2002 Thunderbird Hydraulic Cooling Fan Conversion

Mine runs flawlessly! It's installed on a diesel genset and sometimes runs 3-4 days continuously, often unattended. Had it 4+ years.
 
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I'm looking to get rid of the Hydraulic cooling Fan on my Bird. I'm replacing the Radiator, and would like to also be done with the current fan cooling system. Does anyone have a good suggestion for Electric replacement fan kits for this model of T-Bird? Is there any conversion temp sensor that I need to incorporate as well?
simple replace with 2003 ele fan as outlined on forum fan will work with modified relay fan cost $250 relay cost $55 relay comes with instructions cheapest way to replace fan to work only one problem must have 100 orders for modified relays before shipped or modified 2003 fan ready to install $500 both work fan from existing pluswith signal same as hydro fan

I would also be interested in a electric fan and get rid of the hydraulic cooling fan?
the 2003 ele fan is the way the 2002 has same cooling needs as 2003 my 2002 has had 2003 fan on it for 3 years and 40000 miles no over heating once modified the fan has no return fan is around $250 you will need a 60 amp max fuse two wire connectors put max fuse in main connection on fan cut ground wire 6 in. from connector install the two wire connectors one on ground side one on voltage side paint volt side red hook to to buss connector at fuse box where hot wire bolts to fuse box hookup ground to frame or engine block i used zip tie to strap connector now fuse holder to bracket first you need to modify the signal from the 2002 computer inside the computer to match the fan or modify the fan micro computer in side the fan to match the 2002 they are different signals
 
I would also be interested in a electric fan and get rid of the hydraulic cooling fan?
use 2003 ele fan modify housing the only controler you need pluswith relay that modifies signal from car computer to fan the 2003 fan is a micro control fan it has slow start to keep sudden draw off alt. pluswith relay 100 amp alt. is strong enough 3 years no problem i build two types of pulswith relays one to mount outside the fuse box and one to wire inside the fuse box or you can modify the the micro controler in the fan after 3 years the chips heat up easer to pluswith relay the system cheapert fix
 
I know there is some sort of control device that tells the fan to spin up. The PCM tells that device to spin up the fan. I have no idea where that is but my Ford dealer replaced that two years ago when I kept overheating. I'm sure there would have to be some sort of connection to that device in your replacement
the pluswith signal green wire white stripe and brown wire voltage goes to a solenoid on back of pump low frequency pluswith =less voltage = open bypass=less pressure=slow fan speed high freguency pluswith =high volt =closed bypass =high fan speed the pump the solenoid the hydro fan all removed all you need is the pluswith signal green wire white stripe and voltage wire brown the signal low voltage low fan high fan must be modified to run ele fan it is not the same signal hence my puswith relay it modifies pluswith signal from green wire white stripe to run ele fan same as factory 2002 hydro or 2003 ele you need no other controlers
 
you need my pwm relay take adjustable thermostat and wiring off when my pwm relay gets on ebay and you can get it with instructions to wire to 2003 ford fan work like factory
 
as seen on picture neet , red wire from buss bar bolt on side of fuse box to plug in / 60 amp fuse holder ,black wire to ground on block green wire white stripe to green wire ,brown wire to yellow on modified fan ,IMG_20200723_113344.jpg orange wire grounds system
 
I'm reading all of these threads on cooling fan replacement with interest as I just purchased a 2002 myself. So I'm am newbie on the forum.

It seems common sense to me to just install 2003 components and wire it. I've been using Rock Auto as a example, and while I see the ECM part numbers are different, I also see that the cooling fan controller which I assume is controlled by the ECM after receiving temp inputs for the hydraulic 2002 and 2003 with electric are the same part. The engine bay fuse box can accommodate any added or changed ford relays and fuses, in fact, the 2003 schematic shows right where to put them and the 2002 schematic shows nothing in those holes.

While I've done frame off restorations, I'm not a super whiz on the electrical stuff, so what am I missing??
Thanks for any replies.
 
I read all the issues with the hydraulic cooling fan, but I have never had any problems in 18 years. Plenty of parts are
available, if anything goes wrong. I even have a 02 T Bird parts car with 129k miles, it has original hydraulic fan, and
works great.

The ECM does send a signal to the solenoid on the hydraulic pump it is some where between 5 volts and 12 volts, you
can always install a relay in place of the solenoid, just make sure the relay coil is low current draw, so you do not harm
the transistor.
 
Thanks edward301, glad to hear you aren't having issues. Our 2002 67K which was always serviced by the selling dealer, has had some work done on the system already. But it is working perfectly now and I'll probably use a conversion to electric as a winter project. I also see there are other cars with similar hydraulic fans, jeeps, that are in the 2000 to 2005 range, where they were installed for tow packages, and they are seeing failures and looking for options just like T-bird people are. More to come as I put together data and do the project.
 
