Cheers mate, I've still got people telling me they work, but I haven't seen any data as of yet. I'm sure better results could be achieved with bigger coolers, but in my opinion fans don't assist the standard unit.
Great video Nat! You always put a lot of efforts and resources into your researches, great to see you how committed you are, thanks for sharing. As far as the results go they are confirming what I also discovered. I believe that playing with airflow and under bonnet pressure effects takes a fair bit of efforts. Just forcing air through the intercooler it doesn't mean the air will travel efficiently unless we can provide a free flow path: confirmed by your paper test and can be referenced to the WRC rally cars where they duct the air post exchangers straight through the bonnet. Furthermore as all 4wders we have bigger bash plates installed on our cars restricting the air flow from under the bonnet even further. As your video confirmed at low speed the fans are more efficient due to the fact the their airflow can travel in a lower pressure environment than at high speed (no air coming from the front grill). As far as bigger or front mounted intercooler options I don't like either of them as well as they also have their cons. The bigger the intercooler and pipe system the more amount of air is required to reach certain pressure levels hence bigger turbo lag effect. The front mounted intercooler will affect the air temp delivered to the other exchangers. My 2cents Thanks Nathan keep them coming
For sure, there are soo many combinations and styles of engine modifications that could be done. I guess it would come down to personal driving style and how much money you would be willing to spend to get that 'X' amount of extra power. In the end, these are a cheap mod, however I've found them to be unhelpful in my application. Cheers mate.
Hey, very interesting video, And from what I can see the difference isn't worth-it on most scenarios however during the low speed hill climb test temperatures had a quite noticeable difference so therefore in the case of driving through tracks at low speed in low rage for long periods of time the fans would most defiantly help. Also have to agree with Caravan comment at low speed with excess load of 3tonne and minimal air flow the fans once again would help. I guess I feel this small simple mod is worth it for those circumstances.
For sure, it all depends on what each person plans on doing with their vehicle. Check out my other tests where I did test the units in low range 4WD and towing scenarios: 4WD - ua-cam.com/video/7n_vaW5YYQw/v-deo.html Towing - ua-cam.com/video/AaIM6K9Pj68/v-deo.html Cheers, Nathan.
Could you do a test using the fans turned ON for low speed and then turn them OFF speeds above 60kph. You may be able to get the best results from both high AND low speeds then. I just towed a 3.5 ton caravan to and from Adelaide. Serious head wind all the way there. Driving at 90to 95 Kph on flat sections with the torque converter locked in 4th gear to keep the EGT’s at a reasonable level. Up the steeper hills, I would be cresting the top at around 80kph after a long uphill climb. I wonder if the fans would be more effective at these lower speeds with much higher loads. In your test you were able to clear the intercoolers stale air at 110kph...I wonder if higher loads and lower top speed would make the fans worth while for this type of application. Fantastic videos from your channel. Extremely informative. Thanks for putting so much effort into the data and explanations.
Thanks mate, appreciate the encouraging comments there. I think that some more testing is required to get a full idea on how and where these fans are most effective. To be honest though, from my results, any speed at or over 70km/h (regardless of load) the standard cooler is going to be more efficient. It wouldn't matter how much load is on the vehicle, if there is that steady air flow coming through, then the results should theoretically be the same, just at a higher temp. Slower speed though would be another story. It would come down to how you drive your vehicle and where you want that extra benefit.
Good video demonstrating the simple rules whith fans. Fans must be used with a few rules to be followed. -Shrouds to control airflow accross whole core area and stop airflow recirculating. -Fans must have sufficient airflow in and out. Bonnect scoops on Cruisers and patrols NEVER flow enough airflow. -Fans best when in traction setup (draw-through) with shroud.
Great vid champ , I think you may have missed the whole point and the application bennefits of the fans they are mainly for for high load at low speeds , the fans mod set up works very well on the 79, many thanks for all your work though , love your stuff
Thanks mate, for sure, I realise that the fans are now high load, low speed, however at what cost? I'm sure I'm in the same situation as many when I say that I conduct many more highway or road kilometres than beach or highload/low speed kilometres. I would rather keep the efficiency at the maximum where I am going to spend most of my time. Personally I haven't had any issues with temps to date on the beach, sitting fitting them in this situation isn't 'required' as such at this time. PS. I also just finished a weekend of testing these fans in sand and the results weren't impressive for my vehicle. I hope to release the video Thursday week. Cheers for watching mate, appreciate the comments and hopefully you will enjoy the vid's to come. Cheers, Nathan.
Thanks Nathan always informative. It’s great when we’re told what we do need, even better to be told what we don’t need. Lots of hype out there … Great video 👍👍
XploringOz Nathan there is so much shit online nowadays I’m at a loss why anyone would spend so much time doing this much research. Then I see your vids and think dam. This bloke is awesome. Thanks mate I can’t thank you enough for the effort you go to. Air high five from brisbane mate 👋
Exceptional video mate! Something everyone should watch before spending big money on modifications that promise a lot but ultimately deliver no benefits. Keep the videos coming mate👌
Great vid mate. Thank you. As I've said in the past, the millions of R&D dollars that Toyota spend would probably also include some computational fluid dynamics (CFD) of the intercooler air flow, with/without obstructions like bull bars, lights etc. Frankly, I'm not at all surprised by your results.
For sure, I couldn't help myself but try it out anyway, given the variety of mixed opinions on the forums. I admit I was a little surprised, but happy that I didn't jeopardise intake temps in the long run. Cheers, Nathan.
Great vid mate and yes the push fans create alot of interference and block air flow, but when mounted under and used to pull the air through it was shown to be alot more beneficial. Again great vid and well presented. Thank you.
For sure, I agree. Although some of this information goes against the popular mainstream opinions on Internet forums. I'm glad you enjoyed the video and hopefully it was able to provide some useful information. Cheers, Nathan.
I put fans on my Ford Territory Intercooler some years ago. I fitted A pusher fan on top and a puller fan under the cooler. I fitted a Davis Craig thermo fan controller to switch the fans on at the desired Temp I choose, (50 c in summer 45 in winter ). I ran many many tests on the intake air temps at all types of conditions ( using a quality scan tool).The fans work great at low speeds in traffic / on the beach. Fans turn off after about 2-3 minutes over 60/70kmh, air coming thru bonnet works well over those speeds. If my car has been driven to operating temp, then parked / stopped and let sit for 20/30 plus , the intercooler soak heat gets to 80c, if you then just drive in traffic etc at slow speeds the intercooler stays at those higher temps, with the fans I fitted, the intercooler temp is cooled back to what I've set 45c within couple of minutes, there is a noticeable difference in summer especially with the engines eagerness in slow hot conditions , I wasn't looking for major power gains, just trying to give the engine etc the best chance it can get in all conditions. If you never go under 60/70kmh , no you don't needs fans, but if you want to get rid of soak heat quicker & drive in hot summer traffic, fans are good and work. But at the end of the day, ya don't really need fans, I did it because I could, and was keen to see some positive results. I.e My particular set up on my car didn't affect the max cooling capabilities when the car is at speed, intercooler gets just as cool as it did with out the fans also. I don't feel my fan set up has blocked the forced air through the bonnet scoop causing restrictions. See link to my set up, ua-cam.com/video/s9DihR_u8EE/v-deo.html
Cheers for sharing. For sure, its going to be different for each type of vehicle and most importantly your style of driving. I think that a lot of people out there buy these 200 series to tow heavy loads and tour the country and therefore spend a lot of time on the highway at highway speeds. It's interesting the see the testing results you got and I'm think I'll have to do some more testing in more conditions in the future. Cheers, Nathan.
@@XploringOz thanks for replying mate, yep your correct, ya don’t really need the fans driving at speed as you have found out as well as myself, based on tests performed. I still own the Territory and the fans system I fitted is still working well. Some other advantages I have found are. When the vehicle is stationary ( especially in Summer heat ) my thermo fans on the engine radiator will come on to cool the engine & A/C condenser as required. ( Engine fans come on and off a lot in summer to keep A/C condenser pressures down). When those engine radiator fans do come on ( stationary vehicle) the hot air being pulled through the radiator into the engine bay, some of that hot air is also being pushed back up through the intercooler & out of the bonnet scoop,heating it up even more, with the Fans fitted to the intercooler this problem doesn’t happen. 1 other thing I noticed with your system in the 200 series, it appeared that you only had 1 relay running your 2 fans. If that was the case, may I suggest you fit a separate relay for both your fans, having separate relays and wiring will reduce Voltage drop and improve the max speed of your fans, they will spin a little harder & push that bit more air 👍.
