Yes you can hear more fan noise slightly at idle and more when first reviving up after about 15/20 mph no difference
Is it possible to upgrade the A/C?
- Thread starter Bigmac
- Start date
Fans with additional CFM will also have a small negative effect on performance when the clutch is engaged, and a small impact on fuel economy.
The 11-blade explorer fan and HD fan clutch has a definite noticeable effect on acceleration when the clutch is engaged, but unlike a standard fan clutch it disengages in about 10 seconds after you begin moving, and engages in about 10 seconds of being at idle or very low speed.
So the Explorer fan swap massively increases airflow at idle at the cost of a bit of fuel economy at idle, and a noticeable sluggish response for about 10 seconds which goes away very quickly.
I believe the Explorer fan at least doubled and probably tripled the airflow over stock with engaged clutch. Not only does it have more than twice the blades, the blade angles are very steep and are curved for highest performance. It will suck a T-shirt to the grille at idle.
The 11-blade explorer fan and HD fan clutch has a definite noticeable effect on acceleration when the clutch is engaged, but unlike a standard fan clutch it disengages in about 10 seconds after you begin moving, and engages in about 10 seconds of being at idle or very low speed.
So the Explorer fan swap massively increases airflow at idle at the cost of a bit of fuel economy at idle, and a noticeable sluggish response for about 10 seconds which goes away very quickly.
I believe the Explorer fan at least doubled and probably tripled the airflow over stock with engaged clutch. Not only does it have more than twice the blades, the blade angles are very steep and are curved for highest performance. It will suck a T-shirt to the grille at idle.
I wonder how this "upgrade" would affect me here in Arizona. We are out wheeling when it's over 100 degrees and I've got the A/C on, the Setrab cooler for the transmission, and the PSC hydro-assist cooler as well. I've noticed after both those coolers being installed in front of the condenser my engine now runs warmer than it did before which I attribute to not as much air flow to the the radiator.
We went out wheeling the other day when it was hot and this didn't pose an issue, but I'm wondering if this little upgrade might lead to slightly cooler temps and better running A/C in the much hotter weather.
We went out wheeling the other day when it was hot and this didn't pose an issue, but I'm wondering if this little upgrade might lead to slightly cooler temps and better running A/C in the much hotter weather.
It absolutely would help the temperature of all of those. Additional airflow will increase the heat rejection of any heat exchanger, particularly the tube and fin or plate and fin variety.
The air leaving the first exchanger and going past the second will also be cooler while simulaneously having more volume, so any second row exchangers (condenser) and especially third row (radiator) will see significantly improved efficiency.
The fluid leaving any of those exchangers will be significantly cooler. Under-hood temps will also be significantly lowered. It will not over-cool the engine, because the thermostat controls flow. But it will vastly increase the maximum heat rejection rate, and any coolant leaving the radiator and entering the engine will be colder.
You might run a slight risk of over-cooling the transmission or power steering in very cold climates, but a piece of cardboard would instantly solve that. The fan clutch doesn’t engage at low temps anyways, so the CFM increase at cold temperatures isn’t very much.
I would expect you would see the most drastic improvements in very hot temperatures, low speeds, low-mid engine RPMs, and high torque demands, which sounds like the conditions you describe.
Cost for the Explorer fan and HD clutch is about $90-100. Very easy install. You will need a 36 mm wrench or adjustable wrench, maybe a fan clutch holding tool, a 10mm to remove and reinstall the shroud.
The Explorer fan and clutch can be installed and removed with the shroud in place. Not sure about the factory fan.
Very cool! I am going to give it a shot. The temps out here are insane, and while I don’t see any issues with the current setup, I have to imagine more airflow won’t be a bad thing given that I now have two coolers in front of the condenser that weren’t there before.
How big is the Explorer fan in relation to the stock fan? If it's much bigger, that could cause fitment issues with a BL and MML.
Same diameter, about the same offset when combined with the Explorer clutch, and a little bit more clearance to the radiator itself. If your stock fan fits the Explorer fan should fit.
It’s also made of a somewhat flexible but strong plastic, so if you do mess it up somehow it won’t destroy your radiator like the stock fan will.
I have a 1.25” BL and 1” MML myself. There is plenty of clearance around the fan.
