55 Ford fan to radiator clearance

Sid

Sid

Well-known member
I ordered a aluminum radiator for a 55 Ford Fairlane. It is a 4 row. I received it today. As I inspected it it is about 1 1/2" thicker then the original. I don't have the car in front of me as it is still snowed in up north. So the question being has anyone used one of these 4 row aluminum radiators in a 55 car and were there any fitment issues? Second as I remember there is a spacer behind the fan. How thick is this spacer and how much real estate is there in front of the fan to the radiator? It will be another month at least before I see the car and I need to make a decision if I need to send this rad. back.
 
Well, my '55 w/292 is 100% factory stock. The original fan spacer is 1 inch dep exactly. It has the original 3-blade fan. There is 5/8 of an inch between the front pitch of the fan and the back of the radiator fins.
If you have an aftermarket fan already, they may have a deeper pitch or variable pitch, which would mean even LESS room between fan and radiator.
You might get away with using the factory 223 I-block 6-cyl radiator side mounting brackets which push the radiator forward into that space in the top of the front air deflector, but that doesn't mean you wouldn't have problems down at the bottom of the 4-row radiator.
It is my understanding that you can order the new radiator with the forward-thrust side mounting brackets for any standard 6-cyl, but I can't guarantee that you still wont have fan space problems at the bottom of the radiator.
You might find many people who have switched to a 4-row on the Jalopy Journal. Most of those people are into modernizations and modifications.
 
I put a 4 blade 56 fan on this car about 3 years ago. I measured a 3 blade fan and it is approx. .910 flat on it's face to the mounting face of the water pump. I'm hoping the 4 blade 56 fan is less.
 
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