Flex fan/Clutch/ Electric fan retrofit?

Posted by Dave Kenney On 2009/2/13 16:11:40

Reading the Mechanix Illustrated road test of the 1952 Packard I noted that "Uncle Tom" McCahill mentioned that the cooling fan drew about 10HP from the engine at highway speeds when the fan is not necessary. Flex fans, electric fans and clutch fans have been around for decades and I have retofitted them on several of my modern cars over the years but has anyone found a model that will fit a straight eight Packard engine specifically a 356" engine like on my Super Clipper and if so how well did it work? It seems like it would be a good retrofit if it could save a few horsepower and put less strain on the water pump bearings as well as maybe save a bit of gas on highway trips.