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Contour fan install

Boom

Boom

Well-Known Member
Donator
Figured I'd write up how I managed to mount a Ford Contour fan onto a 24" radiator. The fan came out of a 98 Ford Contour, it is the dual fan unit. It was a pain to remove, be prepared to spend some time cleanly pulling it out, or you can buy a Dorman replacement.

The fan comes with 4 tabs that need to be cut off so the radiator has flat edges on the sides. I picked up some aluminum angle from Home depot and some nuts/bolts.

I trimmed the aluminum angle down to fit the edges of my radiator. I then decided it would be best to mount the lip on the inside of the fan shroud, to help with the overall width and to have a built in lip to keep the shroud from rubbing against the radiator fins. This required grinding the ends down so that the shroud sits all the way down on the metal. I then riveted the angle to the side of the fan shroud. The sides are not symmetrical so it requires a bit of patience and test fitting to get it right.

20180330_130013 by Brett, on Flickr

20180330_125956 by Brett, on Flickr

Then just set the unit on the radiator and mark where the mounting holes are to be drilled. I used 1/4" nuts/bolts with a flanged lip. Unfortunately the nuts are a bit too big to fit with my set-up so I am going to replace them with plain nuts.

20180330_130223 by Brett, on Flickr

20180330_130242 by Brett, on Flickr

20180330_130247 by Brett, on Flickr

This is a super easy mod that requires only simple tools and is easy on the wallet.

Total cost:

$258 Radiator shipped from ECP Radiator
$50 Fan, pulled from local pick n pull Dorman replacement can be had for about $120
$20 Aluminum and nuts/bolts/rivets from Home Depot

Tools required for mounting

Rivet gun
Drill ( I used both a press and handheld since I had it available)
Grinder (to shape aluminum)
Hand saw (to trim original tabs off shroud)
wrenches (to tighten nuts/bolts)


I'll update this with what is need to actually install this assembly in my 68 fastback and what to do with the wiring.
 
Thanks guys! I am trying to figure out the best type and place for relays. I will be using my Holley HP ECU to turn the fans on and off. Just need to see which relays are best to use and where to mount them.
 
Looks good. Hopefully that old fan assembly cleans up nicely. Hate to see that old dirty unit against a new radiator and gorgeous accessory drive
 
Yeah, I didn't realize how dirty it was until I took that pic. I plan to wipe it down this weekend. Have to wait until Tuesday for my mounts to come in.

Here's a pic showing how little clearance I have.

20180331_120933 by Brett, on Flickr
 
Looks really nice, you did a good job on it. Nice write-up.

_____________________________

Never argue with a Moron. They'll just drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.

If the women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy.
 
Looks great. It’s tight but that’s pretty typical of the room most times with our cars. I’ve got about the same in mine. Can fit a finger between fan and pulley nose.
You’ve got a very effective and reliable setup for very little investment. Well done!
Verify fan amp draw and get some higher rated solid state relays to control it. I presume it has hi/low operation?
 
The Contour used a resistor to give the set-up a low speed mode. Seems most people bypass that, I'd like to find a way to use it.
 
Should be easy. If you install a three position or similar selector switch just have one line feed through the resistor to the fan and another straight to the fan without the resistor. All it does is drop the voltage to turn the fans slower. As it is the stock resistor no worries about it and amperage. That's the basics. Find a schematic on the stock set-up and share and I can see it in a more detailed level to see how to exactly do the wiring.
 
I found this on another forum:

attachment.php


My set-up has 2 trigger wires for the fans. So I can wire one for low speed and one for high speed, right?
 
Short answer is yes. You just need to decide how you want things to operate. The example you show uses a temp sensor to trigger the fan low speed on when the coolant hits a set temperature and a relay to fire the high speed operation. You could either use the switch alone to toggle high speed on and off or install a second temp sensor at a higher range to signal it on. I would suggest using the EFI control to handle the LOW and run the HI on a dedicated circuit with a second sensor. That way if its needed it works automatically and doesn't rely on you to notice the excessive heat and turn it on.
 
Could I not use the 2 trigger wires from the ECU, instead of adding a separate sensor? One for high and one for low? I'd need relays individually capable of handling both fans amp draw for both high and low operation.

Here's what I have to work with on the ECU:

Holley fan settings by Brett, on Flickr
 
Sorry, I didn't understand you had those outputs from the Holley controller. It looks like they have it set-up for just this purpose so, yes, it can control it without an additional sensor. Just make sure to fuse the lines and use high enough capable wiring and relays.
 
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