Need input for my '02 T bird

[merlot4]

Thank you for keeping us in the loop, Xavier, that's going to be great information to have in the archive! What Calvin said, that's a daunting task. Best of luck, but I have a feeling you're on top of things.

[Thunderbird 22]

Xavier, you are courageous. That is one daunting task and I hope it works out well. The later models all had Ford electric cooling fans but when they go bad, the only part Ford offers is the entire Fan Assembly at around $1665. not including the labor to remove and reinstall the old with the new. It includes the ECU and I think that is what drives the price so high.

thanks Calvin, it is quite the task,, but i'm always up for a challenge. I personally think the hydrolic system was a major flaw for this year, if i had a '3-'05 ,, and had a bad fan motor, i would seriously consider a flex a lite fan swap. Would be a cold day in hell before i spend $1665 for a fan.

[Thunderbird 22]

Thank you for keeping us in the loop, Xavier, that's going to be great information to have in the archive! What Calvin said, that's a daunting task. Best of luck, but I have a feeling you're on top of things.

Thanks Richard for the vote of confidence ! Before tackling this, i did alot of research on the web. There is actually a very good video on utube on a Lincoln LS swap. Same as the Thunderbird. And yes, it Really is a pain in the hiney to do.

Cheers !

[Gobird]

Sounds like a lot of work but I'm not sure why it was done. My 02 fan was replaced under the three year warranty while under 36,000 miles warranty in the first three years of ownership. I now have over 130,000 on the car and never had a problem. To each his own.

[EllisonCal]

Sounds like a lot of work but I'm not sure why it was done. My 02 fan was replaced under the three year warranty while under 36,000 miles warranty in the first three years of ownership. I now have over 130,000 on the car and never had a problem. To each his own.

Maybe his hydraulic fan motor gave out and the cost (out of warranty) was excessive. Had I known a Flex-o-lite could have been installed before I paid $2500. to fix my '05, I would have taken that route too.

[Thunderbird 22]

Maybe his hydraulic fan motor gave out and the cost (out of warranty) was excessive. Had I known a Flex-o-lite could have been installed before I paid $2500. to fix my '05, I would have taken that route too.

The reason i went with this setup is simple. My fan hydrolic motor was worn out, the hydrolic control valve on the pump was defective. I had the pump overhauled with new seal, but not complet rebuilt. Up here in Canada, purchasing these 3 parts would be about arround $2000 . With the Flex a lite option, about $300 . And replacement parts with Flex a lite will always be available.

Gobird, great to see that you were able to get this done on warranty ! Saved you lots of $$ , but getting the whole hydrolic system fixed now,, will put a dent in your wallet..

[Guest]

Hello friends, i have been seriously thinking of removing the whole hydrolic cooling pump system, and replacing it with electric fan and fan speed controller. I recently rebuilt the pump, now the actuator is bad, and i have air in the system, that seems not wanting to purge, so a constant squeel when warmer temperature. The car with current trim is 1 of only 94. ,, ideally would be to keep it stock, but this hydrolic system really sucks. What should i do ?

You will kill any collectible value the car retains if you swap out everything like you say. I for one have an 02 and I have had problems with the hydraulic cooling fan, radiator and cooling fan hose which I could hardly purchase one at the time. Nobody had the item I needed. Finally found a fellow on ebay with one and I bought it. New Ford old stock. Since then replaced all coil on plugs. All new stuff with plugs of course. I have to make an excuse with mine. I purchased it knowing it had been in water they said but I see no evidence it was in water. I even had to settle for a rebuilder's title. But I did not buy it to make money with. I bought it to cruise around in. I bought it on the rather cheap side so I can suffer the value problem. It had almost 92,000 on it. Now it has 116,000+ I want to keep mine the way it came as long as I can afford it. Heck I can always sell some of my other collectible stuff to keep my Bird original way it was built.

[EllisonCal]

Trollerguy, Thunderbird22 is a mechanical genius and is not interested in the collectible value of his Tbird. He just wants reliable low cost repairs that are possible by updating to the Flex-a-lite cooling fan setup. It's a car after all not a precious rare coin or commemorative. He wants to enjoy it and drive it. I just wish I had the skills and courage to undertake a project like this. Keep on doin' it Thunderbird22!

[Guest]

Trollerguy, Thunderbird22 is a mechanical genius and is not interested in the collectible value of his Tbird. He just wants reliable low cost repairs that are possible by updating to the Flex-a-lite cooling fan setup. It's a car after all not a precious rare coin or commemorative. He wants to enjoy it and drive it. I just wish I had the skills and courage to undertake a project like this. Keep on doin' it Thunderbird22!

Do what makes you happy, I do....I hope he succeeds in his venture. If someone offered me something like this I would turn the other way but who knows he would probably have a better car. I would blame this on Ford.

[Thunderbird 22]

Hello again friends,
My project is complete, and turned out sucessful. After removing everything of the hydrolic fan system, i was able to install the new 16" electric fan inside the shroud, so everything like the A/C dryer bottle,etc bolted back up to the shroud like factory fit. I made my own bracket out of thick aluminium to mount the fan speed controller. Wired from nearby fuse box, a constant 12V, a switched 12V and from the A/C compressor relay, a signal wire to trigger the fan on high speed. After fine tuning everything, the fan starts at 208 degrees, and cuts out at 196. When A/C is on,, fan stays on high speed. Here are a few pics of my work.
If anyone is looking to do this mod, i would be happy to share my info. I feel this is more of a reliable system than the original hydrolic system.

[merlot4]

That's great that it worked out as you planned, Xavier, thanks for sharing the photos. While there may not be someone who needs/wants to do this at the moment, there could well be some down the road. Anything you add will go into the archives and is very useful.

[AZTB]

I am VERY impressed...well done!

[Gobird]

Looks good and maybe 10/15 years ago I may have tackled this project but at my age I would have just paid for a new hydraulic fan.

[11TH GEN]

Impressive indeed Xavier. I hope any 02 owners that are wanting to do this update are inspired by your work.

[Thunderbird 22]

Thank you friends, very happy with the results. My baby will run cooler this summer. Also forgot to mention, i also replaced the coolant thermostat and the coolant, with the good stuff from the dealer. Since getting all the coolant out is impossible, after draining the radiator, i installed a shop vac on the lower hose, and blew compressed air in the block inlet, through the top round cap. I figure i got 80% of old coolant out ! Then filled, ran the motor, and purged the air out. Job complet !