@@benlondon8467 For sure, I agree with you there. One interesting point though and something that might be worth testing in the future is the fan speed. You mentioned that 2 relays might increase the fan speed, but I actually think a decreased fan speed might be beneficial in this instance. The standard intercooler is obviously designed for high heat disruption with relatively low air flow and therefore creates that back pressure I experienced. I wonder if a slower fan speed would eliminate that back pressure and provide a more efficient cooling rate... maybe an idea for a future test.
@@XploringOz yep you may be onto something with low speed fans as pushers, 👍, but if ya can or got pulling fans, I’d say faster the better. Ya can’t beat making the tests to see what is really going on. 👌
You’re bang on mate. Large intercoolers with high thermal mass benefit a lot from fans to try and alleviate heat soak after sitting or in slow traffic. Intercoolers have two properties which determine how they behave, their air to air efficiency and their thermal mass. High thermal mass works against you once they’re hot and fans work to bring temps down when you have no airflow. Thermal mass is simply the heat the material absorbs....takes a while to heat up but then penalises you once soaked. Don’t jump to conclusions that fans don’t work.
Be interesting to see the effects of the spotlights and winch box on air flow ? One thing that is overlooked when lifting a four wheel drive is the greater height slows the air speed underneath the car and it doesn’t pull heat from the engine bay as well
Brilliantly done. Thanks for doing that and pointing out my logical thinking when i first saw B.D Service going on about all the benefits to be had by installing fans.
Thanks mate. I was very surprised when I got back to analyse these results, however I can't see the long term value in these fans. PS. I've done some more testing on the beach (higher load, lower speed) and hope to release some results in the coming weeks. Cheers , Nathan
Great vid, simply speaking, if you usually run car in slow speed and climbing, then add a fan is useful, but for other normal cruising road travel, fan may not be necessary. thanks again for useful information.
Thank you for another well thought out and presented video. You have saved me some dollars as this was something i was considering. The graphs are well presented and explained. Real world testing and no marketing bs. Thank you for sharing to us lc 200 owners.
Thanks mate, I'm glad it was useful. I plan on doing future tests with these fans in various scenarios, however the fact remains, if your like me and spend most of your driving on the highway, then any benefit at low speed would not likely outweigh the costs. Cheers, Nathan.
Your test makes perfect sense, and for me, the conclusions would be the same - I spend 90%+ of my time driving on roads at 70-120 kmh, so definitely no need for fans there. I do occasionally pull heavy loads at low speeds (Towing other cars, trailers), and would it make sense for those circumstances to bring the two fans with you, store them in a case, and add some quick connects to plug them in, when needed? Then again, as you mentioned, when going slow, you rarely would need those bursts of peak power, so yeah... The manufacturer spent millions on that research, and it's probably smarter to leave it stock :)
Thanks mate, I'm glad I could convey this in a logical way. I did do a Part 2 and Part 3 with these intercooler fans, using them in different situations to see what would happen. Might be worth watching those, if you are still sitting on the fence as to which way to go. Cheers, Nathan.
That makes perfect sense. I know that a well known diesel specialist south of Sydney promote these but after using their brand of performance chip for several years all I got was sky height egt when towing. Swapped to a unichip and found what I had been missing. Sometimes all the Hype in the worlds merely marketing.
I stumbled across your vid man but great insight as potentially looking at going down the same track. I’m keen to know where you got your air box from though as well mate ?
Awesome, hopefully this has helped 🤞 I'm now running the Donaldson XLC200K airbox which is by far the best solution to date. Can get them from Essential 4x4 - essential4x4.com.au
Hi William , these results are for 200 series only I have experienced massive bennificial differences on the 79 series under heavy load at low speeds with a stock Orem inter cooler and tuned v8
Yes, this seems to be an issue with a particular company after I released this video. I'm not discrediting anyone, nor was it the purpose of this video. I am just trying to test these products in a real world environment and share my findings. Of note, I have recently come back from a weekend testing these fans in a low speed/high load application (beach driving) and hope to have another video out in the coming weeks with my results.
Love the safety footwear when cutting out the bracket. Mine look similar, LOL. Good video though, very informative and debunks a few myths by the looks of it.
Haha, yeah I paid for that for a few days... Cheers mate, hopefully it give some people another perspective and takes away from the rumours and here-say.
Good info and findings, thanks for sharing. I'm wondering in the case of towing a 3T Caravan up a steep range would actually give you better results with fans installed due to reduced speed and air flow e.g. (70km/h). In this situation having increased load and temps is more likely the situation where most folks experience issues rather than just dragging along at 100km/h on the highway.
I see you thought process here, however I'm not sure I would agree 100%. My 70km/h test shows that both setups have little to no difference and any speed above this, the standard setup is superior. It wouldn't matter how much load is placed on the vehicle, the standard intercooler will be more efficient with a steady air flow (at 70km/h and above). Slow speed driving is another story. Keep in mind that if the vehicle begins to derate and slow due to excessive load, then this is engine and EGT temperatures exceeding safe levels. A slightly lower intake temp will have very little effect on this. Cheers, Nathan.
Cheers, glad you enjoyed it, hopefully it will help some people make an educated decision. Unfortunately there have been some unforeseen delays (fault of my own). It is still coming, however not as soon as expected.
Cheers mate. It all comes down to where and how you plan on using the vehicle I guess. There may be benefits to some people driving style, but for me, I can't justify the highway speed sacrifice.
Wow that's a very informative vid mate. Thanks for.putting in all that effort. From your research it appears having the fans are an advantage if you are in a lot of stop start traffic, and slow off-road hill climbs and possibly towing as they help reduce heat soak. So the way I see it, they are worth the spend dependant on the type of driving you do. I have a 2017 76 series with the larger bonnet intake, so I wonder how different the figures would be on a 70 series I really like that mount you fabricated. What gauge gal did you use? Thanks again Mick
Thanks mate, glad you enjoyed the content and I hope it can provide some useful information. Yes, it would definitely depend on where and how you use the vehicle, however I have done a couple of follow up videos in relation to these fans, you can see the results here: ua-cam.com/video/7n_vaW5YYQw/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/AaIM6K9Pj68/v-deo.html It would be interesting to see the results on a 70 series cruiser, however I can say that I have a mate who has tried similar testing as per my videos and he also observed a detriment, but I have no tangible evidence for these tests. The bracket turned out quite well, too bad I'm not using it now.... It's 3mm steel. Probably a little overkill to be honest. Cheers, Nathan.
A good idea for these cooling fans is for INTERCOOL .. In Saudi Arabia, Turbo malfunctions due to weather temperature cannot bear our difficult weather .. but diesel engines are different in Saudi Arabia and Australia .. I don’t know why but Is there a private Toyota factory in Australia with Australian specifications?
Yes, very different environmental conditions over there. So there isn’t a Toyota factory here in Australia, but our vehicles are tuned for our conditions 👍
Another great test with facts. Your last couple of minutes answered my question on benefits when under load vs off and on road. I’m still tossing up a fmic vs top mount when I turbo charge my 1hz (which is important to keep cool to avoid grenadine). Would still like to see this test down the beach. Bornholm or calcup style
Hi Nathan, very interesting test and obviously also the results. Actually I was waiting for your test to see what you find out. Now very much interested in the audience commences and other real test and results and the question why is it like that. Cheers
Thanks Nathan a very good informative video i notice that you have what looks like are recovery points fitted could you do a video on fitting them and your thoughts on them and the recovery points that come standard on the cruiser as I am thinking of getting a set of recovery points myself and they are quite expensive to be fitted. Cheers tom
Another great video Nathan . I would be interested in seeing how much interference if you left the fans off at high speed . Maybe can get best for both low and high speeds
Hmm, good idea. Could be a good idea for a future test. I would also be interested to see if a lower fan speed would assist as it appears that this standard intercooler can't handle to volume of forced air.
