Radiator and Fan clearance...
Depends on what you are looking for. You have a LOT more room than I had. I don't know if you prefer electric or mechanical. You should have plenty of room to run a short clutch fan in there. I can't think of the part# off the top of my head, but I know that Hayden makes a 2.75" fan clutch.
By saying "the fan that we pulled off the engine appears to be way too big. It's hitting the radiator top edge and so clearly not going to work.",.. Are you saying the blades are above the top of the core, or above the radiator? If they are above the core, that is normal. I have an 18" fan on my '67 Barracuda. The shroud allows the blades to be above the core of the radiator. First pic is old setup. Second pic is new setup.
I don't have a lot of experience with pre-67 A-bodies. Do they run a 22" fan in them like the '67-'69 do? The problem I had is that I only had just under 3" of room between my water pump shaft and my radiator, so I could not fit a single electric fan with a shroud, and the "No Shroud" set-up the previous owner had in their wouldn't keep it cool. My 22" radiator was too narrow to run twin 12" fans and Cold Case told me they didn't think twin 10" fans would do the job.
I ended up going with a Derale performance flex fan rated to 8000 rpm and a good fitting shroud. Unfortunately, I did mine late last fall, so I don't have any experience in summer conditions yet, but I CAN say that it works better than it did. Before, I could not let the car idle as it just kept getting hotter. Now I can let it run as much as I want and the temp just floats between 175-185 degrees on my gauge (180 thermostat installed).
With 4-5 inches, you may be able to fit a nice big electric and a shroud in there too if that's what you prefer.
Depends on what you are looking for. You have a LOT more room than I had. I don't know if you prefer electric or mechanical. You should have plenty of room to run a short clutch fan in there. I can't think of the part# off the top of my head, but I know that Hayden makes a 2.75" fan clutch.
By saying "the fan that we pulled off the engine appears to be way too big. It's hitting the radiator top edge and so clearly not going to work.",.. Are you saying the blades are above the top of the core, or above the radiator? If they are above the core, that is normal. I have an 18" fan on my '67 Barracuda. The shroud allows the blades to be above the core of the radiator. First pic is old setup. Second pic is new setup.
I don't have a lot of experience with pre-67 A-bodies. Do they run a 22" fan in them like the '67-'69 do? The problem I had is that I only had just under 3" of room between my water pump shaft and my radiator, so I could not fit a single electric fan with a shroud, and the "No Shroud" set-up the previous owner had in their wouldn't keep it cool. My 22" radiator was too narrow to run twin 12" fans and Cold Case told me they didn't think twin 10" fans would do the job.
I ended up going with a Derale performance flex fan rated to 8000 rpm and a good fitting shroud. Unfortunately, I did mine late last fall, so I don't have any experience in summer conditions yet, but I CAN say that it works better than it did. Before, I could not let the car idle as it just kept getting hotter. Now I can let it run as much as I want and the temp just floats between 175-185 degrees on my gauge (180 thermostat installed).
With 4-5 inches, you may be able to fit a nice big electric and a shroud in there too if that's what you prefer.
