Taurus Fan And Fal 33054 Install On A Fox

No.11

10 Year Member
Oct 13, 2009
614
9
38
Los Angeles
Hello Stangnet, I recently completed my install of a Taurus Fan using a FAL 33054 Variable Speed Controller, along with SVE’s Aluminum Radiator and a Moroso Overflow Tank. I found a great write-up over on the corral forums, posted by bigred302, which is the basis for most of the knowledge in this thread. I could not have done it without his thread, and also one written by MFE on the corral as well.


The reason I decided to create this thread is because I am a visual type of person who needs to see lots of pictures to understand what I am doing, and I know I can’t be the only one out there like that. So, this is, I suppose, a how to install Taurus Fan and FAL 33054 for Dummies, hehe. Know that I am in no way an expert on this, so I would certainly appreciate any input that anyone has on what I have done here.


In the future, I definitely plan on making it all look pretty, but to be honest, right now I just wanted it to work. I also should have heatshrunk everything, but I didn’t, so I used 3m Super 33+ electrical tape instead. We’ve been having 105 degree days lately. Ironically, the weekend I did my install, we all of a sudden start having a drastic change in temperature… now the comparison won’t be the same… but oh well. Less sweating in the car, since I use it to drive to work, and my work consists of driving from place to place. Now, on to the write up.

Here is a list of everything I purchased for my installation:

  • Electric Fan from 95 3.8L Taurus- Ebay for $80

  • SVE Radiator- LMR on sale for $150

  • FAL VSC 33054- Amazon for $1

  • Moroso Overflow Tank- LMR for $108
  • Black 10 ga wire- Amazon for $13

  • Red 10 ga wire- Amazon for $13

  • Black 14 ga wire- Amazon for $11

  • Box of 10-12 ga butt splices- Autozone for $6

  • Box of 14-16 ga butt splices- Autozone for $3.50

  • Box of 10-12 ga male disconnects- Autozone for $7

  • Box of 14-16 ga male disconnects- Autozone for $3

  • Box of 10-12 ga female disconnects- Autozone for $6

  • Box of 14-16 ga female disconnects- Autozone for $6

  • Box of 10-12 ga ring terminals with large ring- Autozone for $5

  • 4 Pan Head Machine Screws- Home Depot for $0.80 each

  • 4 Wingnuts for Machine Screws- Home Depot for $0.60 each

  • 2 L-brackets- Home depot for $1.20 each

  • 1 piece of thin metal strap (not shown in install, can post later)- Home depot for $1.80

  • Derale Radiator Zips- Amazon for $7

  • Frost King Weatherstrip 3/8” x 7/16” $5

  • 40 amp megafuse with female ends- Autozone for $6

  • 2 gallons of coolant (to mix with water myself)- Autozone for $13 each

  • Total cost- just over $570

Required: Upgrade to a 3g alternator before performing this modification. The stock alternator will not be able to keep up with the increase in amperage drawn.

Tools needed (besides the regular stuff like wrenches and ratchets and stuff):



  • Wire Cutter/Crimper

  • Wire Stripper

  • Hacksaw
Disconnect your negative battery terminal, yada yada, and also disconnect the positive if you want to test your fan directly on the battery.

I started with the fan itself. I mounted it upside down for better fit. For reference, the side with the mounting hole (which needs to be cut off) will now be toward the passenger side of the car. Now as for that area that needs to be cut, this is where a hacksaw came in handy for me, although I would have preferred to use my angle grinder with a cutoff wheel (which was loaned out at the time). I also cut a section further down on the fan to make it even and let it sit straight on the edge of the radiator.
iF6bJf.jpg

rBluWN.jpg


Then, I drilled some holes on the new bottom of the fan shroud so I could attach my L-brackets. These will side into the clips on the radiator to hold the shroud at the bottom. I attached them with machine screws and wingnuts. I later had to redrill and relocated the brackets because they didn’t line up with the clips. Mock it up first with your radiator clips, and mark where you’ll need those brackets.
Jc2BRo.jpg
pVyT74.jpg



