I'm thinking of going electric...

As I was putting back together everything taken apart and replaced as part of the lower wishbone bushing replacement, I happened to just spin the yellow engine cooling fan. Ya know, just for the hell of it. Didn't spin easily and sounded like the bearings were scraping. After some initial investigation, it appears the fan is scraping the housing and starting to fall apart. The clutch didn't look like it rotated correctly either, but outside the car it spins and looks fine.

I think I want to go the electric fan route as I live in Austin, TX with a ton of slow traffic and 100F+ temps for days straight before the wife and I can hit the good roads...

I'm looking at the Derale shrouded dual fan with pwm - 28 1/4" x 17" x 4" (part # 66838).

Any thoughts? Alternatives? Recommendations?

Here's pics of the fan...


1989 Jaguar XJS Convertible - Engine fan, yellow, notorious

1989 Jaguar XJS Convertible - Engine fan, yellow, out of the car and cleaned up a bit with cracks where the plastic seals are coming apart

 

Oh my god remove that yellow death wheel NOW! That is a violent accident waiting to happen I wouldn't drive until fan is replaced. Even if you go elec later that cracked fan needs to come off immediately.

Scraping the housing can be a sign of worn engine mounts, etc to but the shroud I believe sits on pegs with rubber which can disintegrate aswell, or maybe im thinking of the rad either way have a look at your mounting points and engine mounts just to be sure.

A proper cooling sys should be fine even in blazing heat, but getting there isn't always easy. Your fan should barely spin by hand after a hot run you can test the clutch this way, its supposed to tighten up the hotter it gets.

I believe most guys recommend SPAL fans and there are/were drop in kits. I never bothered so I can't comment on fan installation.

 

I took a look at that fan, should be fine I would have thought, have you checked that it fits round the rad and into the space available from a depth point of view?
Check what amps it draws, as this is the best indicator of the fan power. Anything less than 30 amps between the two will not cool the system. Also ensure that your alternator is a 115 amp one, if not change it.
edit: I have just looked up the fan specs and they draw, at full chat, 24 amps each, so the fans will do the job easily. At tickover, even with a 115 amp alternator, the battery will discharge pretty fast at a 50 amp draw, so i would also fit an extra air solenoid, like the one that comes on with the aircon, to boost engine revs when the fans are on. About 1,000 rpm should mean the battery will keep up just about, but in stopped traffic, keep the box in neutral, not drive..

 

Pirk,

If the fan was touching the top of the shroud, that's often a sign of worn gearbox mount rather than engine mount, particularly if it is worse when you blip the throttle or pull away from rest and the powertrain pivots around the engine mount without being adequately damped by the rear gearbox mount.

Good luck

Paul