Carve
TJ Enthusiast
I wrapped all my cold lines in the engine bay in aluminum foil. No sense absorbing heat from there. Foil will reduce convective and radiative heat gain. Do a couple layers, intentionally a bit loose and crinkly so you have air space. You could add a water tank that sprays a little water on your condenser for some evaporative cooling, but that'd be heavy and wouldn't last long. You might also consider tinting the windows, painting the roof white if you have a hardtop, and adding an insulative headliner.
Edit: you run a soft top. Perhaps you can make a "headliner" with a mylar space blanket loosely attached to the ceiling.
Edit: you run a soft top. Perhaps you can make a "headliner" with a mylar space blanket loosely attached to the ceiling.
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Hotheads makes an insulating liner for the soft top:
https://hotheadheadliners.com/colle...-tj-soft-top-headliner?variant=32094211899458
I’ve been tempted to try one myself.
I installed the Boom Mat headliner on the hardtop and supplelemented it with some melamine foam and headliner fabric on the sides, and stuffed all the hardtop cavities with poly fill. That made a huge difference for heat, sound, and cooling, although the snow doesn’t melt off the hardtop anymore.
I also want to insulate the floor, especially around the transmission tunnel. That is the biggest sources of heat in most TJs. I’ll probably use Luxury Liner Pro (made by Second Skin), which is a product I’ve used successfully in the past
FWIW, a refresh of the cooling system will do wonders. My A/C was working before, but not really cold enough. After replacing the 18 year old system (the compressor, condensor, accumulator/drier, and lines (with orifice tube)) the A/C is now 14° cooler at the register. Money spent, but well spent!
My dad is a pilot and uses one of these. It is actually a true A/C unit so you dont have issues with water like other solutions do
https://www.icybreeze.com/
https://www.icybreeze.com/
Back in 2005 I drove a '91 4x4 3/4ton suburban. I'd installed remote start to get it cooling before I got in, insulated the interior headspace with second skin ceramic coating, double sided insulation and a new custom headliner, but that big beast was still difficult to get cool on 110* days in AZ. I had three small children and they were roasting. I added a smallish electric fan in front of the condenser and put it on a switch to the cab. It made a night and day difference. My AC temps dropped significantly, especially at idle..
In researching more ways to upgrade the AC, I came across this new product:
https://www.oldairproducts.com/product/heater-valve-kit-50-1555
I think a few heater bypass valves have already been posted in this thread but this one is unique in a couple of ways:
1st it comes as an aftermarket retrofit kit. Pre-wired and easy to install.
2nd instead of being just on/off, the bypass is infinitely adjustable. Not really a huge deal for a TJ with a functioning blend door, but it could also be very useful if the blend door starts having issues.
https://www.oldairproducts.com/product/heater-valve-kit-50-1555
I think a few heater bypass valves have already been posted in this thread but this one is unique in a couple of ways:
1st it comes as an aftermarket retrofit kit. Pre-wired and easy to install.
2nd instead of being just on/off, the bypass is infinitely adjustable. Not really a huge deal for a TJ with a functioning blend door, but it could also be very useful if the blend door starts having issues.
I did also browse the entire Denso catalog to see if there was another compressor that would bolt in. It seems the 4.0 has a unique mounting configuration, so no luck there.
I went ahead and did this swap since I’ve recently replaced the pump, radiator and hoses. The fan is a little louder initially or when the passing air gets hot. A different sound overall. I think it flows at least twice the volume engaged and just a bit more when not. A nice looking setup. I did the swap without removing any other parts.
I used four M6 1.0 20mm 10.9 metrics flange bolts but I had to shorten them to about 15mm.
The old clutch uses larger bolts to attach the fan and the hub for centering the fan on the clutch is larger, so no swapping just the fan unless you make some modifications.
Both of the parts I received are made in USA.
I ran the heavy duty clutch and explorer fan for a while. I removed the fan after cracks developed in it. Couldn’t risk it coming apart and destroying my radiator. My fan came from autozone. If you go that route check up on it after a while. It was way louder than my stock fan and I have no doubt it was moving more air as well.
That's one of the reasons I stuck with OEM (aka Motorcraft). I've had a very similar fan in my 2007 F150 since it left the factory, and 160,000 miles and a whole lot of redlining the engine later it looks like new, just a bit dirty.