Swap hydraulic fan for electric? - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

NoCoCamry · 05-10-2009, 04:58 AM

Greetings,

I have a 92 Camry with the V6 and hydraulic fan. I was replacing the radiator when I broke the fan housing trying to get the union bolt off. The local dealer wants $500 for another one. I see places like Autozone have electric fans that seem to be replacement kits. I have some questions about this switch I was hoping someone could help with.

1. How do you cap off the hydraulic side and will it affect the PS pump?

2. Do these kits work reasonably well?

3. Is there a better source for the hydraulic drive if I have to stay with it?

Judging by 3 Camrys I found at the salvage yard with no fan units I'm guessing I'm not the only one who's broken this :-)

Thanks,

Jeff

flyeri · 05-10-2009, 07:41 AM

I would connectthe hyd supply to the hydraulic return rather than just capping it off. I have thought also about using the electric kits on other vehicles but wondered about temp sensors and swithching.

***Eye8Pussies*** · 05-10-2009, 09:53 AM

^ what he said is exactly how to do it

you can't just cap off the pressurized p/s supply to the fan. you'll have to cut the banjo bolt off, get some high pressure fittings along with proper high pressure clamps and then get some high pressure hose and re-route the fluid to the re turn supply (which is the one down where the front of the subframe is under the a/c compressor area and clamp that properly as well

then disconnect the signal wire from the p/s pump that the ecu uses to turn up the pressure when the fan needs to be turned on

to the best of my knowledge, this is the only way to rid yourself of the hydraulic fan system, as the 95+ p/s pumps that do not have the hydraulic fan system do not line up on our blocks to the crank

NoCoCamry · 05-10-2009, 01:56 PM

Thanks for the replies. I had thought about re-routing the high pressure back to the low pressure but didn't think the low pressure side could handle the high pressure. Then I'd have to figure out how much pressure it could handle and try and find a pressure reducer.

There is a used parts place in town that isn't open on the weekend. I think I'll wait until I get hold of them tomorrow to see if they have a drive and how much it is.

Thanks again,

Jeff

***Eye8Pussies*** · 05-10-2009, 10:18 PM

^ yeah, I had problems with that at first before I got some good proper hose clamps. I was getting foaming coming from my connections from the high pressure forced into the lower pressure side, so I was thinking about a pressure reducer or something similar. But once I got some proper fittings and clamps, it all held together just fine

whip_cracker · 05-11-2009, 08:38 PM

This sounds interesting... I've been wanting to do the exact same thing on my 3VZ.

Question: The replacement fans from say, a 5SFE would fit? The twin electrical fan setup? Or would they not be powerful/efficient enough/not suitable for the V6?

The main reason I wanna swap this is because I might have a problem with the fan not coming on when it should... is there a thermostat that I should be looking at, or the signal wire to the ECU might be faulty? It works normally, but I had it happen a couple of times where the car would overheat and the only way to cool it down was when I was driving... hahahaha!

Thanks lads.

rusty9 · 05-11-2009, 09:27 PM

im looking at the wiring diagrams and it seems like the 5sfe cooling fans should work if you put a relay between the SOL+ and SOL- wires from the 3vz's cooling ECU to turn them on and off.

wtftoy · 05-11-2009, 10:33 PM

I remember Tony the Tiger mentioned that the stock hydraulic fans are better then any other electric fans available for the camry. I'm not 100% sure but you can pm him and ask.

whip_cracker · 05-11-2009, 11:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wtftoy

I remember Tony the Tiger mentioned that the stock hydraulic fans are better then any other electric fans available for the camry. I'm not 100% sure but you can pm him and ask.

Really? Awesome... too bad mine stops "going faster" when it should do. You can normally catch the fan when it's spinning normally. It's when it hits the optimal temp and then kicks in... sometimes it just won't

So... oil driven fans are better? kewl..

wtftoy · 05-11-2009, 11:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by whip_cracker

Really? Awesome... too bad mine stops "going faster" when it should do. You can normally catch the fan when it's spinning normally. It's when it hits the optimal temp and then kicks in... sometimes it just won't

So... oil driven fans are better? kewl..

PM tony to be 100% positive. This was something I read a few months ago so....

***Eye8Pussies*** · 05-12-2009, 01:33 AM

tony was saying that the hydraulic fan is great in that it is more than enough for even his set up, thus, he converted it back instead of getting and using extremely expensive racing fans

but for cars stock or close to stock (or even my car which isn't even close to stock), an electric fan is a better option in a number of ways- it gives you much more room in the engine bay, it saves a good bit of weight, and there are also less things that can go wrong on the car. I personally like the fact that I now have a lot less things running around in my engine bay.

wtftoy · 05-12-2009, 02:47 AM

^Thanks for clearing that up.

NoCoCamry · 05-12-2009, 03:10 PM

I was able to get a complete fan unit/shroud from a salvage place in town. They only charged me $60. That is so much better than the $500 from the dealer.

I'm getting a little leaking from the high pressure fitting. It had the brass ring under the pressure hose but not under the bolt head. I believe I've got it torqued correctly (47 lbs?). I'm a little afraid of over tightening it and breaking it again :-) The original didn't appear to have any thread sealant or tape. Should I apply some here or just try and tighten it down a little more?

Thanks,

Jeff