The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop overheating problem finaly solved -- I hope

Last fall when I first got my truck I talked on here about heating problems. After trying many things I thought I had solved the problem because there was no overheating all throght winter. The first warm day this year it overheated again. And I lost my trans. fluid from the short rubber hose that connects the oil line to the radiator at the same time. The hose was replaced and having nothing else to try out I asked a knowlegable mechanic to check it out. He first said there was nothing he could find wrong with it Next day he called me and said Your fan is on backward. Unbelievable--another thing that was wrong when I got the truck. I never would have thought to look. I put this on here as another thing to check when you have an overheating problem and you think you've checked everything.

another tip - a new fuel pump was assembled backwards . took it apart & turned it 180 degrees so it would pump correctly . ah , those poltergeist at work .

You can't put a fan on "backward" relative to which direction it blows. If you turn a fan blade around the pitch direction is still the same. If, for the direction the air is being moved, the fan blades are pitched the wrong way you'll have to put a fan with the correct pitch on. Turning it around will do nothing except burn time.

Reversing the fan will not change the direction of flow, but in most cases the fan blade shape improves flow when they are assembled correctly.

Maybe it is an electric fan and the "your fan is on backwards" is the polarity on the electric motor is switched and the motor is actually turning to push air into the rad rather than pulling it out??? Just a thought.

My track car I had to weld a new fan mount and I decided to use a 99 fan and motor I had laying around rather than the 93. The fan blades were "backwards". so the motor had to turn the other way, so the wires had to be switched...

No it's not electric.
My friend said it would be better to put on a different/better fan. Wont know details until monday.

Had a customer come to the store one time complaining that his late model pkup was running hot after a local mechanic had put on new water pump and fan. (Don't know why he did a fan).

He insisted I go out to his truck and see what was wrong. As I was standing in front of the pkup, I noticed I was getting pretty warm. It dawned on me finally that he had the wrong direction fan. It was pushing the air out the front of the truck. At idle it would be okay, going down the road it would heat up.

The fan on my 53's leading edge is made flat with the pitch being on the trailing edge. I put in more pitch so it pulls more air.

On that "late model pkup", is it possible it had a surpentine belt setup with a reverse rotating pump and fan?
On the other examples, is it possible they had a flex fan? I'm not sure what one of those would do in reverse.

Putting any fan blade on backwards doesn't reverse the flow, it only makes it inefficient. Electric fans can be installed to push or to pull by turning the entire assembly 180 degrees (front to back), but not by putting the blades on backwards.