To those of you who have added an electric cooling fan to your series 1 e type can you offer your thoughts on which brand is the best choice , best fit and best performer? I see a number of different kits out there on the market.
Hello Mark - I installed the Cool-cat fan which bolts to the original mounting location which I really liked. Car is not running yet, so I can’t comment on the performance, but several on this forum have had very good success with that cool-cat fan.
Nick
Plus one for the Cool Cat. Bolts up where the old one goes and fits within the standard fan cowl. Quiet and moves much more air than the mower blade. Mine is a 3.8 and it never overheats.
I’m very close to the Boeing Blade (R), as it was my claim to this (some say ridiculous) factoid that became my initiation within the hardened souls on this (otherwise) incredible forum, lol.
I mean, I could’ve exited in utter humility. But, no, I took my lumps and accepted permanent enshrinement in Boeing Blade lore, for the better. (Uh, I think anyway.)
It’s mine. I own. It. Has everyone really forgotten? Please, people, show your reverence.
Update and a question …I ordered my Cool Cat fan and it arrived promptly, I then removed the original fan motor with its fan blade and I’ve mounted the new CC fan motor loosely in place and managed to slide the new fan blade on the shaft up from underneath the car.
I’m now at a dead stop because it it seems impossible to get my arm and a ratchet in the extremely limited space available to tighten the nut that secures the blade to the motor shaft. From any angle I work at it from it’s just not doable from what I see and I’m guessing my next best opportunity to secure the blade properly is going to be for me to remove the header tank from the car and try and get in from above so I have the room to get a ratchet on the fan nut so I can tighten it properly. The instructions from cool cat did not mention anything about dissembling the car to install the fan kit.
Can any of you that have installed the cool cat fan yourself on a fully assembled series 1 4.2 give me any tips on if the header tank and possibly the radiator as well need to be removed to do this installation properly?
Hi Mark, just installed one on my '65 4.2. Tight but I used a 7/16 wrench and probably 2 fingers! Can’t remember for sure but may have loosened the clamps around the motor also and slid it back, tightened the fan and then slid everything back into place and retightened.
With the radiator in place, it’s easiest from below, with the band clamp undone so that the motor can tilt. Sorry about the tight fit, it’s the most blade that can be crammed into the original shroud.
Many Thanks to everyone for responding I’m going to follow your tips and info and will keep trying to get this done, my hands must be bigger than normal because it’s a struggle to get in there with tools but I’m going to hang in there and get this done.
I’ve followed your instructions and have undone the band clamp and tilted the fan motor and have been able to tighten the nut securing the fan to the fan motor shaft, I’m about 4 mm from the pin in the motor shaft seating into its slot in the brass fitting in the fan.
But I’ve reached the point that as I continue to tighten the nut on the fan motor shaft the shaft now just spins and I’m unable to advance and tighten the nut the last few mm to seat the pin in the notch in the brass fitting in the fan so I can be done with this. I’ve tried clamping small vice grips on the fan shaft to stop it from spinning as I tighten the nut the final distance but no luck and I’m afraid to keep tightening vice grips on that fan shaft for fear of damaging it or the fan or the car.
Is their some way to lock the fan motor shaft from turning so I can get this finished? or are vice grips my only option to stop the shaft from spinning at this point?
Thanks Michael, that solved the problem along with an extra long 13mm ratchet wrench that helped too. It’s working great now, the Cool Cat fan is a great product and the perfect solution to keep the engine cool.
Hi Mark,
I just recently installed a Cool Cat fan in my '65 roadster. I was able to install the fan blade from underneath. I was able to borrow a long, thin ratchet that allowed me to tighten the nut from underneath. The garage that I borrowed if from told me it was a Snap-On tensioner ratchet.
Be careful to position the motor so that the clamp does not sit over the commutators near the rear of the motor. I made that mistake and shorted out the motor.
Also, you should add a relay to power the fan, so that the otter switch does not have to handle the current for the motor. (Per Michael’s suggestion)