Hi, good video. Another really useful comparison would be to install water sprayers onto the intercooler, maybe using garden irrigation equipment and a dc pump and bottle. A lot of high performance cars use them, from factory the STI Subaru use them on one of there limited edition over 340 hp models. Heaps of other cars use them too. The science behind it is whenever you have evaporation occurring ie water changing from a liquid state to a gas state this requires huge amounts of Latent heat to work. That’s why on a frosty morning when the sun hits the frost and is turning the solid(ice) to a liquid (water) this generally the coldest part of the night by a few degrees. I remember a mate did it on his high boost RX7 back in my younger days with good results. Cheers
For sure mate, definitely another option. This is something that I tried on my old GU patrol as well. The only thing will this is that the water is a finite resource, requiring regular fills, where as the fans are able to run full time without attention. Maybe something worth testing just for the fun of it though. Cheers, Nathan.
Looking around Mishimoto fan does 1600 cfm.... thats over double the flow of fan used. Also 10" Do you think the fans used 🤔 could have effected the results adversely?
Yes, there are some powerful fans out there, however will they fit on this stock setup? They cannot be any higher in profile than these otherwise they will rub on the factory ducting... Cheers/
Thanks mate. I’ve only recently had EGT gauges installed, however I will be finishing up with one further tow test with fans and will monitor. My assumption is they won’t make a difference if the fans aren’t actually lowering the intake temperatures, but I’ll be sure to check regardless. Cheers, Nathan.
Hello nathan, I love the video as it is very informative. Would the results be different if the fans were under the intercooler and pull air instead of push?
Cheers mate, glad you enjoyed it. So yes, the results wild likely be much better with puller fans mounted underneath, however they simply just don’t fit on the standard inter cooler system. An aftermarket unit, with a high flow rate and puller fans would likely achieve a much better result.
Great video thanks mate. The meat and potatoes for me was the high load, low speed data. I'm wondering whether the 10 degree gap would increase if on sand with low speed and a heavy load???? This potential increase, if it occurs, is where the fans may provide some real benefit. Highway driving - fans would appear to be a waste of time. Won't be running out to get fans for my VDJ79 dual cab any time soon, you saved me some real money - thanks.
Thanks mate. Yes, I'll definitely do another video in the future of this high load, low speed and I'm sure we will see a benefit. I guess to thought process will be more around how often you use your vehicle in those circumstances. For me, I'd rather the highway efficiency as this is where I spend most of my time. Cheers.
Maybe try same test on the beach. Soft sand really working the car. A V8 diesel is not at work on a highway hence why all big trucks are big diesels. Built for it!
Top video Nathan, I have wondered about these thinking that the fans would block air themselves even with them running. Engineers have worked it out pretty well for these cars. Thanks
Cheers mate. The results were a little surprising for me, but I'm glad I didn't sacrifice that highway efficiency just based on other's opinions of these mods.
G’day Nathan, great job your doing. Very interesting, I definitely would of thought those fans would of made a bigger difference. I live 4 hours south of you, I also had a patrol ( put in a fully welded Cross County intercooler with fans underneath drawing air thru bonnet scoop operated only when slow driving, ie sand or city traffic light driving on hot days) Factory intercooler only crimped. Dropped temps dramatically. I have had a 2013 gxl 200 for the last 2.5 years & will go the Cross Country option that comes with a bonnet scoop if I see the need. Cheers 👍🏼
Cheer mate, appreciate the feedback. You guys are lucky where you live, got some awesome scenery and landscapes down there! It would be interesting to test the aftermarket cooler side by side with the standard just to see what kind of difference it makes. I could imagine the low speed driving would see a dramatic benefit. I guess it all comes down to what kind of driving each person uses their vehicle for. If it's always in city traffic and does a high percentage of beach driving (or other high load, low speed scenarios) then it would definitely be worth the coin for upgrades. Hopefully we'll see you down there sometime. Cheers.
@@XploringOz Absolutely Nathan, very keen to see the comparison between a factory intercooler vs say a Cross Country aftermarket set up. Let us know when your done this way next 👍🏼
Very interesting but I have ordered a 79 series and I will be getting the fans fitted. I tow 3.5 tons and drive at 90kph in hot conditions. I worked in the car industry in Detroit and I know that car manufacturers spend millions on research and I also know that they like to save money whenever they can. Toyota spends millions on research and brings out a 4x4 with the front wheels at a different width to the back wheels, how cost cutting is that? If I lived in Tassie I wouldn't get the fans fitted but driving in the top end is a different story.
Interesting and I agree that car manufacturers need to consider the cost of certain components, however saying this these fans are very inexpensive and would be available to the manufactures at a fraction of the cost of the public. If Toyota deemed these vehicles to benefit from these fans I dare say they would add them in. Further, I am currently editing a tow test with these fans installed and have some interesting results. Not quite the 3.5t load, but enough to develop a pattern and trend. Personally (without testing at present) if you really wanted benefit from reduced intake temps I believe a replacement aftermarket cooler would be the way to go. I would be interested to hear back from you if you are able to measure any of these parameters in your vehicle with your conditions. Cheers, Nathan.
@@XploringOz Nathan, thanks for getting back to me. I wasn't having a dig at you about your video, we need more people to do testing. We drove into Gove before Christmas and sometimes we were down to 10kph because of the road conditions, not enough air getting through at this speed. Outside temp was around 34c with about 100% humidity. The fans fitted cost $600, an aftermarket cooler costs a lot more. When my new 79 series arrives I'll be glad to let you know how it goes. Thanks again for your response. Shane
@@shanespicer6348 All good mate, absolutely no offence taken. I like the fact that everyone is different and has their own opinions and ideas about modifications. This is what keeps the aftermarket auto scene so interesting and diverse. If these fans work for your style of driving and climate it would be silly not to install them. I definitely understand where you are coming from. Definitely let us know how you go and helpfully we'll see you guys out and about there some day. Cheers.
Hi Nathan. Great video!. I guess in this setup fans did not give any significant difference due to air blockage at the other end of the intercooler. In this senario the intercooler needs to be moved outside with complete pass through airflow with fans in suction position. This should show some difference as there would not be any return airflow. would love to see a video on this if possible. P.S The snorkel might help if it is thermal insulated with free flow air intake ex. K&N without filter enclosure. What do you say?
Thanks mate. Potentially, however my theory is that the airflow just wasn't effective at entering or passing through that intercooler at all. No doubt the suction fans would work much better, however at a much more expensive cost given the alterations needed to the intercooler. I guess I was just trying to show here that low cost simple modification to a standard intercooler isn't going to provide a great difference. In relation the the thermal insulated snorkel, I'm not sure this would provide noticeable difference. My intake temps (after the airbox) are only about 3 degrees warmer than ambient temperatures. Even if we got this to ambient temps, I believe they difference or any benefit would be minimised through the movement around the intake and turbos. Cheers, Nathan.
@@XploringOz True that!.. well im gonna try this soon. As i have an hyundai i20 diesel with stock front mounted intercooler (complete pass through) with 3 300cfm fans on suction with fiberglass thermal insulation from airfilter (k&n) all the way to the trottle body. Probably even insulate the intercooler on the sides due to major heat soak problem. The car came with 90hp. After the air filter the power came to 118hp in ambient temp. One day i woke the car at 4 am and dyno'd it in engine cold, it resulted 132hp just for a few mins till the engine got hot. Any better suggestions on how to cool the intercooler down? Except NOS. Cheers!
@@gurmeetmarora Interesting to hear how different those results were in real world testing. In terms of cooling the intercooler, you could maybe test water sprayers? Spraying water onto the intercooler during testing uses both conductive and evaporative cooling which is quite effective. Not so much for 4WD's though due to attracting dirt and debris and the finite quantity of water that can be carried, but for road vehicle, could be worth looking at? Also could consider Interchiller? There's plenty of information on their website about how they work and some of the benefits and considerations that need to be taken into account. Cheers.
