Do grille inserts affect airflow through the condenser and radiator?

Yeah I get it and I take things from the internet with a grain of salt and as far as the simple no ... if I would have gotten an insert and it would have started overheating ... I would naturally assumed it was the insert causing the issue as it would be the only thing that had changed and removed it to see if it did indeed cause the issue... and smart ass comments are acceptable as I have given several myself
 
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jjvw said:
Since we are revelling in tediousness, can someone work out the decrease in life expectancy of the fan clutch as air flow through the radiator is reduced?
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Does the fan clutch wear more when it is cool and slipping more or hot and slipping less? I guess you'd have to know that answer to continue the tediousness.

It doesn't reduce flow through the radiator, that's the whole point. Fan spins faster and CFM is the same, maybe a little higher to offset the extra power required. It seems after pages of discussion the basics are still a lost cause, I guess that's part of the fun.
 
pagrey said:
Does the fan clutch wear more when it is cool and slipping more or hot and slipping less? I guess you'd have to know that answer to continue the tediousness.

It doesn't reduce flow through the radiator, that's the whole point. Fan spins faster and CFM is the same, maybe a little higher to offset the extra power required. It seems after pages of discussion the basics are still a lost cause, I guess that's part of the fun.
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Thinking more about it, you are right that a hot fan clutch that is engaged is slipping less. It's a fluid coupler similar to a torque converter. I don't really understand what fails on a fan clutch, if the fluid viscosity breaks down or if the seals wear out, etc.

The fan and clutch do play a role in how much water flows through the radiator by indirectly influencing the thermostat. There I wonder if a radiator lives longer with more or less fluid cycling through it. Maybe the life span of a radiator is more influenced by the number of heat expansion cycles it experiences. That would explain why mine was developing cracks in the tanks and eventually split.

All I know for sure is that one change to the cooling system will have some effect on every other part.

The fan clutch and the thermostat are the only two components that actively and continually adjust to the changing water temperature in an effort to keep the temperature balanced within a range.

If we mess with things enough, we can easily shift that range outside of where the factory wanted it to be. I've done it and had to make other changes to shift the range back closer to where it ought to be.
 
jjvw said:
If we mess with things enough, we can easily shift that range outside of where the factory wanted it to be. I've done it and had to make other changes to shift the range back closer to where it ought to be.
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I've done it too, as you well know...and I still want to know where the "mess with things enough" points actually lie.
 
Sundowner said:
I've done it too, as you well know...and I still want to know where the "mess with things enough" points actually lie.
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My recipe for a definitively over-cooled engine is an insulated cowl intake with hood louvers. I'll define over-cooled as routinely dipping below 190° on a long slow hot day, according to the ODBII. A 205° thermostat brought the low end up into the high 190s, low 200s. The last couple years, mine very rarely shows hotter than 210°. 205-ish is typical.
 
jjvw said:
My recipe for a definitively over-cooled engine is an insulated cowl intake with hood louvers. I'll define over-cooled as routinely dipping below 190° on a long slow hot day, according to the ODBII. A 205° thermostat brought the low end up into the high 190s, low 200s. The last couple years, mine very rarely shows hotter than 210°. 205-ish is typical.
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Just for funsies: what did you use for insulation?
 
Sundowner said:
That's a decent amount.

Apologies for the derail; feel free to continue with the tedium.
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I should mention that I didn't notice the over cooling until the hood louvers went in a few years later. One or the other might not amount to much, but the two things together add up to some amount of significance.

As far as the decreased intake temps are concerned, I don't believe they result in anything except a cooler engine bay and eventually an out of balance cooling system.
 
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jjvw said:
I should mention that I didn't notice the over cooling until the hood louvers went in a few years later. One or the other might not amount to much, but the two things together add up.
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Makes sense when you think about it; the only thing the hood louver does is affect the temperature around the engine, so if you lower that temperature and then insulate the intake conduit that pipes through that area, you're stacking bonuses.
 
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