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Custom Fabrication DepartmentThis is the section to discuss any and all custom work that you've done or had made that may not be available on the retail market.
Bought this 2004 Lariat in BC, Canada last trip home for Christmas and drove it back to Mexico. One of the mods I wanted to perform is an electric fan conversion, both for increased mileage and better a/c performance in city traffic. I ordered all the parts I figured I need from Amazon, and picked it all up in Tucson on my next trip up. Back in Mexico I spent more money on gasoline trying to find aluminum extrusions for the new brackets and finally gave up. I found a paint covered fibreglass ladder at a junk store and realized I could fabricate brackets from the larger stiles, and so 400 pesos later I'm in business. Please don't laugh, because in Mexico it is desperation that is the mother of invention.
(The pictures aren't in order, I'm a newby posting here) efan built for a 2010 F150 Theromostat housing with 210-195 degree temperature switch installed One relay is for the a/c and the other is for the dash fan switch. there are two additional relays at the fans with 10 gauge feeds and 30 amp breakers. Dash efan auxiliary switch. Excuse the scratches from careless cutting. I'll need to touch that up.
The above two pics show my thermostat housing mod and switch installation.
The first job was to cut off all existing side brackets to a clean flat surface. I next laid out the pieces from what I cut out of the ladder (don't laugh) after sanding off several pounds of (lead??) paint. With the efan hanging in position on the radiator (tabs all removed), I was able to trial fit the new mounting brackets. I first did the drivers side and match drilled a couple holes with the efan and drivers bracket bolted in position, and then removed it and bolted that racket on before aligning and match drilling the passenger side. Didn't want something to shift while drilling and creating a misalignment. The brackets I built are of a flexible fibreglass and if an aluminum (2"x 1"x 1/4") angle was used (prefered) you would need to fabricate the brackets in 2 pieces each. I needed to glue a doubler (front side) from the same ladder pieces to thicken the tab part of the bracket, because the fibreglass was too thin for the radiator slot. The fan assembly fits perfectly and operates great with a 210-195 degree coolant switch. I just ordered a switch with a 1/8" npt threaded and drilled and tapped the stock thermostat housing. Just be sure to locate the switch where the material is thick enough and there is clearance for the mounting bolts. I should have cleaned and painted it while it was out, but this is Mexico.
I will included a link to my Google drive where all the pics including high res are located. You will find a dash switch installation (excuse scratches) and the remains of the ladder by the trash. I heard a couple Mex salvaging the remains a few minutes later and probably wondering what kind of a stupid gringo cuts the two legs off a ladder. Hope this helps someone wanting to do an efan conversion on a 2004-2008 F150..
Link to file folder: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1N0...b9fz88FOu2wEf0
I have tested it around town here in Mexico and the switch works perfectly keeping the temperature gauge centered. I need to drive down to San Carlos and back this weekend which is a 12 hour drive and so I will find out while crossing the desert if all goes well. I have the factory fan and shroud in the back just in case I need to change it all back rather than to be stranded.
Drivers side bracket installed and painted. Passenger side bracket installed and painted.
The big ugly hole is left over from the ladder sacrifice. An aluminum extrusion would have made a cleaner better bracket.
Since my last posting regarding this mod, I have also added a pressure switch and pitot tube. This mod I have adjusted to cutoff the a/c electric fan relay at approx.45mph. I left Rocky Point, Sonora, Mexico on April 8th and drove 1700 miles to Kelowna BC Canada. The truck ran flawlessly and averaged between 16 to 20 mpg depending on terrain. I drove pretty consistently at 70mph with at least a 1500 lb payload (possession, me, etc). The best mileage was obviously was Arizona, and I hit winter snow conditions in northern Nevada.
The mileage checks were done with a calculator, but were very close to the on-board message center.
It's now June and I'm back in Canada, and the efan conversion and electrical has been working perfectly. The drive from Mexico to Canada was flawless and pulling a 24 foot 5th wheel RV never overheated the system, My pitot cutout seems to kick in at 45 mph which is close enough and it only effects the a/c fan relay. I may be seeing 1 mpg fuel savings, but I doubt any more than that.
Since my last posting regarding this mod, I have also added a pressure switch and pitot tube. This mod I have adjusted to cutoff the a/c electric fan relay at approx.45mph. I left Rocky Point, Sonora, Mexico on April 8th and drove 1700 miles to Kelowna BC Canada. The truck ran flawlessly and averaged between 16 to 20 mpg depending on terrain. I drove pretty consistently at 70mph with at least a 1500 lb payload (possession, me, etc). The best mileage was obviously was Arizona, and I hit winter snow conditions in northern Nevada.
The mileage checks were done with a calculator, but were very close to the on-board message center.
Hi,
This looks great.
What pitot did you use and where did you mount it?
Hi,
This looks great.
What pitot did you use and where did you mount it?
Thanks
I used a furnace pressure switch that I bought on Amazon. I can look up the part number and it was cheap. For the actual pitot tube I used a length of brake line, connected with a rubber hose to the pressure switch mounted on the fender wall next to my relays. The switch is adjustable and I just adjusted it until it cut out at 45mph (approx.). The pitot tube I mounted behind the grill so it was pointed out through a grill opening.
I used a furnace pressure switch that I bought on Amazon. I can look up the part number and it was cheap. For the actual pitot tube I used a length of brake line, connected with a rubber hose to the pressure switch mounted on the fender wall next to my relays. The switch is adjustable and I just adjusted it until it cut out at 45mph (approx.). The pitot tube I mounted behind the grill so it was pointed out through a grill opening.
Great, Thanks. I believe I can work something from that.
2004 Efan conversion a la Mexico