The 2002 2003 are different different controlers read my other post, the soldenoid on the 2002 is 5 volt to 12 volt but it is pluswith voltage the pluswith voltage from the 2002 is different than from the 2003 you must modify the computer in the 2002 for the ele fan to work or like i done modify the 2003 fan to accept the signal from the 2002 when the electronics modifcation goes out you have to pull the fan to fix regular relays will not work read post you must have a pluswith relay for that exact set up i looked every where for one could not find had to build my own it can be wired in the fuse box or mounted out side the best and cheapest way is to get a kit 2002 fan modified housing replaceable pluswith relay belt remove hydro system instal ele system mark location of pluswith relay in fuse box reglar relay will not work
 
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Thanks Simple, the reason I was asking because with your run on sentences its kind a hard to figure out what you are saying. But I got the point that the signals are different. And I agree its easier to wire a 2003 fan to accept a 2002 signal. Will look more into that as I study the project. Mark
 
the reasons for using the 2003 fan fan housing easy modified to fit ,wireing easy modified to fit ,micro prosesor in fan slow starts fan no sudden voltage demands ,plug in on fan dubbles as max 60 amp fuse holder.pluswith signal can be modified to work like factory no adjusting.that your fan works ,ac works like factory .the hardest part is removing the hydro system the hydro system is a good system until it breaks down its to pricey to fix ele system is cheaper to fix done right 2003 fan cools same cooling system on 2003 as on 2002 i am looking to put kit on ebay to change over , fan belt ,relay,instructions it would be simple trying to find time and intrest
 
the reasons for using the 2003 fan fan housing easy modified to fit ,wireing easy modified to fit ,micro prosesor in fan slow starts fan no sudden voltage demands ,plug in on fan dubbles as max 60 amp fuse holder.pluswith signal can be modified to work like factory no adjusting.that your fan works ,ac works like factory .the hardest part is removing the hydro system the hydro system is a good system until it breaks down its to pricey to fix ele system is cheaper to fix done right 2003 fan cools same cooling system on 2003 as on 2002 i am looking to put kit on ebay to change over , fan belt ,relay,instructions it would be simple trying to find time and intrest
Agreed. I'm interested if you plan to do a kit. Even just the wiring, controller and instructions. I can get the big parts myself. Parts are readily available on Rock auto. Mark

Has anyone added a pusher fan in front of the condenser to help cool the engine? My 2002 had the hydraulic fan swap for an electric fan, but I overheat in traffic with the A/C on.
Do you have the dual fan setup with 3400+ cfm capability? If so, there are other issues to solve.
 
@Hate this Ford , what type of fan is on your car ? 40000 miles on my change over . car had 126000 on hydro system when it gave problems . replaced head gaskets after it run hot at 126000 miles ,head gaskets looked ok ,wife drives car and it only cost $300 in parts i was removing hydro system ,cam tensioners. replaced plastic coolant bottle cracked on bottom . i done labor . why take a chance. replaced my fan with 2003 .mod fan housing , mod wiring .mod eletronics on fan .temp got over midway line last month had to replace water pump . i like this car its not hard to work on .hope to get 40000 more miles on fan .
 
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@Hate this Ford , what type of fan is on your car ? 40000 miles on my change over . car had 126000 on hydro system when it gave problems . replaced head gaskets after it run hot at 126000 miles ,head gaskets looked ok ,wife drives car and it only cost $300 in parts i was removing hydro system ,cam tensioners. replaced plastic coolant bottle cracked on bottom . i done labor . why take a chance. replaced my fan with 2003 .mod fan housing , mod wiring .mod eletronics on fan .temp got over midway line last month had to replace water pump . i like this car its not hard to work on .hope to get 40000 more miles on fan .
Mine is a 2002 with hydraulic fan. They replaced the controller last year. Doing research these types of units, the hydraulic fans, and components tend to start failing at 18-20 years of service, seeing it in 05 jeeps with about 100K miles. While I only have 68K miles, its 18 years old, and we plan to take some major trips starting next year, so plan to preempt issues as the electric fans last forever. More study shows the Flex a lite as easy to install and produces 3300+ cfm at 18 amps, not the mid 40+ amps the ford fans require for a similar cfm. So a lower amp draw lessons the load on the alternator system as well. The Flex-A-Lite 183 will cool a Ram Hemi 5.7 so should do fine in a T-Bird 3.9. So I'm continuing to do research and this fall when the T-Bird comes in for the winter I'll do the conversion.
 
the electric fans last forever.
The electric fan in my 2012 Mustang didn't "last forever". The ball bearings started coming out and had to replace it last Spring of 2019.
 
So, how long did they last? Miles, years? Was that a flex a lite?
 
ask 2003 high mileage thunderbird owners about fan life on 2003 .climate ,traffic ,driver . all factors on fan life . when i was young a full tank of gas would out last a set of back tires.
 
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