FP 4" Intake Pipe hitting radiator fan

[matt92vr4]

Hi everyone, I tried searching all of the DSM forums but I don't see anyone else having this problem. I tried installing my FP 4" intake pipe today on my car. It was not even close to clearing the rad fan. What's wrong? Do I have some kind of mammoth Frankenstein fan that doesn't belong here? It measures 5 inches deep. I think I just need to get a thinner Mitsu fan from a different car with the same wiring. Any ideas?

 

[89Patches]

Can't fit a 4" intake in a VR4 with a stock rad fan setup.

 

[matt92vr4]

hmm, bummer. Any known OEM fans that will work. I know that the AC fan on my old stealth was much thinner. I wonder if it would be plug and play.

How about the slim fans at Autozone? Are those crap?

 

[GSTwithPSI]

IDK what you budget is like, but I have a Mishimoto slim fan setup that's plug and play for the Galant.

click

 

[89Patches]

I used a rad fan from a 99-05 Hyundai Accent. Wired it like the stock setup. I'll see if I have any pic's for ya.

 

[matt92vr4]

You have all kinds of fans for sale! I like your dual fan with shroud setup. Budget is not an issue, but time is. I'm hoping to drive the car to work on Monday so I'm going to see what I can find locally tomorrow. I'll let you know if I come up empty.

 

[turbowop]

Going from a 3" intake to a 4" is what made me end up with a slimfan years ago. You could probably get something cheap from a parts store to get you by until you get a quality fan.

 

[matt92vr4]

OK I picked up a "slimfan" from Autozone today for $59. It's 12" x 2.75" and pulls 880cfm. We'll see if that enough.

I have a question about the stock direction. Which way does the stock fan on the passenger side push/pull the air. I want to make sure the slimfan goes in the same direction but I have the car torn apart and would like to not put it back together just to get the fan to turn on. Thanks for your help.

 

[marvinmadman]

All fans pull/push air into the engine bay.

 

[EMX5636]

The stock A/C fan is a "pusher" fan and the stock rad fan is a "puller" setup if that's what you are asking.

880cfm might be enough depending on if you have A/C and how hot it is down in FL. My Mishimoto 12" fan (setup as a pusher in front of the condenser) wasn't enough for PA summers and A/C in the car. I had to step up to a SPAL fan that can push 1100cfm of air. Some people have gotten by with less.

 

[matt92vr4]

Thank you for the quick response. It's hot as hell here in the summer. Heck, it was 84 today. I'll plan on having a better option in there come summer. Thank you.

 

[GSTwithPSI]

The fan will move the most air when set up in a puller configuration. I would follow suit if the space between the intake and radiator permit. If not, you may have cooling issues at low and idle speeds.

 

[turbowop]

I've used this thing for a couple of years now: click

So far so good.

 

[GSTwithPSI]

Yours is set up as a puller where the stock puller would normally be, right, Mark?

 

[turbowop]

Yes.

 

[tektic]

My injen 2g knock off hit the DSM fan and rad I have installed in my car. I have more clearance then most with this setup.

I used a 2.5" pipe and 2 45 degree silicone couplers to make my intake.

 

[marvinmadman]

This is my 3.5" intake I made. FP Red and FP manifold with a junkyard fan with big motor.

 

[matt92vr4]

New fan going in. The new 12" fan blade is the same diameter as the stocker, but the shroud is much smaller. Both in width and depth.

Anyways, one more question regarding the wiring. There is a metal/ceramic contraption bolted to the stock fan (pic below). What is this and do I still leave it wired in with the new fan? Thank you.

 

[GSTwithPSI]

You can wire it in with, or without the resistor pack. See this thread: click

Quoting GSTwithPSI:
For the 12v wire on your fan, connect the power wire to the fan directly to the battery.

Then, splice the ground wire of the fan into the blue wire with white tracer located on pin 4 of connector A-29. Everything you need to do so is in the post below. Make sure you use the links provided within. Again, this is the most simple way. There are tons of variables here, especially since I'm not sure what has already been screwed with in your wiring harness. With a properly functioning stock fan system, the way I outlined above is the easiest/best way in absence of the resistor packs. Let me know if you have any other questions.

About the toggle switch, that's not a great idea. You would need to wire in a relay, which is more involved than doing what I outlined above. Bottom line, you can't just wire a switch straight into the fan circuit.

Quoting GSTwithPSI:
The resistor on the cooling fan allows it to operate at 2 speeds. In the stock configuration, the cooling fan uses a low and a high speed relay.

The low speed relay is activated by the thermo sensor located at the bottom of the radiator just below the cooling fan. When the thermo sensor sees 185 degrees, it completes a path to ground for the low speed fan relay and activates it. The low speed relay then supplies the fan motor with a path to ground through the resistor, causing the motor to turn at low speed.

The high speed relay is activated by the engine coolant temperature switch which is located on the water neck. When the switch sees 215 degrees, it completes a path directly to ground, bypassing the resistor. This allows the fan motor to turn at full speed.

The easiest way to test the fan circuit is to jump the terminals that plug into the thermo sensor located at the bottom of the radiator. With the ignition key in the ON position, unplug the connector and jump the terminals together with a wire or something. This will simulate the thermo (fan) switch operating. The fan should kick on. If it doesn't, you probably have a wiring issue.

See these threads:
click

click

Here's the diagram:

 

[Wookalar]

I believe that's a resistor or relay that turns the fan on.

You can at least move it out of the way if you want.