Which electric radiator fan?

AndrewClarke

Adventurer
I'm not saying they are not needed, just that the cooling system on LR's is very capable if in good condition, one of the few things LR did get right with their vehicles.

That depends on your point of view, and what you drive where. When I lived in southern California and had a V8 Disco I, I really don't think the stock cooling system was up to the job. That vehicle had quite a few overheating problems. Some were probably user-related, but I had burst hoses in Death Valley, overheating while in stop and go traffic on the freeway, and I lent my truck to someone and when I got it back it needed a new engine thanks to them overheating it.

The diesels fare a lot better, so in the end it depends a lot on your specific situation and environment.
 

REDROVER

Explorer
I have always used ford crown Victoria fan witch is the same as Lincoln town car and Ford Taurus. that fan is one of the strongest ever made fans for production car. But it doesn't fit perfectly u have to trim the upper section of the fan ,not the blade. And u can buy one from the junk yard for around 20 bucks. My second option as I use right now is Volvo 850 fan , very strong and not as huge as ford unit.
 
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DividingCreek

Explorer
But usually only on vehicles with engine fits that preclude an electric fan. Engine driven fans will always be better in every respect than electric except for the ability to switch off an electric fan for wading. Your comment about efficiency is incorrect, too - electric fans are full on or off, they can't idle. So, they let the temperature creep up until it's approaching limits before cutting in, while engine fans keep everything nice and stable. Like I keep saying, power consumption by an idling engine fan is minimal, and at high rpm, you'll normally be at high speed, so the relative airflow will be causing the fan to windmill - it's only on bench tests where the high angle of attack of the fans at high rpm draw much energy. It's all marketing misrepresentation by the electric fan manufacturers. If electric fans were any good, premium brands like Jaguar, BMW, Audi, Merc, Roll, Bentley, Ferrari, Lotus and all the others would use them. They don't. If electric fans were efficient, 4wd manufacturers would use them. They don't. If they were reliable, construction and expedition biased vehicles would use them. They don't. @Nuff said. ;)

I get that you hate electric fans. I have three defenders right now; a 3.5 110 found in a field outside of Bradford with a fan that didn't apear to have worked in years, a 200 tdi 130 (defender engine) I picked up in Wales, and a 300 tdi 130 I picked up in Cumbria. ! of three fan clutches worked when in the trucks were being used in the UK. The old 3.5's fan clutch was shot and not spinning the fan @ all when warm. I happened to have a spare 300 fan and fan clutch and it spun right on the early 3.5 pump so thats what is in that truck. The 200 tdi came with no fan of any kind and hadn't had one in quite some time. I have sourced the shroud and fan so when the galvanizer is done and that truck goes back together it will also be engine driven. The 300 is the truck I have the electric on. She's a big girl and 35 inch tires and usually tips the scales in excess of 6500lbs. If I were headed out into the desert or to the plains of Africa yeah I'd want an engine driven fan.

The original poster has a disco 200 tdi engine/ fan and asked for electric fan suggestions. He had already discerned there isn't a "genuine" combination of parts that works for that combo in a defender. Rather than being pragmatic/arguing for the sake of argument, which is the better bit of kit for an application where an engine driven fan is nearly 20 inches away from the radiator and completely ineffective, why not offer a solution ? This thread was asking for recommendations.
 
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gm13

Adventurer
I put in a a new radiator first, the Proline from RN, hard to pull out the copper and brass original and replace with aluminum and plastic but it needed it. No leaks but missing a good percentage of fins. Since there were no Taurus fans to be had in the state I ended up going with a US manufactured Flex-a-lite 116 Trimline which fit well into the new rad. 2200cfm at a modest 11 amps. Manual switch operation. Exchanged the fittings for the oil cooler from old rad to new with a bit of heat on the new to melt whatever adhesive they're installed with. The fan shroud was kerfed an 1/8" on the table saw top and bottom which locked it in via the rad frame edges. The flared edge on the sides of the shroud just fit under the vertical lip of the rad core then a cable tie to cinch up. Worked out well. We'll see how it holds up.

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