I havent read the other messages but id be more inclined to think that removing the factory shroud has removed the seal to the bonnet, and your likely sucking in air passed through the radiator as well as the bonnet scoop. not air directly from outside
The factory air ducting on the underside of the bonnet draws air direct from the grill. This bypasses any engine or cooling components and is the freshest, coolest air you're going to get into this intercooler without installing a bonnet scoop. Cheers, Nathan.
This is a very interesting video Nathan, as is your more recent video on the sand. It defies logic somewhat to see the results you are getting but it makes sense the fans will be blocking some of the flow from the intake. I'm wondering if the fan speeds are too great and there would be a benefit to slowing them down via some speed control? Based on your paper test I feel better efficiency could be gained at a slower fan speed. Is it also possible the fan cfm is exceeding the bonnet intake flow capabilities and hot air is being pulling from the engine bay? Either back through the intercooler sections that are not under the fans or around the bonnet seal? Something to think about I guess. Keep up the great work mate, your videos are very informative and thorough.
Cheers mate. I can agree that these results definitely surprised me and wasn't what I was expecting at all... I'm not sure the fans are necessarily blocking the airflow per say, I believe the issue is the ability for the volume of air that the fans produce to pass though the intercooler fans. A lower flow rate may work and may be something that could be tested in the future. Further, I don't believe that the CFM would be exceeded through the factory ducts. These ducts are fairly large and given they are designed to accept airflow from high speed highway driving, believe they could cope with the CFM. Cheers, Nathan.
Yes, I see your point, however the back pressure wasn't coming from those gaps. It was being emitted from within the fan radius. Even with those gaps filled up, the air would still be returned from the fans.
Very informative, thanks! In saying that, you've convinced me to buy a single 9" for my d'max as I will be doing 100% sand driving for 4 months straight and outside of that I tow an 1800kg around full time. I think I will setup a trigger at a certain ait voltage to trigger the fans given I do have a scoup which helps at speed.
Cheers mate, glad you found it somewhat helpful. For sure, look every vehicle is going to be slightly different, so hopefully this works well for your application 👍
@@XploringOz I would have loved to see the effect on temps with fans fitted, but not running. Or better yet, fans with a controller to try and find the 'sweet' spot. It would differ to my car given I have a scoop, but interesting nonetheless!
Thanks Nathan, great work. Did you compare the charge air temperature with the fans fitted but not running compared to no fans fitted? Wondering if it may be worth fitting fans, but only switch them on when needed, ie slow, hard slog.
Cheers mate, potentially. It might make a little difference, but after running these tests and feeling the lack of power difference given the temperatures it probably isn't something I would invest much more time and money into. Further no other engine parameters appeared to be significantly affected from the temperature variations.
Hi Nathan another excellent unbias video ,like most things on 4x4s the factory intercooler has comprises but as you summed it up time soft sand for me is low also, crossing the Simo , Canning stock route probably the fans may have advantages. I think a front mounted intercooler would be more effective reduced heat soak but at the result of reducing air flow to radiator & auto cooler plus not a lot of room. I think a lot of accessories sold are just for a money making exercise . How far away is the new van you have me thinking !! Cheers Ian
Cheers mate. For sure, the fans would have their place in certain driving conditions and this would be individual to everyone's personal style of driving. To be honest, these fans will probably stay in my shed until a trip like the CSR comes around. So there has been some delay on the new van (my fault), but it is still coming. All ordered and awaiting completion, just unknown at this stage. COVID has really pushed dates out for some of these companies. Cheers mate.
What are your thoughts on installing a single fan on the Hilux 1kd? Any advices? Since it has the Intercooler Duct directly at the hood so any chances that it will work better on Hilux?
hey mate, so I haven't had any experience with the Hilux setup, so not sure what the results would be. I dare say (from my experience with a similar intercooler setup on my 3L patrol) that it would only be beneficial if you could get a puller fan mounted underneath and then you get the high airflow from hwy driving and the higher CMF on rocks with that fan too. Do you know if there's enough room under there for a fan?
Yep this validates what I have seen the only real benefit is really going be on hot days under heavy load at slow speeds, like climbing up Mt Pinnibar.
I’ve worked for a number of vehicle manufacturers over the years in engineering and have been involved in countless design and testing projects. What you revealed in this video is a no brainer. OEM’s spend millions getting cars right! They have the equipment, facilities and engineers to work out the most efficient way a vehicle can perform in all conditions. Well done with this presentation and hopefully you have educated some watching that in most cases the best thing for your vehicle is to leave it alone. I have never seen so many mods available for a model that is meant to be the class leader. If only all the mods were tested honestly like you have 95% of these after market places would be broke!
I agree with you there. Some things should just be left alone. I do still think there is a place for certain aftermarkets modifications, where vehicle manufactures have to cater for all types of driving styles, rather than just overloading, however intercooler fans are not one of them. Appreciate the comments and sharing your thoughts. Cheers, Nathan.
Shane without a doubt that is the OEM’s brief as you say. But after witnessing and being part of engineering with a number of manufacturers I can assure you that if some of these so called simple add on’s were a viable addition they would use them. If you look at the addition of these fans for example how were they ever going to work when they are trying to get more air flow through the same air inlets. They are simply a restriction in the inter cooler air flow.
@@richard4136 on the other hand, look at the wiring in most modern vehicles, if 16 gauge is ideal, but 18 gauge is 2 cents cheaper but does the job, 20 gauge is what they use😁
Haha agree but no different to any industry. Housing, white goods, tools, furniture they are all the same. Why give you more when the bare minimum will do the job. (Supposedly?) At the end of the day we are our own worst enemy. If things were over engineered we wouldn’t want to pay for the quality. Look at Bunnings its full of cheap sh#t that people can’t get enough off!!
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it. I personally never had an issue with the transmission. I do believe the torque convertor in the Prado is very effective and has less slip than the 200 series. Unless you were detecting specific issues, I'd tend to leave it.
Gday. Do you think with a 70 series from the scoop and air comes in from the top where a 200 series air comes in from the front so the fans block the flow before it goes into the top of the fans.... Wonder if there is much difference?
Different design for sure, however I have a mate who has recently tested the exact same setup on highway 2009 76 series and got the exact same results I did. I believe that the factory Toyota intercooler is just more efficient left as standard. Cheers, Nathan.
I haven't got the setup readily available at the moment. Are you asking about the noise level inside the vehicle with the engine running? If so, I can confirm that you cannot here it from inside the vehicle (windows open or closed). It can be heard from outside the vehicle and definitely if the engine is off. Cheers, Nathan.
@@XploringOz was wondering about the fans cause they sounded loud, commented while watching so I didn’t know yet that you plan to remove it. Thank you!
@@rudys0951 No problems 👍They are a little loud, if they worked it would be worth it... but as you have probably seen, they are not for my setup. Cheers.
great information we did a similar test years ago results much the same on a std intercooler. on a tuned engine with higher boost the results are worse again.
Thanks for sharing. I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only person with these results. I have a friend nearby with a 76 series who has had the exact same results as I have shown here.
It would interesting to see the results with the fans mounted but with no gaps around them so the air cannot leak backwards and can only go through the intercooler (a shroud).
Yes, I see your point, however the back pressure wasn't coming from those gaps. It was being emitted from within the fan radius. Even with those gaps filled up, the air would still be returned from the fans.
Hey mate, so I don't personally have access to do these types of modifications to a 70 series, however I have taken a close look at the intercooler and the design characteristics are identical. This would indicate similar results would be achieved. Further, I have a mate who has tried this (prior to my testing) on his 76 series and he found the temps increased about 10 degrees. Again, have no video proof, but after my experience on this topic, I wouldn't be fitting this style of setup to a 70 series. Cheers, Nathan.
I would have bet on the fans. The Totota engineers seem to know what they are doing, reasuring I guess. A bit of a hill is no substitute for soft beach sand though.
Great video Nathan, thanks heaps!! I was actually thinking they might be beneficial for a trip like the Canning Stock Route, however as you suggested, I probably wont need any peak power and it is something else to rattle loose. I would be keen to see some measurements with the fans in place but turned off at highway cruising just to see whether they block cooling much and then maybe if they were on a thermal switch so they effectively only came on at low speeds such as at the beach/sand dunes etc they might be better??? I'm certain they will disrupt airflow but I wonder what that looks like in terms of temps? Cheers mate
For sure, I see where you are coming from here. The only reservation I have with setting this up (apart from more expense into a product I won't use) is that the benefits from the low speeds with the fans activated don't really seem to product any benefit at all. Even if they did provide a slightly lower temp, the gain in power would be negligible. I might try to test a unload towing test, just to confirm they don't provide benefit in most circumstances. I think another interesting test would be to see whether an aftermarket intercooler would have much effect in these tests...
