moving more air than any electric fan setup. your setup should not overheat at slowspeeds/stop and go. You did use an ACDELCO replacement clutch right? cause if youve opted for a dorman i would start there. Is the belt tensioner in good condition? with the tension indicator centered or biased to the tight side? you could throw one of those cool gates belts at it that are designed to drive on the smooth side as much as the grooved side to prevent slipping on the waterpump, they might be snake oil but they look cool. do you have an aftermarket trans cooler in front of the radiator?
**I don’t overheat during slow speed / stop and go. It’s happened twice in the high heat while the truck is sitting with the AC on. We’re talking for 45min plus

**The fan clutch & radiator are aftermarket. Was done before I realized how important OEM parts are. Everything else I’ve had done is Delco or Delphi where applicable

**has all new belts tensioners that are AC Delco


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

thompsoj22

Full Access Member
Joined
Jul 21, 2018
Posts
689
Reaction score
717
Location
california native "REPUBLICAN" high desert
**I don’t overheat during slow speed / stop and go. It’s happened twice in the high heat while the truck is sitting with the AC on. We’re talking for 45min plus

**The fan clutch & radiator are aftermarket. Was done before I realized how important OEM parts are. Everything else I’ve had done is Delco or Delphi where applicable

**has all new belts tensioners that are AC Delco


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Start the vehicle cold with the cap off the coolant reservoir and keep an eye on the liquid, As the thermostat opens at op temp there should be little to no fluid purging/flowing into the tank. If there is alot of flow than the radiator does not have the oem restrictor to prevent the coolant from circulating rapidly through the overflow/expansion hose and overheating. This would probably be most apparent at idle without any ram air cooling effect.
 

RTLINGR2

Member
Joined
Jun 7, 2017
Posts
80
Reaction score
74
Location
Sanford, Fl.
So in my 04 2500 Sub, I originally added an auxilary fan in front of the a/c condenser per a GM tsb on inefficient a/c cooling at idle. This tsb has the fan wired to the a/c clutch circuit so the fan is on anytime the a/c is on. Later I retroed a set of 06 tahoe fans in. They bolt directly in. I got a whole fan harness with the factory relay block and fuses from a bone yard , installed like the factory did it in the 1/2 tons. Just needs to be programmed. In the the mean time i made a 2nd fan harness that is wired in how the auxiliary fan was wired in. At this time both fans only work on high speed and with the a/c on. I do tow occasionally, but main concern is a/c performance and man did the fans help with the a/c. Ten times better than the clutch fan and auxiliary fan. That being said, I do keep an eye the cooling and trans temps especially when towing. Trans temps never get over 180. Since the upgrade I have only had one issue and that is because both fans come on high at the same time. The issue is the current draw when both fans turn on. Battery voltage drops briefly to 12.5 then comes right back up where it needs to be at 14. I know once i have the programming done this problem will go away.
 

thompsoj22

Full Access Member
Joined
Jul 21, 2018
Posts
689
Reaction score
717
Location
california native "REPUBLICAN" high desert
So in my 04 2500 Sub, I originally added an auxilary fan in front of the a/c condenser per a GM tsb on inefficient a/c cooling at idle. This tsb has the fan wired to the a/c clutch circuit so the fan is on anytime the a/c is on. Later I retroed a set of 06 tahoe fans in. They bolt directly in. I got a whole fan harness with the factory relay block and fuses from a bone yard , installed like the factory did it in the 1/2 tons. Just needs to be programmed. In the the mean time i made a 2nd fan harness that is wired in how the auxiliary fan was wired in. At this time both fans only work on high speed and with the a/c on. I do tow occasionally, but main concern is a/c performance and man did the fans help with the a/c. Ten times better than the clutch fan and auxiliary fan. That being said, I do keep an eye the cooling and trans temps especially when towing. Trans temps never get over 180. Since the upgrade I have only had one issue and that is because both fans come on high at the same time. The issue is the current draw when both fans turn on. Battery voltage drops briefly to 12.5 then comes right back up where it needs to be at 14. I know once i have the programming done this problem will go away.


running a 2 inch overdrive alternator pulley solves my current draw issues at idle, It provides better alternator cooling at idle, And our vehicles at freeway speeds are rarely above 1900 rpm so imo you dont have to worry about accelerated alternator brush/bearing wear.
 

JonnyTahoe

Full Access Member
Joined
Apr 14, 2011
Posts
1,249
Reaction score
773
Location
Minneapolis
Works way better than the original. Does take a couple minutes/miles for it to go off in the morning when you start from cold.
My Severe Duty Thermo Clutch is like that too. If I hold it at 2000 rpm's it will slow down in about 10 seconds. I replaced it this summer because I assumed the truck had the original fan clutch on it which would spin faster and longer than I thought it should you could really hear it from inside the truck. As it turns out the new one is pretty much the same. I priced new AC Delco's and was surprised how expensive they are so I bought a Napa.
 
Last edited:
OP
OP
Nap73

Nap73

Full Access Member
Joined
Dec 15, 2018
Posts
182
Reaction score
102
So in my 04 2500 Sub, I originally added an auxilary fan in front of the a/c condenser per a GM tsb on inefficient a/c cooling at idle. This tsb has the fan wired to the a/c clutch circuit so the fan is on anytime the a/c is on. Later I retroed a set of 06 tahoe fans in. They bolt directly in. I got a whole fan harness with the factory relay block and fuses from a bone yard , installed like the factory did it in the 1/2 tons. Just needs to be programmed. In the the mean time i made a 2nd fan harness that is wired in how the auxiliary fan was wired in. At this time both fans only work on high speed and with the a/c on. I do tow occasionally, but main concern is a/c performance and man did the fans help with the a/c. Ten times better than the clutch fan and auxiliary fan. That being said, I do keep an eye the cooling and trans temps especially when towing. Trans temps never get over 180. Since the upgrade I have only had one issue and that is because both fans come on high at the same time. The issue is the current draw when both fans turn on. Battery voltage drops briefly to 12.5 then comes right back up where it needs to be at 14. I know once i have the programming done this problem will go away.
Just seems like a lot of work to keep the truck cool at idle. I’ve got a lot of guys on this post telling me to keep the clutch fan. And then a few of you guys who have done the electric fan mod. To be honest Im torn on what to do. I sit at idle way more than I tow so the cooling situation there needs to be addressed in some way. At this point I’m just not sure how.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

agsmoke

TYF Newbie
Joined
Dec 11, 2015
Posts
4
Reaction score
2
On both my 99' 2500 Suburban and my 08 2500 Suburban the dealer suggested going to a 160 degree thermostat. I have no problems in south Florida . Prior to changing the thermostatin the 99' I had a similar problem.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
132,315
Posts
1,865,847
Members
96,908
Latest member
Boosyed96GSX
Top