Spal dual 11" fan installation with pictures!

You would be well advised to call Caspers as there are 2 different harness' depending on weather you are using the 11 spal duals or the 12in Spals (they have different fan connectors). Also, you may want to consider using the 12in Spals instead of 11in as they cover more of the radiator area.
What would be nice is if one of our vendors designed a shroud that fully encased the entire radiator that the Spals could bolt to, this would take advatage of all that cfm the Spals are pulling through.
Mike
 
I bought the dual 12"s which are already mounted in a shroud. I picked up my new fbody radiator yesterday and laid the fans down on top of the radiator and it fits so perfectly, its like they are meant for each other. the fan fits perfectly top to bottom and leaves only an inch of open fins on one side. I have attached a picture of it. I ordered the spal harness through caspers. they do not have a harness for the 12"s but i called and had them put the correct connectors on it and they did it at no extra charge. the connectors are GM Delphi/Packard 2 way metripack 280 sealed connectors. i am planning on trying to mount the fans directly to the radiator and sealing them with some foam weatherstripping for maximum cooling efficiency. i will post more photos as i progress with the mounting and install.
 

Attachments

  • fan-rad.jpg
    fan-rad.jpg
    37 KB · Views: 383
Thanks for the writeup. Of the 2 sets of Ramcharger fans I have, one of them smoked - I might need to update to Spall.
 
That is the harness I just received, for the 12in with sealed connectors, unfortunately I have the 11in fans so I'll sit on jack stands until Casper sends the correct ones. So I believe a call is necessary so John sends the correct harness for your application.
Mike
 
just had this same set up installed on my car. I have the exact intercooler also with a trans cooler sandwiched in between. So far in this florida heat with the a/c on ive temps in upwards of 195 at around 65mph, on the streets it stays around 185 depending if i get on it or not. Over all im very happy with the performance of the fans.

One thing that does concern me though is since my TT chip is set to have the fans come on at 166 with this heat theyre always on, will this cause any harm to the fans? Was thinking of maybe sending the chip back and have it to where the fans come on at 180 or so.
 
Shouldn't hurt anything having the run all the time. Imagine you are running the AC anyway and they will be on all the time if you are. I had TT burn my chip to have the fans come on at 176 so they do cycle durning moderate weather. Also have a manual over ride switch.
 
hello people; I was thinking of doing what TR Customs did with the TT chip but was recommended not to by TT. And that would be to keep things cool to fight any knock.
TR how long have you've been using the chip that way and did it effect your cooling?
IBBY
 
About a year now. No issues, if it is really hot out I will just hit the manual over ride switch and it maintains cool temps. Find it is easier to keep temps in line if I hit the manual switch before it gets too hot. Once everything heat soaks it takes longer for it to cool things down.
 
When I run the A/C in town with dual Spal fans, radio and headlights sometimes my volts drop below 12 and the car shuts off. I'm thinking of putting in a manual switch on one fan so I can shut it off in traffic. If it gets hot I'll just switch on the second fan if necessary. Those fans really suck a lot of juice. Alternator and battery are fairly new. Anyone else experience this?
 
Only issue I had was when the fans first come on it would seem to drag down the idle for a fraction of a second. This is with the Casper harness that delays the start of the 2nd fan by 5 seconds. Are you still running thru the stock harness?? I could see that happen if both fans start at the same time.

I tried using one of those 240a cure all alternators sold on the "other" board and didn't really see much of a difference.
 
TR Custom Parts said:
Only issue I had was when the fans first come on it would seem to drag down the idle for a fraction of a second. This is with the Casper harness that delays the start of the 2nd fan by 5 seconds. Are you still running thru the stock harness?? I could see that happen if both fans start at the same time.

I tried using one of those 240a cure all alternators sold on the "other" board and didn't really see much of a difference.
Click to expand...

Yes, using stock harness. I bought Casper's fan delay relay so they don't kick on at same time but haven't installed it yet. No problems that I can tell when they kick on together. Of course with a switch I can determine when I want the second fan to start.
 
In any case I'd bump up to at least a 160 amp alt, and an Optima yellow top battery.
 
Hey Mark those aluminum brackets that are on the Spal fans you have in the pictures, do they come with the spal fans or are they something you fabricated yourself? Thanks
 
I wired in a manual switch so I can shut off one fan at idle. Didn't help much. Do you think I should contact the chip programmer and have him bump up the idle rpms's when the fan is on?
 
Sounds like you are fighting an amperage problem. I upgraded to a 240 amp mini alternator from Powerbastards and it stays 14.1 volts no matter what I throw at it, rpms stay solid all the time.
 
LS954 said:
just had this same set up installed on my car. I have the exact intercooler also with a trans cooler sandwiched in between. So far in this florida heat with the a/c on ive temps in upwards of 195 at around 65mph, on the streets it stays around 185 depending if i get on it or not. Over all im very happy with the performance of the fans.

One thing that does concern me though is since my TT chip is set to have the fans come on at 166 with this heat theyre always on, will this cause any harm to the fans? Was thinking of maybe sending the chip back and have it to where the fans come on at 180 or so.
Click to expand...

Not to dis TT or anything, awesome chip and I would still be using it if I didnt have the GEN2. If you get an EXT chipfrom Fullt throttle you can change the Fan cut on in the chip at your leisure.

"Fan Race Mode: In normal mode, the engine cooling fan is programmed to turn on at 175 degrees, and off at 170 degrees. When Fan Race Mode is enabled, the cooling fan turns on at 165 degrees, and off at 150. This essentially leaves the fan turned on all the time after initial warm-up"

Just another option
 
Was wondering why you want with the 11" spals vs the 12" spals? Is there a clearance issue or what, I would have thought the 12"s would give you better coverage or are they about the same as the 11"s.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

B
Radiator Search
Replies
3
Views
147
blackazz
blackazz
B
Trans cooler lines to radiator question
Replies
2
Views
236
1KWIKSIX
1KWIKSIX
J
spal fans and shroud
Replies
4
Views
276
jlat
J
B
WG Actuator Help
Replies
9
Views
221
1986 Buick GX1
1986 Buick GX1
B
Heater valve hose positions?
Replies
10
Views
318
jlat
J
Top