@@XploringOz Yeah, I just saw the sand testing as well and after that IU have to agree, why bother? It'd be interesting to see a couple of the leading or better known kits tested to see if different fans make any difference or the shrouds use help etc but after all this I doubt it very much. I'd also doubt towing would make much difference but it'd be something to check. I also agree if you are looking to improve intercooler performance, then it looks like replacement wold be the way to go. Keep up the great work mate.
@@robertgrayson3394 Cheers mate. I guess the difference with towing, particularly under load (like up a steep long hill) is that it will cause some seriously high temperatures. This will enable us to determine whether there is a temperature level where the fans might provide a benefit. Like you, I don't think it will, but something that has been highly requested and debated through this series... Cheers.
Coolerfans should be suction type fans. When you could use thoos it would bring more. The Fans now where recycling warm air around, and by that heated the intercooler up. Your vidoe was very usefull though. I was thinking of adding a fan behind my intercooler, to lower the air inlet temperture, but I will skip it.
Sure, suction fans are much more effective, however as mentioned in the video even the slimmest of fans won't fit. The fans are still bringing in clean, fresh air through the bonnet ducts. Cheers, Nathan.
Like explained in the video, I don't have ready access to this environment. If I can get the chance to do this, I will release another video. Cheers, Nathan.
Yet again you've done a great presentation of facts Nathan - science beats BS and ill informed opinions any day of the week. With a bit more room a full sized shroud would stop the recirculation, but like you I can think of very few occasions I'd need the fans - towing across the Simpson perhaps...
Thanks mate, appreciate it. Yes, this could be an option, but yes, I don't think it's worth the effort for the marginal difference in limited scenarios. Cheers.
That saves me thinking about fans at all for mine! So thank you for this test. I must ay I have seen lower EGTs on mine since replacing the intercooler with an HPD unit so I think thats enough. Cheers Steve
@@XploringOz Easily 50+ degree improvement. In EGT's with the HPD Kit mate. I have to say I didn't set out to do the intercooler on mine but we found a hole in the factory cooler and for a bigger better cooler was on $200 dearer than Toyota. Cheers Steve
Another well done vid mate, I have a single pusher thermo fan on the top mount intercooler on my Prado 120 series, bull bar, 9'' driving lights, winch control box, can Anyone confirm that it would have the same/similar results as we see here ? (thinking about removing the thermo fan now, emm.. )
Cheers mate. Might be worth getting some software, of even a temperature probe and just seeing how your vehicle reacts with the fan off and on. I think each vehicle would be slightly different and it would heavily depend on how you plan on driving the car as well...
Awesome video .. got a question. At which speed ( mínimum ) stock setup becomes more efficient than the fans ? and did you considere that it's worth keeping fans on at HW speeds ?
For sure, I guess to find this speed it will take more testing, however it will also depend on how you plan on using the vehicle. Personally, especially when I'm on a trip, I spend majority of my time at highway, or at least faster speeds. In my case, the fans will cause a hinderance, rather than a benefit. I have completed some more testing on beach sand, lower speeds, higher loads and hope to release my findings in the coming weeks. This could help answer your question too. Cheers.
@@XploringOz thanks for taking the time to reply to me .. I have a VDJ76 ( fan setup on my own minimum HW trips ) I really appreciate your videos. Quality, your pronunciation voice modulation it's very good too ..keep them coming
A snorkel will definitely lower intake temperatures in the first instance. With my setup here, I'm getting intake temperatures around 3/4 degrees Celsius above ambient. Having a standard intake (where the intake is within the front guard) can see intake temperatures 20/25 degrees above ambient. Having a snorkel will not only provide a cooler intake, but cleaner air as well. Definitely a mod worth looking into even if you don't plan on driving through water.
Great video, no 12V fan will ever match the airflow coming through the grill of the car. The other thing is the extra drag from the alternator trying to keep those fans spinning is also going to reduce output from the engine and increase fuel consumption.
Believe it or not those holes that you made for extra airflow ended up killing any gains in heat loss as you introduced a way for re-circulation with positive to negative pressure. Nearly all OEM and aftermarket radiators have a sealed mount for fans/shroud. Let your pusher fans do their job.
I hear what you are saying, but the circulation of air is not escaping from the holes within the bracket. The air is coming back out from within the radius of the fan. Although a full shroud might effect the results marginally, I still strongly believe the results would be the same.
I'd be interested in seeing a day of slow-speed rock crawling results. I'd expect the fans to have better results, as there's no air flow from the vents.
For sure, so I haven't done a rock crawling video as such, however I have done testing on sand (higher load) at various speeds. The video can be found here: ua-cam.com/video/7n_vaW5YYQw/v-deo.html I have also done a video of towing a van up a hill too: ua-cam.com/video/AaIM6K9Pj68/v-deo.html
They really should be underneath tbhonest. Did same sort of test with transmission coolers at front of vehicle, best and lower trans temps was fit xlarge cooler hard mounted against ac condensor so airs pushed and sucked through by engine fan.
Yes, I see your point, however the back pressure wasn't coming from those gaps. It was being emitted from within the fan radius. Even with those gaps filled up, the air would still be returned from the fans.
@@XploringOz i seen once i finished full video 👌. They defo better without fans. Even ilding yeah temps may get a tad higher but will cool down quicker once you get moving imo.
Although I see where you're coming from, unless you plan on towing at very low speeds they won't assist. If you towing at 70km/h or above, as demonstrated in the testing, we can see the standard intercooler is more efficient at cooling the air over the fans. It doesn't matter how much load or wind resistance you add to the combination, the intercooler will still remain more efficient. Again at lower speed, the fans might provide a small benefit, however it will depend on your style of driving and where most of your time is spent.
Low speed sand driving and or dunes and also one fan only would be interesting testing situations. Low speed might be helpful eg googs track 320 sand dunes hot desert air and max speed of 30 and my avg speed was 15kmh but hard slow work each dune or rutted sand. (High speed you would kill the car period) Fully loaded on a trip like this would be quite different result I would predict. But interesting is so close when other (sellers) claim other wise.... As always being the only mod vs one of main might be different story.
For sure, I'll plan to do another test in boggy sand to see how much of a difference these make. I guess the best part about having these now is if I do choose to do a track like this, I can re-fit the fans and reap the benefits. Cheers, Nathan.
Thank you heaps Nathan. Very, very informative and most importantly - no bias, no agenda.
You're welcome, glad you enjoyed it.
Cheers.
Once again great content, love the results, i was thinking of fans but not now , keep up the great work .
Cheers mate, I've still got people telling me they work, but I haven't seen any data as of yet. I'm sure better results could be achieved with bigger coolers, but in my opinion fans don't assist the standard unit.
Great video Nat!
You always put a lot of efforts and resources into your researches, great to see you how committed you are, thanks for sharing.
As far as the results go they are confirming what I also discovered. I believe that playing with airflow and under bonnet pressure effects takes a fair bit of efforts. Just forcing air through the intercooler it doesn't mean the air will travel efficiently unless we can provide a free flow path: confirmed by your paper test and can be referenced to the WRC rally cars where they duct the air post exchangers straight through the bonnet.
Furthermore as all 4wders we have bigger bash plates installed on our cars restricting the air flow from under the bonnet even further.
As your video confirmed at low speed the fans are more efficient due to the fact the their airflow can travel in a lower pressure environment than at high speed (no air coming from the front grill).
As far as bigger or front mounted intercooler options I don't like either of them as well as they also have their cons.
The bigger the intercooler and pipe system the more amount of air is required to reach certain pressure levels hence bigger turbo lag effect.
The front mounted intercooler will affect the air temp delivered to the other exchangers.