Next, I drilled some more holes on the fan shroud for mounting the overflow tank and holding the shroud to the radiator. Mock it up once again using your overflow tank to see where you’ll need the holes, mark the holes with a marker, and then drill. I didn’t exactly like how my tank looks on there, so I will definitely be revisiting it in the future to make it look nice. I supported the bottom of the overflow tank with a piece of bent-to-shape thin metal strap, bolted that to the shroud with a machine screw. It comes under and up the overflow tank to hold it up from the bottom. I figured I might get some rattling on there so I used some frost king weatherstrip on there to get rid of the vibration. The picture shows a bolt through the top hole of the overflow, but in the end I used one of the radiator zip ties instead.
BB9VoH.jpg
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The stock fan shroud comes off with just a couple of bolts on the top, and the fan itself is held on by 4 7/16” bolts into the water pump pulley. Make sure you put those back on afterwards. They do more than just hold the fan on there. This picture shows the clearance between the Taurus fan and water pump pulley. Great!
orI7HU.jpg



But then again, my new radiator is thicker…
XgwAQn.jpg


Now, put some of that 3/8 x 7/16 weatherstrip on the passenger side of the fan as shown.
KMtZMF.jpg


I mounted my shroud to the radiator using those zip ties, although I’m definitely going to find a better way to do it. Not sure how much I trust those zip ties. Plus, it was painful pushing those things through those poor little aluminum radiator fins.
MNLy8P.jpg
R1LTnz.jpg
6sGNJJ.jpg


Here is the fan mounted onto the radiator. Note the L-brackets that go into the clips at the bottom of the radiator.
RiPYFS.jpg


Now, it’s time to remove your old radiator. You’ll want to loosen your cap, and then place something underneath the drain petcock to catch your coolant. Open it up and let her rip! Keep that drain pan nearby to catch the coolant that may come out of your upper and lower radiator hoses as you disconnect them, as well as your overflow tank.
PVWD46.jpg
tSgP8L.jpg


Oh, and don’t you just hate these wretched hose clamps? I replaced this one with a ratcheting hose clamp instead.
u0PRMH.jpg


Once everything is nice and drained, flush as needed, and stuff some rags in the hoses to keep anything else from leaking onto your nice, clean floor. Remove your radiator support brackets, one on each side, and your radiator will lift right up and out of the car. This is a good time to clean any leaves or dirt in the area where your radiator sits.
LIayfj.jpg

Drop in the new radiator the same way you took the old one out, making sure it sits right on the rubber rests on each side of the radiator. At this point you can put your radiator supports back on. The driver side support did not seem to hold my radiator tightly enough. I cut a piece of those spongey sticky pads that came with my radiator zips, and put it on the end of the radiator facing the engine, hoping it would hold tighter. This didn’t work, because those pads are too spongey and soft. A harder rubber piece with some double sided adhesive would definitely work, though. I also thought of drilling a hole through the radiator wall that sticks up and putting a long bolt through it to hold it, but I will decide on that later.
zhnza5.jpg



Connect all your hoses back on and make sure the clamps are tight. You can fill with coolant now if you want. I waited until I was done with everything else.


Onto the VSC and wiring…


I mounted my VSC right under my CAI. It fit perfectly in this little space, and I put one of those radiator zips through a mounting hole, and then through a hole in the chassis and tightened it up. It ain’t going nowhere.
E5aZPG.jpg


Now, it’s time for some nice wire cutting, stripping, and crimping tools.
sF0T4g.jpg



The way I did most of these was, I unspooled the wire along its path from the VSC to wherever it was going, to make sure I had the right length, and then cut it. I then stripped both ends of the wire, and then used butt splices to connect the wires together. On the battery hot, and battery negative, I attached ring terminals. For the A/C, coolant level wire (key on hot), I cut those wires and put my new wire+the respective wire into one end of the splice, and the other end of the respective wire into the other end. For the fan wires themselves, I used quick disconnects because I wasn’t sure which wire was the high setting, so I wanted to be able to quickly disconnect it and test the fan directly on the battery.



