Fan Clutch v Electric Fan

04/03/2017 02:00AM

Belt driven fan clutches have been used as standard equipment on many vehicles for decades. However, the automotive clutch market is diminishing as other more efficient options are hitting the market and being demanded by consumers. Fan Clutches are ‘fluid’ coupling devices that provide air flow through the radiator by using the water pump shaft to power the fan blade. When the pump is cool or at normal operating temperature, the fan clutch will partially disengage. However, due to only partially disengaging they will always be spinning at about 30% of the water pump speed at all times. When compared to an electric fan, fan clutches are quite inefficient.

A Davies Craig Thermatic Fan is light, releases parasitic power from the vehicles engine and is an economical replacement for original equipment. The benefits of a Thermatic Fan lay in its ability to provide constant air flow, improved fuel economy, better air-conditioning performance, cooler engine running and increased engine power. Engine power and fuel efficiency can be improved to the tune of around 5-10%.

A Davies Craig Thermatic Fan features straight, fully reversible blades to enable mounting on either side of the heat exchanger, ensuring suitability for both pusher (upstream) and puller (downstream) applications. Davies Craig Thermatic fans operate totally independently and are controlled by a Thermatic Switch which can be adjusted to engage at your engine’s thermostat opening temperature for maximum cooling effect.

Follow these simple steps to convert your current setup to a Thermatic® Electric Fan

  • Measure your radiator core area, width and height.  Also, check to ensure there is enough depth (distance between the front point of your engine block and rear of the radiator)
  • Check these dimensions against the appropriate Davies Craig Thermatic® Fan listed in the catalogue or on our website daviescraig.com.au
  • Choose the largest diameter fan that you are able to fit to the core of your vehicle’s radiator. In general, one large fan will have stronger airflow than two smaller units
  • Fans can be mounted off-set from the radiator centre. An electric fan will be more effective when mounted as close to the hot water inlet (top radiator hose) as possible
  • All Davies Craig Thermatic® Fans are reversible which means they can be mounted upstream (in front of the radiator) or downstream (behind the radiator)
  • Examine the Thermatic® Fan specifications and examine the airflow (CFM) and maximum current draw. The higher the current rating the more powerful the fan. A more powerful fan can draw air through multi row radiators and air conditioning cores.  The high flow, lower current fans function well on single core radiators

Your engine needs air just as much as you or I, so don’t settle for any less than the best! Davies Craig are an Australian owned and operated company at the forefront of automotive cooling technology.