My 2cents
Thanks Nathan keep them coming
For sure, there are soo many combinations and styles of engine modifications that could be done. I guess it would come down to personal driving style and how much money you would be willing to spend to get that 'X' amount of extra power. In the end, these are a cheap mod, however I've found them to be unhelpful in my application.
Cheers mate.
Well thought out and well presented Nathan. Thanks for your efforts.
Thanks Jim, appreciate it.
Hey, very interesting video, And from what I can see the difference isn't worth-it on most scenarios however during the low speed hill climb test temperatures had a quite noticeable difference so therefore in the case of driving through tracks at low speed in low rage for long periods of time the fans would most defiantly help. Also have to agree with Caravan comment at low speed with excess load of 3tonne and minimal air flow the fans once again would help. I guess I feel this small simple mod is worth it for those circumstances.
For sure, it all depends on what each person plans on doing with their vehicle.
Check out my other tests where I did test the units in low range 4WD and towing scenarios:
4WD - ua-cam.com/video/7n_vaW5YYQw/v-deo.html
Towing - ua-cam.com/video/AaIM6K9Pj68/v-deo.html
Cheers, Nathan.
Could you do a test using the fans turned ON for low speed and then turn them OFF speeds above 60kph.
You may be able to get the best results from both high AND low speeds then.
I just towed a 3.5 ton caravan to and from Adelaide. Serious head wind all the way there. Driving at 90to 95 Kph on flat sections with the torque converter locked in 4th gear to keep the EGT’s at a reasonable level. Up the steeper hills, I would be cresting the top at around 80kph after a long uphill climb. I wonder if the fans would be more effective at these lower speeds with much higher loads. In your test you were able to clear the intercoolers stale air at 110kph...I wonder if higher loads and lower top speed would make the fans worth while for this type of application.
Fantastic videos from your channel. Extremely informative. Thanks for putting so much effort into the data and explanations.
Thanks mate, appreciate the encouraging comments there.
I think that some more testing is required to get a full idea on how and where these fans are most effective.
To be honest though, from my results, any speed at or over 70km/h (regardless of load) the standard cooler is going to be more efficient.
It wouldn't matter how much load is on the vehicle, if there is that steady air flow coming through, then the results should theoretically be the same, just at a higher temp.
Slower speed though would be another story.
It would come down to how you drive your vehicle and where you want that extra benefit.
Good video demonstrating the simple rules whith fans. Fans must be used with a few rules to be followed.
-Shrouds to control airflow accross whole core area and stop airflow recirculating.
-Fans must have sufficient airflow in and out. Bonnect scoops on Cruisers and patrols NEVER flow enough airflow.
-Fans best when in traction setup (draw-through) with shroud.
Some good advice there mate 👍
Cheers.
Great vid champ , I think you may have missed the whole point and the application bennefits of the fans they are mainly for for high load at low speeds , the fans mod set up works very well on the 79, many thanks for all your work though , love your stuff
Thanks mate, for sure, I realise that the fans are now high load, low speed, however at what cost? I'm sure I'm in the same situation as many when I say that I conduct many more highway or road kilometres than beach or highload/low speed kilometres. I would rather keep the efficiency at the maximum where I am going to spend most of my time.
Personally I haven't had any issues with temps to date on the beach, sitting fitting them in this situation isn't 'required' as such at this time.
PS. I also just finished a weekend of testing these fans in sand and the results weren't impressive for my vehicle. I hope to release the video Thursday week.
Cheers for watching mate, appreciate the comments and hopefully you will enjoy the vid's to come.
Cheers, Nathan.
Yep, for sure, I agree,I cannot argue with that as it is exactly how I’d view these results as well. keep up the great content love your stuff.
Thanks Nathan always informative. It’s great when we’re told what we do need, even better to be told what we don’t need. Lots of hype out there … Great video 👍👍
Thanks mate, appreciate the feedback. For sure, although some still believe it is effective, the results I achieved in my testing show otherwise...
XploringOz
Nathan there is so much shit online nowadays I’m at a loss why anyone would spend so much time doing this much research. Then I see your vids and think dam. This bloke is awesome. Thanks mate I can’t thank you enough for the effort you go to. Air high five from brisbane mate 👋
Exceptional video mate! Something everyone should watch before spending big money on modifications that promise a lot but ultimately deliver no benefits. Keep the videos coming mate👌
Thanks mate.
Great vid mate. Thank you. As I've said in the past, the millions of R&D dollars that Toyota spend would probably also include some computational fluid dynamics (CFD) of the intercooler air flow, with/without obstructions like bull bars, lights etc. Frankly, I'm not at all surprised by your results.
For sure, I couldn't help myself but try it out anyway, given the variety of mixed opinions on the forums.
I admit I was a little surprised, but happy that I didn't jeopardise intake temps in the long run.
Cheers, Nathan.
Great vid mate and yes the push fans create alot of interference and block air flow, but when mounted under and used to pull the air through it was shown to be alot more beneficial. Again great vid and well presented. Thank you.
For sure, agreed. For more cost there are many ways to get these temps down. All comes down to value for money 👍
Interesting data. Just goes to prove the manufacturer does do their homework. Thanks for all the effort you went to.
For sure, I agree. Although some of this information goes against the popular mainstream opinions on Internet forums.
I'm glad you enjoyed the video and hopefully it was able to provide some useful information.
Cheers, Nathan.
I put fans on my Ford Territory Intercooler some years ago. I fitted A pusher fan on top and a puller fan under the cooler. I fitted a Davis Craig thermo fan controller to switch the fans on at the desired Temp I choose, (50 c in summer 45 in winter ). I ran many many tests on the intake air temps at all types of conditions ( using a quality scan tool).The fans work great at low speeds in traffic / on the beach. Fans turn off after about 2-3 minutes over 60/70kmh, air coming thru bonnet works well over those speeds.
If my car has been driven to operating temp, then parked / stopped and let sit for 20/30 plus , the intercooler soak heat gets to 80c, if you then just drive in traffic etc at slow speeds the intercooler stays at those higher temps, with the fans I fitted, the intercooler temp is cooled back to what I've set 45c within couple of minutes, there is a noticeable difference in summer especially with the engines eagerness in slow hot conditions , I wasn't looking for major power gains, just trying to give the engine etc the best chance it can get in all conditions.
If you never go under 60/70kmh , no you don't needs fans, but if you want to get rid of soak heat quicker & drive in hot summer traffic, fans are good and work.
But at the end of the day, ya don't really need fans, I did it because I could, and was keen to see some positive results.
I.e
My particular set up on my car didn't affect the max cooling capabilities when the car is at speed, intercooler gets just as cool as it did with out the fans also. I don't feel my fan set up has blocked the forced air through the bonnet scoop causing restrictions.
See link to my set up, ua-cam.com/video/s9DihR_u8EE/v-deo.html
Cheers for sharing. For sure, its going to be different for each type of vehicle and most importantly your style of driving.
I think that a lot of people out there buy these 200 series to tow heavy loads and tour the country and therefore spend a lot of time on the highway at highway speeds.
It's interesting the see the testing results you got and I'm think I'll have to do some more testing in more conditions in the future.
Cheers, Nathan.
@@XploringOz thanks for replying mate, yep your correct, ya don’t really need the fans driving at speed as you have found out as well as myself, based on tests performed.
I still own the Territory and the fans system I fitted is still working well.
Some other advantages I have found are.
When the vehicle is stationary ( especially in Summer heat ) my thermo fans on the engine radiator will come on to cool the engine & A/C condenser as required. ( Engine fans come on and off a lot in summer to keep A/C condenser pressures down).
When those engine radiator fans do come on ( stationary vehicle) the hot air being pulled through the radiator into the engine bay, some of that hot air is also being pushed back up through the intercooler & out of the bonnet scoop,heating it up even more, with the Fans fitted to the intercooler this problem doesn’t happen.
1 other thing I noticed with your system in the 200 series, it appeared that you only had 1 relay running your 2 fans. If that was the case, may I suggest you fit a separate relay for both your fans, having separate relays and wiring will reduce Voltage drop and improve the max speed of your fans, they will spin a little harder & push that bit more air 👍.
@@benlondon8467 For sure, I agree with you there.