By the way, the blue with yellow strip wire is the high side, and the blue with orange stripe wire is the low side.


I spliced my VSC Black wire to some 10 ga wire, and routed it behind the engine and to the battery ground bolt next to the battery.
gZ5Zb9.jpg


The VSC Red wire also got 10 ga wire, which took the same routing as the VSC Black wire. Right around the area by the hood hinge, I added a 40 amp inline fuse. The fuse I used accepted male spade connectors. The 10 ga wire connects to one of the little terminals on the fuse, and then you connect another piece of cable with another spade connector into the other terminal, and then run your wire to the battery hot on the starter solenoid.
b461D9.jpg



Don’t overtighten your nut on the battery hot post on the solenoid, or this might happen to you…
VhvY9d.jpg


Optional: The 33054 comes with a feature that turns the fan on at 60% whenever the A/C is turned on. If you have no A/C or don’t want to use this feature, skip this part. You need a female spade connector on the VSC #8 side. Splice that onto a 14 ga wire and run it around the back of the engine and towards you’re A/C compressor power wire (it was the black with yellow wire on mine). Splice it on that end (2 cables in one end, 1 in the other).
akWTyQ.jpg


You need a key on hot source. Two options are: the canister purge solenoid hot wire, and the coolant level sensor hot wire. I found it easier to use the coolant level wire, because the canister purge solenoid wire is bonded to the cable which makes stripping it more difficult. Plus, the wires on it are the same color and I didn’t have a test light. Plus, the canister purge solenoid on my car has been removed… I attached a female spade connector onto the VSC end of the 14 ga wire. That goes connected on VSC #9. Then, I ran it under the radiator support brackets and spliced onto the coolant level wire (it’s the red wire with a yellow stripe).
ZKSgbA.jpg


Now, splice some 10 ga wire onto the yellow wire on the VSC, and run it over towards the fan connector. You could probably attach some small spade connectors on the fan connector end, and insert them into the connector itself. I didn’t have spade connectors small enough, so I just spliced into the wires themselves. You’ll attach the wire coming from VSC Yellow to the blue wire with a yellow stripe. That is the fan high setting. The other wire with the orange stripe is the low setting. You won’t need it. Seal it off. Once again, I used quick disconnects here, but you can use butt splices instead.
tUoHC0.jpg


Now, onto VSC Purple. Put some 10 ga wire on that and run it over to the black wire on the fan connector. Splice that in and you’re good to go. Here are both wires spliced in.
VFxnsB.jpg



The last piece to do is the temperature probe. It should be included in your box with the VSC. Crimp the ends of the two wires to the included female spade connectors, and then attach the two spade connectors to VSC #10 and 11. It doesn’t matter which wire goes on 10 and 11, just connect. The other end with the temperature probe will have to be stabbed carefully into your radiator fins right around the area near the upper radiator hose. Apparently, it’s supposed to come with a plastic cap to put on the pointy end of the probe so onrushing air doesn’t cool it, and trick it into thinking your car is cool enough to turn off the fan. I didn’t see one, but I’m definitely going to find one and get that on there.
vOlfpk.jpg



Here is the VSC with all the wires connected.It's covered up in this picture, but if you look at the previous one earlier in the post, you’ll see a spot where you can use a small screwdriver to adjust the temperature at which your fan turns on.
qdip1C.jpg



Double check to make sure everything is secure, there’s coolant in your radiator, and reconnect your battery. Also check if you have enough clearance between the fan motor and water pump pulley. The last thing you need is to destroy your new fan. Now, if everything is safe, and only if everything is safe… Fire up that fox, and let it get up to temp and verify that the fan turns on, and then turns off when it cools. Also, turn on your A/C if you decided to use that feature (VSC #8) and check if the fan comes on.


If you hear a nice whir and feel a nice little wind, you’ve done it! Now, go grab some cold liquid refreshment and enjoy your cool mustang. Yes, forget about putting away all your tools and cleaning up. That can wait! Go drive the car, and maybe you’ll feel the difference of less drag on your engine. I did (at least I think I did).


