Marks Adustable Fan controller installed!

[Fiat88]

Today I put in the Procomp adjustable fan controller Mark sells, gonna test it out tomorrow. I mounted it to the rad fan bracket by drilling a bigger hole through the bracket that came with the kit. I'm running a 14" spal fan just in case anyone wanted to know. Is this area between the rad support a good place or no? For those who put this in, how do you know what temp you set it on because I don't see any line to mark up the degrees with? BTW, whats the small rubber thing that came with the kit for? Thanks.

[So Cal Mark]

I would suggest you put the temp probe into the fins rather than on the outside bracket. The small rubber piece is an insulator in case you strap the probe to the radiator hose

[courtenay]

Mark - when you say "put the probe into the fins", do you mean to actually shove it in between the fins? Or?? Have you got a picture of one installed this way? I haven't installed my rad yet, but plan to do so in the fall.

[Fiat88]

I would suggest you put the temp probe into the fins rather than on the outside bracket. The small rubber piece is an insulator in case you strap the probe to the radiator hose

Wasn't sure as I didn't want to damage anything but will change it tomorrow.

[So Cal Mark]

push it into a gap in the fins between the tubes

[manoa matt]

Not to harp on you or Mark, but why install the kit when you have a stock rad and an existing fan switch?

[Fiat88]

Not to harp on you or Mark, but why install the kit when you have a stock rad and an existing fan switch?

I like the idea of having an adjustable fan switch.

[Fiatmonkey]

I have to agree with Matt on this one. I know these adjustable kits have been around for like 30 years but they are not used on stock cars as they are not as reliable as an internal radiator fan switch. The can be troublesome and flacky is not set perfectly which can cause overheating if the fan does not come one.

BUT, in Marks defense they were the adjustable probe IS meant to be mounted in the fins for optimal reading. Where you have it may not give a good reading and could cause problems.

If you intend to keep this on then you really need to move it.
But if you intend to have a long lasting cooling system just add and normal relay to your fan and allow the internal fan switch to do its job. If your fan switch is dead, well they are pretty cheap....

Monkey to the rescue!

[Fiat88]

I did move it and pushed it through the fins near the top left hose. Gonna see how well it works, its easy enough to go back to the stock setup. I replaced the stock fan switch a year ago.

[So Cal Mark]

I'm a little surprised some of you would bad-mouth a product you haven't used. We've been using these controllers for sometime now and haven't had a single issue. They come with a one-year warranty. Ask any of the vendors how long they will warranty one of the internal switchs. Advantages of the external controller are several; first the turn-on temp is adjustable, if the controller did require replacement there is no need to drain the system and have to re-bleed, the probe is in the hottest spot in the radiator rather than one of the cooler areas.
Have you ever had the threaded bung break out of the tank when trying to remove a switch that was overtightened in an effort to cure seepage?

[Daniel]

a switch that was overtightened in an effort to cure seepage?

I worked on a Fiat that had something like this happen, someone had tightened the dam thing
so tight i started to bend/ stress the area out around the bung trying to remove it .


I like this kit and think its a good deal as well most likely will end up with this up grade on
my car .

[fiat218]

now u fiat guys are ion trouble , u pissed off the boss

[Fiatmonkey]

I'm not trying to piss anyone off, heck if you read my post I do go back and forth a bit. But, the adjustable fan switch have been around for MANY years (seriously decades). They are available at almost ever generic auto parts store in America (O'Reily's, Napa, Autozone, Pepboys, etc). Also, I have used one (many years ago on my Chevy Pick -up) and over the course of time found it too imperfect to use. I certainly can't guess why Auto Manufacturers don't use them, but they don't. I'm just saying if there was a benifit to them, they would most likely use them at this point, as they aren't any more expensive than a regular internal fan switch.

BUT if you can get it dialed in then yes they do work just fine. At the same time if the thermostat has not opened by the time the fan has already kicked on then the fan is not doing anything. The circulation of water is required to make use of the airflow through the fins by the fan.

[So Cal Mark]

the fact is that for decades every AC system used an expansion valve with the same type of capillary tube and they rarely failed. And yes, the radiator has to get hot for the fan to come on, just as it must with the stock switch in the bottom of the radiator. And if you're certain it's so unreliable, wire the stock switch in parallel as a fail-safe system

[manoa matt]

I was simply curious as why one would have two fan switch systems? Belt and suspenders? I thought the preface of "Not to harp on you or Mark" would have precluded me from sounding condescending, guess not.

"Have you ever had the threaded bung break out of the tank when trying to remove a switch that was overtightened in an effort to cure seepage?"

Yes, at least once. The smaller drain plug is even more prone to breaking off. Just clean up the area, carefully heat it up with a propane torch, and solder it back on. Done it many times.