One interesting point though and something that might be worth testing in the future is the fan speed. You mentioned that 2 relays might increase the fan speed, but I actually think a decreased fan speed might be beneficial in this instance. The standard intercooler is obviously designed for high heat disruption with relatively low air flow and therefore creates that back pressure I experienced. I wonder if a slower fan speed would eliminate that back pressure and provide a more efficient cooling rate... maybe an idea for a future test.
@@XploringOz yep you may be onto something with low speed fans as pushers, 👍, but if ya can or got pulling fans, I’d say faster the better. Ya can’t beat making the tests to see what is really going on. 👌
You’re bang on mate. Large intercoolers with high thermal mass benefit a lot from fans to try and alleviate heat soak after sitting or in slow traffic. Intercoolers have two properties which determine how they behave, their air to air efficiency and their thermal mass. High thermal mass works against you once they’re hot and fans work to bring temps down when you have no airflow. Thermal mass is simply the heat the material absorbs....takes a while to heat up but then penalises you once soaked. Don’t jump to conclusions that fans don’t work.
Be interesting to see the effects of the spotlights and winch box on air flow ? One thing that is overlooked when lifting a four wheel drive is the greater height slows the air speed underneath the car and it doesn’t pull heat from the engine bay as well
For sure, this would be an interesting test 🤔
Brilliantly done. Thanks for doing that and pointing out my logical thinking when i first saw B.D Service going on about all the benefits to be had by installing fans.
Thanks mate. I was very surprised when I got back to analyse these results, however I can't see the long term value in these fans.
PS. I've done some more testing on the beach (higher load, lower speed) and hope to release some results in the coming weeks.
Cheers , Nathan
Great vid, simply speaking, if you usually run car in slow speed and climbing, then add a fan is useful, but for other normal cruising road travel, fan may not be necessary. thanks again for useful information.
Thank you for another well thought out and presented video.
You have saved me some dollars as this was something i was considering.
The graphs are well presented and explained. Real world testing and no marketing bs.
Thank you for sharing to us lc 200 owners.
Thanks mate, I'm glad it was useful.
I plan on doing future tests with these fans in various scenarios, however the fact remains, if your like me and spend most of your driving on the highway, then any benefit at low speed would not likely outweigh the costs.
Cheers, Nathan.
Your test makes perfect sense, and for me, the conclusions would be the same - I spend 90%+ of my time driving on roads at 70-120 kmh, so definitely no need for fans there.
I do occasionally pull heavy loads at low speeds (Towing other cars, trailers), and would it make sense for those circumstances to bring the two fans with you, store them in a case, and add some quick connects to plug them in, when needed? Then again, as you mentioned, when going slow, you rarely would need those bursts of peak power, so yeah... The manufacturer spent millions on that research, and it's probably smarter to leave it stock :)
Thanks mate, I'm glad I could convey this in a logical way.
I did do a Part 2 and Part 3 with these intercooler fans, using them in different situations to see what would happen. Might be worth watching those, if you are still sitting on the fence as to which way to go.
Cheers, Nathan.
Thanks for the interesting video, results were surprising. I do think the beach test would be beneficial.
Cheers mate, glad you enjoyed it. I reckon I'll be taking these fans to the beach next visit.
Cheers, Nathan.
Awesome vid Nathan great quality production skills very impressive 👍
Cheers, thanks mate, appreciate it.
That makes perfect sense. I know that a well known diesel specialist south of Sydney promote these but after using their brand of performance chip for several years all I got was sky height egt when towing. Swapped to a unichip and found what I had been missing. Sometimes all the Hype in the worlds merely marketing.
Agree. Hopefully this video will allow others to make a educated decision based on non-bias real world scenarios.
Cheers, Nathan.
I stumbled across your vid man but great insight as potentially looking at going down the same track. I’m keen to know where you got your air box from though as well mate ?
Awesome, hopefully this has helped 🤞
I'm now running the Donaldson XLC200K airbox which is by far the best solution to date. Can get them from Essential 4x4 - essential4x4.com.au
So this raises a big question in my mind of the integrity of those companies that sell and/or install these fans.
Hi William , these results are for 200 series only I have experienced massive bennificial differences on the 79 series under heavy load at low speeds with a stock Orem inter cooler and tuned v8
Yes, this seems to be an issue with a particular company after I released this video.
I'm not discrediting anyone, nor was it the purpose of this video. I am just trying to test these products in a real world environment and share my findings.
Of note, I have recently come back from a weekend testing these fans in a low speed/high load application (beach driving) and hope to have another video out in the coming weeks with my results.
@@XploringOz The " particualr" company you mention wouldnt be based in the southern highlands NSW?
Thumbs up for another great video
@@Mick_4591 Could very well be that region...
@@XploringOz 😁😁😁😁
That was a lot of work. Great results. Thanks for your effort.
Cheers mate, appreciate it.
Love the safety footwear when cutting out the bracket. Mine look similar, LOL. Good video though, very informative and debunks a few myths by the looks of it.
Haha, yeah I paid for that for a few days...
Cheers mate, hopefully it give some people another perspective and takes away from the rumours and here-say.
Good info and findings, thanks for sharing. I'm wondering in the case of towing a 3T Caravan up a steep range would actually give you better results with fans installed due to reduced speed and air flow e.g. (70km/h). In this situation having increased load and temps is more likely the situation where most folks experience issues rather than just dragging along at 100km/h on the highway.
I see you thought process here, however I'm not sure I would agree 100%. My 70km/h test shows that both setups have little to no difference and any speed above this, the standard setup is superior.
It wouldn't matter how much load is placed on the vehicle, the standard intercooler will be more efficient with a steady air flow (at 70km/h and above). Slow speed driving is another story.
Keep in mind that if the vehicle begins to derate and slow due to excessive load, then this is engine and EGT temperatures exceeding safe levels. A slightly lower intake temp will have very little effect on this.
Cheers, Nathan.
What a excellent video and certainly will save some people some money . Any news on the new van you are getting please
Cheers, glad you enjoyed it, hopefully it will help some people make an educated decision.
Unfortunately there have been some unforeseen delays (fault of my own). It is still coming, however not as soon as expected.
Good info, thanks for putting in the time to do this... Low low speed is where I notice the drop off so this validates my thoughts too👍
Cheers mate. It all comes down to where and how you plan on using the vehicle I guess. There may be benefits to some people driving style, but for me, I can't justify the highway speed sacrifice.
Wow that's a very informative vid mate. Thanks for.putting in all that effort.
From your research it appears having the fans are an advantage if you are in a lot of stop start traffic, and slow off-road hill climbs and possibly towing as they help reduce heat soak.
So the way I see it, they are worth the spend dependant on the type of driving you do.
I have a 2017 76 series with the larger bonnet intake, so I wonder how different the figures would be on a 70 series
I really like that mount you fabricated. What gauge gal did you use?
Thanks again
Mick
Thanks mate, glad you enjoyed the content and I hope it can provide some useful information.
Yes, it would definitely depend on where and how you use the vehicle, however I have done a couple of follow up videos in relation to these fans, you can see the results here:
ua-cam.com/video/7n_vaW5YYQw/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/AaIM6K9Pj68/v-deo.html
It would be interesting to see the results on a 70 series cruiser, however I can say that I have a mate who has tried similar testing as per my videos and he also observed a detriment, but I have no tangible evidence for these tests.
The bracket turned out quite well, too bad I'm not using it now.... It's 3mm steel. Probably a little overkill to be honest.
Cheers, Nathan.
A good idea for these cooling fans is for INTERCOOL .. In Saudi Arabia, Turbo malfunctions due to weather temperature cannot bear our difficult weather .. but diesel engines are different in Saudi Arabia and Australia .. I don’t know why but Is there a private Toyota factory in Australia with Australian specifications?
Yes, very different environmental conditions over there.
So there isn’t a Toyota factory here in Australia, but our vehicles are tuned for our conditions 👍
Another great test with facts. Your last couple of minutes answered my question on benefits when under load vs off and on road. I’m still tossing up a fmic vs top mount when I turbo charge my 1hz (which is important to keep cool to avoid grenadine). Would still like to see this test down the beach. Bornholm or calcup style
Cheers mate, I'll definitely get a beach test done sometime in the future. PS. I reckon a front mount will perform a lot better.
