How bad are cooling fan zip ties?

I used to use them a lot. Then I had them cause a failure on a stock Volvo 240 radiator. Now I do not use them.

I've never used fans in a race car. Never had a problem  over heating.  Plus I never use a alternator ( parts left off don't weigh anything and never break down.  
      I suppose you need them on the street but typically street cars have a fan on the water pump.  
      

In reply to frenchyd :

Electric fans are a pretty new development in street cars. The newest car in my fleet that came from the factory with electric fans is from 1985 :) Both '85s. And all the 1990s. And the 2000. The 2002 has both electric and clutched engine driven fans.

NASCAR uses fans from what I've seen, probably for when they're under caution. They don't use shrouds because they do have lots of airflow when running at speed. Although their nose-tail caravans do make for challenging cooling. 

In reply to Keith Tanner :

I have seen WRC cars with what looks for the world like the cheapo parts store fans ziptied right to the core.

Then again they also don't seem to be worried about coolant temps until they get to 125-130C.

Thanks to all who responded. It sounds like there are enough confirmed failures that I should work out some sort of better mounting solution. There isn't enough clearance for a mechanical fan, between the radiator and the crank trigger setup.

MadScientistMatt said:

Thanks to all who responded. It sounds like there are enough confirmed failures that I should work out some sort of better mounting solution. There isn't enough clearance for a mechanical fan, between the radiator and the crank trigger setup.

Is there a factory mechanical fan shroud available for the car?  If so, consider buying one and seeing if you can modify it to fit.  Then recess an electric fan into the shroud, using the shroud to mount it. 

Pete. (l33t FS) said:

In reply to Keith Tanner :

I have seen WRC cars with what looks for the world like the cheapo parts store fans ziptied right to the core.

Then again they also don't seem to be worried about coolant temps until they get to 125-130C.

Go cheap cause debris is likely to wreck it?

I used these to mount fans in my autocross car 15+ years ago, no issues so far.  I used to have one large puller fan, later replaced with two smaller pusher fans due to turbo space constraints.  The pusher fans are definitely less efficient (they must run longer to cool the engine) but it hasn't been a problem.

Been on my e30 for about a decade, my girlfriend's e30ute for 5-6 years and my trans am for 10 years or so. e30s have a 16" fan (maybe 14?) and the trans am has two 10" fans. No leaks. However, if I were to do it again I'd build actual mounts. Those zipties just came with the fan so I used them. Didn't even think about building mounts.

rslifkin said:

MadScientistMatt said:

Thanks to all who responded. It sounds like there are enough confirmed failures that I should work out some sort of better mounting solution. There isn't enough clearance for a mechanical fan, between the radiator and the crank trigger setup.

Is there a factory mechanical fan shroud available for the car?  If so, consider buying one and seeing if you can modify it to fit.  Then recess an electric fan into the shroud, using the shroud to mount it. 

I'm using a universal circle track radiator - an OEM mechanical shroud isn't likely to fit.

MadScientistMatt said:

rslifkin said:

MadScientistMatt said:

Thanks to all who responded. It sounds like there are enough confirmed failures that I should work out some sort of better mounting solution. There isn't enough clearance for a mechanical fan, between the radiator and the crank trigger setup.

Is there a factory mechanical fan shroud available for the car?  If so, consider buying one and seeing if you can modify it to fit.  Then recess an electric fan into the shroud, using the shroud to mount it. 

I'm using a universal circle track radiator - an OEM mechanical shroud isn't likely to fit.

That definitely makes it a little harder, but if you can find something like this in an appropriate size, it should do the trick: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-381502

Use bolts instead of the zip ties.  If you do enough Googling, you can find a bolt kit, or you can just go to an Ace Hardware and find some long SS skinnies, fender-like washers, and nylock nuts.  Use the pads that came with the zip kit.  I've used this on a few different cars, and it holds just fine for years. 

Oh, and fan shrouds are way, way, way overrated if you have cooling efficiency . . .

In reply to rustomatic :

If you have more cooling capacity than you need, you can afford to be sloppy. If you're pushing the limits by doing things like doubling the specific output of the vehicle, you can't.

I'm working on a shroud type mount now. But I ended up getting it from Wal-Mart instead of Summit. 

I had them on the rally car for several years and didn't have any issues. Now I have a hard-mount bracket for the fan, but that's only because I went with a really big fan where a bracket was easier to make.