Any input would be greatly appreciated, and if I’ve done something horribly wrong here, please let me know so I can correct it. And, if this helps someone do this job on their own car, it’ll make me a happy man! Thanks!
 
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Thanks for passing along that nugget of info. A couple thoughts to point out about the post, First, It doesn't point out the important fact that you MUST upgrade your alternator prior to installing the e-fan. Second, for $20 more you could get a brand new dual Contour fan that kicks butt and draws less amps. Third, I didn't see the Moroso overflow tank anywhere in the cost list :shrug:

P.S. I wonder if just some electrical tape wrapped around the tip of the temp probe would suffice if the rubber cap is missing.
 
couple of thoughts
1. those radiator zip ties will cause a radiator leak sooner or later. I would replace them with some brackets to secure the radiator to the top of the fan
2. Take a piece of plastic coke bottle or some other plastic and cover up the gap in the top of the fan. You can epoxy it on.
3. You should always try and solder any electric connections. and use shrink wrap over them to keep them secure and free from moisture and dirt.
4. Not sure if you did this, but you want to run the weatherstrip around the entire perimeter of the fan to seal the gap and also so the fan doesn't rub against the radiator and cause leaks.
5. You can tap into the low side A/C on the back of the firewall on top of the evap vs. going all the way around to the A/C compressor. By hooking it up to the compressor, the fan is going to cycle on and off when the A/C clutch turns on and off.
6. You want to connect the FAL controller ground to a battery ground and the + to a battery or starter solenoid + using at least 10g wiring.
7 . I would recommend you purchase your wire, electrical connectors, shrink wrap, and such at HF or online vs. paying parts store prices.
8. I would highly recommend you remove the underdrive pulleys as they do nothing but cause cooling and charging issues.
 
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Thanks for passing along that nugget of info. A couple thoughts to point out about the post, First, It doesn't point out the important fact that you MUST upgrade your alternator prior to installing the e-fan. Second, for $20 more you could get a brand new dual Contour fan that kicks butt and draws less amps. Third, I didn't see the Moroso overflow tank anywhere in the cost list :shrug:

P.S. I wonder if just some electrical tape wrapped around the tip of the temp probe would suffice if the rubber cap is missing.
Thanks! Yep, I'll add the bit about the alternator., and the overflow tank cost.
 
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couple of thoughts
1. those radiator zip ties will cause a radiator leak sooner or later. I would replace them with some brackets to secure the radiator to the top of the fan
2. Take a piece of plastic coke bottle or some other plastic and cover up the gap in the top of the fan. You can epoxy it on.
3. You should always try and solder any electric connections. and use shrink wrap over them to keep them secure and free from moisture and dirt.
4. Not sure if you did this, but you want to run the weatherstrip around the entire perimeter of the fan to seal the gap and also so the fan doesn't rub against the radiator and cause leaks.
5. You can tap into the low side A/C on the back of the firewall on top of the evap vs. going all the way around to the A/C compressor. By hooking it up to the compressor, the fan is going to cycle on and off when the A/C clutch turns on and off.
6. You want to connect the FAL controller ground to a battery ground and the + to a battery or starter solenoid + using at least 10g wiring.
7 . I would recommend you purchase your wire, electrical connectors, shrink wrap, and such at HF or online vs. paying parts store prices.
8. I would highly recommend you remove the underdrive pulleys as they do nothing but cause cooling and charging issues.
6. I did do that.
8. That's the plan. It's definitely not charging like it should, even with the 3g alternator. I had thought of just putting the 2g pulley back on there, but stock pullies are in this car's future.
 
Your pictures are fantastic! What kind of camera did you use?
Thanks! I took them with my phone, a Microsoft Lumia 950XL. Great camera, some pretty cool features, but I'm ready to switch...

If you mount the fan upside down, you can bolt it to the top of the radiator using factory holes/clips. Then just fab some bracketry for the bottom.
Got any pictures of this?
 
Sorry, I was mistaken. The fan clips in the bottom, but still need to fab brackets for the top, and then the factory foxbody 5.0 overflow bottle will mount correctly on the drivers side of the fan when the fan is upside down.