Anyone move to an electric fan?
Posted: Mon Oct 31, 2011 10:24 pm
So this idea started a few weeks back when I was trying to figure out where I was getting a squeak from under the hood. I started the H2 for a few moments with the main drive belt disconnected (testing the AC belt..) and first thing I noticed... how nice the H2 sounds without that gigantic fan going all the time!!
My plan is to get a fan shroud with blades and motors like what's used on the 2008-09 H2s and then a fan controller to fire up the electric fans. Other GM products seem to have used the same fans so getting a hold of these at a decent price is definitely doable, estimating around $200 for all brand new parts? There are few fan controllers out there but roughly speaking you're looking at $100 for the controller so the whole endeavour isn't even that pricey! There are always a few odds and ends, pigtails for the fan motors and whatever else I haven't considered yet but absolutely this could be done for under $500. The job overall seems straightforward and something I'd be able to rig up in the garage... Most people doing this seem to be doing it for economy reasons as getting rid of the big clutch fan is just one less thing for the motor to spin, but mostly I am just after the driving comfort and reduced cabin noise!
With some fan controllers you also get the benefit of variable fan speeds so they don't just fire up full speed ahead every time they come on, they'll gradually ramp up the fan speed as temperatures increase so again nice to have the noise kept down as much as possible.
Anyone moved their H2 from a clutch fan to electric? Anything I should be worried about or consider further before going ahead with this? In my looking around it seems like one controller (depending on the specific model of course) should be fine to power two electric fans as long as you're a careful shopper and buy something that will actually work for your application, but a dual controller setup might even be worth considering!
Any input is appreciated!!
My plan is to get a fan shroud with blades and motors like what's used on the 2008-09 H2s and then a fan controller to fire up the electric fans. Other GM products seem to have used the same fans so getting a hold of these at a decent price is definitely doable, estimating around $200 for all brand new parts? There are few fan controllers out there but roughly speaking you're looking at $100 for the controller so the whole endeavour isn't even that pricey! There are always a few odds and ends, pigtails for the fan motors and whatever else I haven't considered yet but absolutely this could be done for under $500. The job overall seems straightforward and something I'd be able to rig up in the garage... Most people doing this seem to be doing it for economy reasons as getting rid of the big clutch fan is just one less thing for the motor to spin, but mostly I am just after the driving comfort and reduced cabin noise!
With some fan controllers you also get the benefit of variable fan speeds so they don't just fire up full speed ahead every time they come on, they'll gradually ramp up the fan speed as temperatures increase so again nice to have the noise kept down as much as possible.
Anyone moved their H2 from a clutch fan to electric? Anything I should be worried about or consider further before going ahead with this? In my looking around it seems like one controller (depending on the specific model of course) should be fine to power two electric fans as long as you're a careful shopper and buy something that will actually work for your application, but a dual controller setup might even be worth considering!
Any input is appreciated!!
