Cooling a V8 with AC, my solution.....

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Man, you got it going on. I like your creativity, craftsmanship and ability to make things look they way the SHOULD have come new. Excellent threads you link and keep them coming. You should do a detailed ROTW and a series of 'how-to' articles for Toyota Trails.

I wish I could help you more on the cooling dilemma but your engine location has caused you some compromises.
 
dgangle said:
Man, you got it going on. I like your creativity, craftsmanship and ability to make things look they way the SHOULD have come new. Excellent threads you link and keep them coming. You should do a detailed ROTW and a series of 'how-to' articles for Toyota Trails.

I wish I could help you more on the cooling dilemma but your engine location has caused you some compromises.
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Man, Thanks for the kind words. :cheers: I need to do a write up on the rear tire carrier I recently did and the oem rain gutter replacement I did a while back. I agree I am very limited on space with the fan and radiator, but I am hopeful I will get it cooling at idle correctly this weekend. Thanks
 
Ok, guys, I got the flowcooler water pump and 17" rigid fan installed this weekend. While I had it torn apart I extended the fan shroud so the fan is completely inside the shroud. Previously I had set it up with about 1/2 to 3/4 of the fan in the shroud and it did not work properly. With the new fan, shroud extended, and the new water pump, I now have the cooling under control. It will still climb after sitting in traffic on a very hot day ( mid 90s) for 20 minutes or so, but all I have to do is kick it up in neutral and rev it to 2200 rpm and the temp will fall. Its not perfect but at least I have control over it now. I really don't the the water pump did much and attribute the increase in cooling to a better fan and better shroud. After I was happy with that I decided to work on the rear end roar and found out the rear end needs another rebuild....... Grrrrrrrrrr.

https://forum.ih8mud.com/40-55-series-tech/290244-700r4-driveshaft-angle-rear-axle-issues-help.html

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Nice work. How did you quantify the increased airflow by the longer shroud? I have always heard, read and done 1/2 in 1/2 out as being optimal. Jim Sickles will quote SAE study this and lawsuit that to say the fan should be completely outside the shroud.

Glad you've achieved some desirable results. Thinking about the insufficient cooling at idle I have some thoughts.
---Could you overdrive your waterpump (smaller pulley) to increase it's speed?
---Do you have an idle speed solenoid on the carb to increase RPM when AC is powered?
 
dgangle said:
Nice work. How did you quantify the increased airflow by the longer shroud? I have always heard, read and done 1/2 in 1/2 out as being optimal. Jim Sickles will quote SAE study this and lawsuit that to say the fan should be completely outside the shroud.

Glad you've achieved some desirable results. Thinking about the insufficient cooling at idle I have some thoughts.
---Could you overdrive your waterpump (smaller pulley) to increase it's speed?
---Do you have an idle speed solenoid on the carb to increase RPM when AC is powered?
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I haven't thought about over driving the water pump but that may be an option. I hoped that flowing more water with the flowcooler would be sufficient. I will be adding a idle speed solenoid very soon which may help some. The information you cited is why I cut the shroud down last weekend thinking it would improve the airflow. After cutting it down so that is was 1/2 and 1/2 I noticed immediately that the airflow was greatly reduced even though the shroud was sealed better. I added what I removed back and then a little more and the suction of air in front is dramatically better. I mean probably 100% better. I don't have any scientific way to measure this but by holding a piece of paper in front of the bib the difference was astounding. I am in no way disputing what others have said as optimal, but in my situation the fan inside the shroud worked better. :confused:
 
if you are running a Q-jet, I understand the application for the fast idle solenoid is a later 70's impalla, caprice, etc. Let me know how this works if you try it. Good info on the shroud results, BTW.
 
Ok, after trying out the cooling system for a month or so, I was not pleased. It would run too cool on the highway (due to a fixed fan) and overheat while sitting and idling in just minutes it would hit 240. It had to be inadequate airflow, right? I took the shroud back out and trimmed it back down so the fan was half in half out. I also checked the timing, air/fuel mixture, added high volume oil pump, changed plugs, oil, air filter, and cleaned plug wires. It still overheats. Errrrrrr. So, I used a box fan in front of the bib while idling and the temp would stabilize. I picked up the following parts and decided I would have to make it fit somehow, someway.
Taurus fan
Auto zone cheapo thermostat fan controller (I have a delta current control FK-50P unit on order……….for two weeks so far………)
180 fail safe thermostat
40 amp relay
In order for this to fit I had to offset the radiator to the driver’s side and trim out a little of the fan housing to allow the water pump pulley to sit inside of it. I also had to slide the bid forward and trim the top of the mesh screen and weld it to the bib. After all of this it fit, but it is very very tight. Probably too tight for some people, lol. And yes, I don’t like the bib slide out either, but I had to cool this thing down.

So, does it cool it down in traffic, with the ac running? YES! I HAVE FINALLY SOLVED MY COOLING DELIMA! I have not seen the temp rise over 195 yet and that was after 45 minutes sitting and idling, ac on high, in gear with me holding the brake to simulate a traffic jam. I am so happy that I have tamed the overheating after lots and lots of time and money invested. I know some people don’t care for electric fans, but in my case it is what works the best. Here are some pictures of the electric setup. Overlook the fans wiring, as this will be cleaned up when I get the new fan controller installed.....

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Glad to see you have it worked out but I would have never guessed an electric fan would be the fix.

I have followed a lot of these cooling threads and it seems every setup is a little different in what works.

I run the same junk as you(AC,V8,Auto,PS) and have excellent results with a clutch fan in AZ. Go figure

Nice workmanship and attention to detail on your 40. Can you post a picture of the complete cruiser.
 
With nothing blocking the air flow I am suprised you had as much problem as you did. My 40 with the V8 has a winch and bumper blocking the airflow. I installed a 4 row copper rad and it seems much better now. As I wrote, no efan worked for me.

Go get that cruiser dirty.
 
I got the delta control system FK-50P in after 3 weeks. It works very well and was easy to install. I haven't had outside temps over 85 since I got the FK-50P, but water temp hasn't gone over 190 yet after just idling for an hour with the ac on. I am thrilled that I have finally solved my cooling issues. It required a lot of trial and error and a lot of money but it is solved. Yeah! :)
 
cronic said:
I got the delta control system FK-50P in after 3 weeks. It works very well and was easy to install. I haven't had outside temps over 85 since I got the FK-50P, but water temp hasn't gone over 190 yet after just idling for an hour with the ac on. I am thrilled that I have finally solved my cooling issues. It required a lot of trial and error and a lot of money but it is solved. Yeah! :)
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X2 on the Delta controller! That was the answer to my electric fan current worries and cooling problems as well. If you install it right, it just works! (That and a MK VIII fan!!)

Cheers!
 
1Fine40 said:
X2 on the Delta controller! That was the answer to my electric fan current worries and cooling problems as well. If you install it right, it just works! (That and a MK VIII fan!!)

Cheers!
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Same setup on my 40 but running a Taurus fan with the delta controller. Did alot of investigating and searching b4 going with the delta and the taurus fan but it was a simple easy one shot fix. Wired in a overide switch on my dash to manually cut off the fan if necessy. Overall I would list it is one of the best mods for a SBC 40. The taurus fan sure does blow out the engine compartment.
 
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