I thought I would post my experience after recently overhauling the cooling system by installing a flex-a-lite 180 fan and shroud, Nissens radiator, a motorad 180 degree thermostat and switching to Evans Waterless Coolant.

The fan was pretty straight forward to wire in. I used the included thermostat that has the insert for the radiator. The mounting was not too difficult, and I will probably look at having a shop do something more substantial and permanent if it is good in the summer months. The fan started at around 194 or 195 on its lowest setting, so if you want it cooler than that you would need a different control unit for the fan. It pushes quite a bit of air. It leaves I would say 2 inches on either sided of it when centered. The coverage of the Nissen's radiator from top to bottom is really close to perfect.

The Nissens radiator went in fine, and make sure you follow the order of the Rave manual or it is more difficult, but if you follow the directions it's much easier. I just tore into it like a puzzle and cost myself a bit of time.

The Motorad 180 thermostat was an easy install of course. It opened right at 180 and has been operating for a week now. I will keep an eye on it and test it every month or so, but so far so good. I gets the coolant to the radiator quicker, but I found the final operating temperature to be the same as the 190 degree thermostat, but I feel a bit better having it in there and that is a good thing.

The change over to Evans waterless went fine. I tested it and I have a bit more water left than what they want, and they recommend changing it again, but this is a trial period so I am leaving it with about 4% water left in it. I was able to bleed and refill a couple of times without issue, and was happy with that. I used a wet dry vac to blow out as much of the old coolant as I could. There is an install kit that has a neat nozzle for filling and some stickers which let mechanics know it is a waterless system.

Now for the temperatures. Without the viscous fan the engine gets to temp quicker and starts really easily. Driving on the highway the temps go from 195 to 204. The 202/204 temps are when you are climbing a hill or in traffic, and the fan gets it to 200 which is similar to what I had with the viscous fan. Around town temps were 193 to 197 most of the time with the ambient temperature at 15 to 35 degrees fahrenheit. The outside temp really had no affect on the temps before, so I imagine it will remain the same or similar, but time will tell. Only issue is a temp of 215 after engine shut off. I had not noticed that before. Not sure what that means or if it is a change at all.

I may end up going back to regular coolant and water wetter, almost completely out of curiosity and a bit of paranoia, but so far the temps are lower than what I was experiencing with the viscous fan, 190 thermostat, and Peak Coolant. The waterless will let the engine run a few degrees hotter. I don't drive mine much and wanted the benefit of no water/corrosion and less pressure on the system

The overall experience with the fan is really good. It is noticeably more responsive to the throttle on the highway and around town. I had a couple of O2 sensors replaced as well so am not comfortable saying it increased gas mileage, but it is much more lively. The engine feels, sounds and accelerates better without the viscous fan. My fan was the original and at 138,400 I thought I would make the change. Amazon had the kit for $267. The temps are lower, and that is with the waterless coolant, so in my estimation it is a big upgrade over the viscous fan.

The thermostat and waterless coolant make less impact in my opinion. The thermostat makes me feel better and the waterless coolant worries me a little, but as far as temps go it seems like a push so far. My old radiator was fine, just leaking at the Top left corner and had previously been repaired with silicone and a self threading bolt. I don't think the new radiator had any affect, as the old radiator seemed to be free of any obstruction or corrosion.

I will update this thread if my experience changes.

 

You should be able to get those temps a few degrees cooler if you use an OEM 180 stat or do the inline stat mod. If the waterless coolant runs a few degrees warmer then it sounds like you're getting about the same temps I am with my ford fan, motorad 180, and stock rad. I've got to replace my thermo too. I do run regular green coolant, but my temps are about 4 degrees lower than yours at the highest.

Glad to hear it's working out well for you!

 

+1 on lower temps with the OEM vs. the Motorad. I installed a Motorad initially and in addition to being poorly made (the rubber gasket around the inner thermostat within the housing was partially out of place out of the box) it consistently showed temps around 195 to 200. I switched to the OEM grey and now they are in the 185 to 193 range.

 

The rising to 215 when off is just heat soak and should drop very quickly once the motor is running and circulating the coolant again

 

Thanks Army, it does drop off quickly, also I will switch to the grey OEM when I can. I did not have time to wait and return the one I had so I was stuck a little. The vendor on Amazon calls it OEM, but means it is made to OEM standard, not genuine. I was let down quite a bit by vendors during this project.

 

Call up Amazon. Their customer service I'd the best I've ever dealt with, they'll get you a refund if the seller won't.

 

You really need to pay attention OEM as you have learned doesn't mean a Land Rover part. You need to look for it to say Genuine.

 

Quick update. The fan is operating great, and the temperatures have been the same. Around town 206 is the highest I have seen and on the highway 200-204. The 206 is driving with a heavy foot.

I've been looking forward to temps in hotter weather, but in Chicago we have not had any.

 

Those temps are a little high IMO. I'd stay uneasy at those temps.

 

+ one on that.

After a proper flush/cleaning than included removing block drain plugs before/after and a gallon of vinegar for douche my typical cruising temps between 186-188 and never see 200 any longer.

You may also want to verify your temp reading by using a IR thermometer at ECT sensor/manifold. Found my IR reading spot on when cold but about 5 less than ScanGaugeII reads at operating temps.
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