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MG TD TF 1500 - 7 blade fan advice needed

I'm finding the TD heating up quite a bit on any long climbs etc and the weather here spikes to well over 40 C in the summer months so after reading the tech piece on O'Conner Classics I thought I'd change the fan over to the 7 blade, plastic unit from the MGB. Before I begin any comments? things to watch our for? warnings?? Thank you in advance. ..... Chris
Chris Malcolm

Chris,

I have found the 7 blade fan works very well. Do be careful when tightening the bolts. They are prone to snapping quite easily.

Tom
Tom Balutis

HI:
I second Tom comments, I have a seven blade in my car and it has been a great help in keeping the car cooler in Puerto Rico hot and humid weather.

Stuart
Stuart J. Ramos

Do you leave out the big spacer on the stock system, or just bolt the 7 blade on?
gblawson(gordon)

Gordon, as I remember, you leave the big spacer in order to have the fan close to the radiator for efficiency. The MGB fan does have a bigger hub and larger holes for the bolts. You use washers under the bolt heads to cover the larger holes; and to fit down into the recess and center the MGB fan.

Dallas
D C Congleton

Hi Chris,

Good luck with the new blade but I hope you've first advanced your static ignition 4-5degrees! Around 4mm on crankshaft pulley is a good starting point since timing at tdc is a major cause of overheating - see Archives.

Cheers, John.
J C Mitchell

Chris, if you don't see high temps while idling or normal driving then the new fan will not help. My TF experienced High temp readings at high speed cruising and mountain climbs. I tried the water wetter treatment and adjusted timing to no avail. I just recently had a new 3 row core put in and have added a performance mod to the engine which puts even more of a strain on the cooling system and the temp never gets above 80 c with outside temp at 95 f. If it's heating up while moving then the fan is not going to move any more air than you are already doing. If it's heating up to much at slow speeds or idle then the fan should be of some help.

LaVerne
LED DOWNEY

Thank you everybody for your thoughts. I think I'll give it a try as it doesn't sound like I'll do any damage. John - point taken - I'll give the timing some investigation.... LaVerne, I have an idea you might be right here but it is difficult to know as there is no traffic here to speak of - so no slow speed or sitting in traffic heating problems. Where I do notice the biggest change is (please, no laughing here!) is we have a constant northernly wind blowing so driving south (with the wind) I experience significantly higher temperatures, coming back into the wind the temp drops right back down. This is on a coast road so there is no significant change in elevation. My speed tend to be on the slow side (3500 rpm) so I guess the question is will the fan pull more air through the rad at those speeds..... I'll report back. ... Again thanks everyone for the comments... Chris
Chris Malcolm

I have been seeing this fan on eBay- Anyone tried it?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MGTD-mgtf-MG-TD-TF-HIGH-PERFORMANCE-COOL-FAN_W0QQitemZ290253427987QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item290253427987&timeout=1218803312375

Dallas
D C Congleton

Those blades must be really flexible... they have quite the bend which i assume straightens out?
gblawson(gordon)

I don't think it will straighten out very much. Probably bent like this to "grab" a lot of air. Also will "grab" a lot of horsepower!

One thing to mention about plastic fans, such as the MGB fan, or these nylon fans, is they have been known for developing small cracks and checks in the hub area - partially due to under hood temperatures, and due to the continued curing and hardening of the plastic.

I has three factory fans on my Jag XJS V12 replaced on warranty in 8 years.

FWIW
Dallas
D C Congleton

Dear all, I have just read all of the archive comments on fitting a MGB 7 blade fan to a TD. I thought I would do this modification too. I take it that the 4 fixing hole centres are the same as the large boss? I intend to fit carbon fibre bushes to compensate for the bolt/hole diameter difference and can the job be completed with the water pump and pully in situ? I will check the timing advance too. Thanks in anticipation of a response, regards, Peter.
P J Wilgoss

I did mine with the pump in situ. Just be sure to cover the rad with cardboard or wrap your knuckles with tape. It's tight!
L Karpman

Take a look at the radiator grille and make sure the vertical rods aren't too close together. I managed to space them out on my TF. I had the same issue on my TF. Tried an MGB fan to no avail. Only thing that fixed it was re-coring the rad. I'm about to go through the same experience on an Austin Healey I just bought!

AJ
A R Jones

Chris,
I had exactly the same problem of overheating when driving on steep mountain roads in summer. The temperature has always been ideal even in heavy town traffic. I swapped for a 7 blades MGB fan with the puma and pulley in situ, using copper bushes to fit the greater holes. This achieved a 5 Celsius degrees fall on steep roads. I think I should check the advance too!
C.M. groucho

It's not only plastic fans which crack. I threw half an original blade at high revs on the track once and the engine vibrated horrendously - I thought I'd broken a rod. You can see my hand up to indicate that I'm dropping out of the contest.

I've never heard of people crack checking fan blades, but it might be a good idea if the engine is apart anyway.

David


D A Provan

Peter,
I struggle for a couple of years with heating issues on my TD in all driving situations.
I must have tried a dozen different suggested items to try to cool it down. The seven blade asymmetric fan was one of them. I installed an oil cooler. I propped open the hood to allow more circulation. etc., etc......
I finally did the right thing and took it to an old-time radiator shop and and asked them to put in a three core radiator. Later that day they called to say they could actually put in a four core radiator with just a minor adjustment to a flange. I told him to go ahead and do it.
I have never had a cooling issue since then. My TD has many performance modifications and I can cruise at 70 and 80 miles an hour all day long. It will also top 90 mph but I have not pushed it to the limit. I've driven it in miserable hot weather in slow traffic. I think I once saw my temperature gauge go to 90°C.
I know all of our cars are different but this is just my experience. The MGB fan did not make a significant improvement but I have left it in all these years. The installation is merely a swap and can be done in place.
Mort
Mort Resnicoff

Dear all, thank you for your comments. Mort, thank you for confirming that the swap is like for like. Regards, Peter.
P J Wilgoss

The MGB 7 blade fan has the same fixing hole centres, but to do the job properly and make sure the fan sits centrally its a good idea to use bushes in the holes to take the smaller diameter xpag bolts. In addition I fitted the mounting block in front of the fan so that it is properly supported.
Dave H
Dave Hill

I changed to the MGB fan with my recent rebuild. Keeping the fan oriented properly and the spacer next to the pump would have the blades too close to the radiator. Placing the spacer in front of the fan placed the fan farther from the radiator than I would like for optimal cooling. My solution was to machine a new spacer out of aluminium. Lighter weight and a larger diameter to back the fan with.


L E D LaVerne

I'm pleased with the results thus far.


L E D LaVerne

It is the late MGB fan you want for your XPAG. The early plastic fan has a wider hole spacing. Also the the holes are larger so I used brake tubing and split it down one side so I could squeeze it down to fit. It lowered my temps in city traffic as it pulls much more air. Also leave the spacer in place. In can be installed in a TD without moving the radiator bit it will give you raw knuckles if you don't protect them

Bill Chasser
W A Chasser

If you have a Ford Type 9 gearbox, the conversion kit moves the fan closer to the rad, otherwise LaVerne's new spacer seems the perfect solution.
Dave H
Dave Hill

Once again, thanks to Bill, Dave and LED for the pics and further advice. Regards, Peter.
P J Wilgoss

Good evening again to you all. Well, today befor and after the F1 GP the job was completed. Thank you all, for your invaluable thoughts and experience with modification. Regards, Peter.


P J Wilgoss

This thread was discussed between 14/08/2008 and 25/06/2017

MG TD TF 1500 index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG TD TF 1500 BBS is active now.