Hi Nathan, very interesting test and obviously also the results. Actually I was waiting for your test to see what you find out. Now very much interested in the audience commences and other real test and results and the question why is it like that. Cheers
Thanks mate. The results were surprising and interesting to see how close the temperatures were in each test.
Lets see what the viewers think...
Awesome video.. would love to see a comparison between standard & aftermarket intercoolers to ascertain whether cost out weights the benefits
As much as I would love this too, it's just not in the budget at the moment.
Maybe one day in the future. Cheers.
That’s a very subjective thing, for some the costs will be insignificant, for others it’s a months mortgage payment.
Thanks Nathan a very good informative video i notice that you have what looks like are recovery points fitted could you do a video on fitting them and your thoughts on them and the recovery points that come standard on the cruiser as I am thinking of getting a set of recovery points myself and they are quite expensive to be fitted. Cheers tom
Thanks mate. Yep, have the ARB recovery points fitted there. I'll add it to my list of ideas.
Cheers.
Thank you ❤ for this. Saved me some money i can put else where on the 200
Another great video Nathan . I would be interested in seeing how much interference if you left the fans off at high speed . Maybe can get best for both low and high speeds
Hmm, good idea. Could be a good idea for a future test.
I would also be interested to see if a lower fan speed would assist as it appears that this standard intercooler can't handle to volume of forced air.
Hi, good video.
Another really useful comparison would be to install water sprayers onto the intercooler, maybe using garden irrigation equipment and a dc pump and bottle. A lot of high performance cars use them, from factory the STI Subaru use them on one of there limited edition over 340 hp models. Heaps of other cars use them too.
The science behind it is whenever you have evaporation occurring ie water changing from a liquid state to a gas state this requires huge amounts of Latent heat to work.
That’s why on a frosty morning when the sun hits the frost and is turning the solid(ice) to a liquid (water) this generally the coldest part of the night by a few degrees.
I remember a mate did it on his high boost RX7 back in my younger days with good results.
Cheers
I’ve attached an interesting video from engineering explained on the Subaru’s system
For sure mate, definitely another option. This is something that I tried on my old GU patrol as well.
The only thing will this is that the water is a finite resource, requiring regular fills, where as the fans are able to run full time without attention.
Maybe something worth testing just for the fun of it though.
Cheers, Nathan.
Thanks Nathan. Great job as usual. Your have given me some more homework. Bigger intercoolers plus puller/sucking fans, may just be the ticket.
Cheers mate, glad that it could help somewhat. I reckon a bigger intercooler, designed to higher airflow will definitely be the answer. Cheers.
Looking around Mishimoto fan does 1600 cfm.... thats over double the flow of fan used. Also 10"
Do you think the fans used 🤔 could have effected the results adversely?
Yes, there are some powerful fans out there, however will they fit on this stock setup? They cannot be any higher in profile than these otherwise they will rub on the factory ducting...
Cheers/
Very informative, thanks! Just wondering if you had similar results with your EGT's?
Thanks mate. I’ve only recently had EGT gauges installed, however I will be finishing up with one further tow test with fans and will monitor. My assumption is they won’t make a difference if the fans aren’t actually lowering the intake temperatures, but I’ll be sure to check regardless.
Cheers, Nathan.
Hello nathan, I love the video as it is very informative. Would the results be different if the fans were under the intercooler and pull air instead of push?
Cheers mate, glad you enjoyed it.
So yes, the results wild likely be much better with puller fans mounted underneath, however they simply just don’t fit on the standard inter cooler system.
An aftermarket unit, with a high flow rate and puller fans would likely achieve a much better result.
Great video thanks mate. The meat and potatoes for me was the high load, low speed data. I'm wondering whether the 10 degree gap would increase if on sand with low speed and a heavy load???? This potential increase, if it occurs, is where the fans may provide some real benefit. Highway driving - fans would appear to be a waste of time. Won't be running out to get fans for my VDJ79 dual cab any time soon, you saved me some real money - thanks.
Thanks mate. Yes, I'll definitely do another video in the future of this high load, low speed and I'm sure we will see a benefit. I guess to thought process will be more around how often you use your vehicle in those circumstances. For me, I'd rather the highway efficiency as this is where I spend most of my time.
Cheers.
Maybe try same test on the beach. Soft sand really working the car. A V8 diesel is not at work on a highway hence why all big trucks are big diesels. Built for it!
For sure mate, I have done that test as well. Check it out here if you're interested: ua-cam.com/video/7n_vaW5YYQw/v-deo.html
Top video Nathan, I have wondered about these thinking that the fans would block air themselves even with them running. Engineers have worked it out pretty well for these cars. Thanks
Cheers mate. The results were a little surprising for me, but I'm glad I didn't sacrifice that highway efficiency just based on other's opinions of these mods.
Well done mate. Thanks for going to the trouble of doing this for us.
No problems mate, helpfully it gives people an idea of what to expect if they are fitting fans to their vehicle.
G’day Nathan, great job your doing. Very interesting, I definitely would of thought those fans would of made a bigger difference. I live 4 hours south of you, I also had a patrol ( put in a fully welded Cross County intercooler with fans underneath drawing air thru bonnet scoop operated only when slow driving, ie sand or city traffic light driving on hot days) Factory intercooler only crimped. Dropped temps dramatically. I have had a 2013 gxl 200 for the last 2.5 years & will go the Cross Country option that comes with a bonnet scoop if I see the need. Cheers 👍🏼
Cheer mate, appreciate the feedback. You guys are lucky where you live, got some awesome scenery and landscapes down there!
It would be interesting to test the aftermarket cooler side by side with the standard just to see what kind of difference it makes. I could imagine the low speed driving would see a dramatic benefit.
I guess it all comes down to what kind of driving each person uses their vehicle for. If it's always in city traffic and does a high percentage of beach driving (or other high load, low speed scenarios) then it would definitely be worth the coin for upgrades.
Hopefully we'll see you down there sometime.
Cheers.
@@XploringOz Absolutely Nathan, very keen to see the comparison between a factory intercooler vs say a Cross Country aftermarket set up. Let us know when your done this way next 👍🏼
Might be worth switching those lights for a slimline light bar and relocating that winch control box.
Definitely an option that in theory would assist.
Cheers.
On the road, whats better for the motor less peak or slightly higher temp?
Very interesting but I have ordered a 79 series and I will be getting the fans fitted. I tow 3.5 tons and drive at 90kph in hot conditions. I worked in the car industry in Detroit and I know that car manufacturers spend millions on research and I also know that they like to save money whenever they can. Toyota spends millions on research and brings out a 4x4 with the front wheels at a different width to the back wheels, how cost cutting is that? If I lived in Tassie I wouldn't get the fans fitted but driving in the top end is a different story.
Interesting and I agree that car manufacturers need to consider the cost of certain components, however saying this these fans are very inexpensive and would be available to the manufactures at a fraction of the cost of the public. If Toyota deemed these vehicles to benefit from these fans I dare say they would add them in.
Further, I am currently editing a tow test with these fans installed and have some interesting results. Not quite the 3.5t load, but enough to develop a pattern and trend.
Personally (without testing at present) if you really wanted benefit from reduced intake temps I believe a replacement aftermarket cooler would be the way to go.
I would be interested to hear back from you if you are able to measure any of these parameters in your vehicle with your conditions.
Cheers, Nathan.
@@XploringOz Nathan, thanks for getting back to me. I wasn't having a dig at you about your video, we need more people to do testing.
We drove into Gove before Christmas and sometimes we were down to 10kph because of the road conditions, not enough air getting through at this speed. Outside temp was around 34c with about 100% humidity.
The fans fitted cost $600, an aftermarket cooler costs a lot more. When my new 79 series arrives I'll be glad to let you know how it goes.
Thanks again for your response. Shane
@@shanespicer6348 All good mate, absolutely no offence taken. I like the fact that everyone is different and has their own opinions and ideas about modifications. This is what keeps the aftermarket auto scene so interesting and diverse.
If these fans work for your style of driving and climate it would be silly not to install them. I definitely understand where you are coming from.
Definitely let us know how you go and helpfully we'll see you guys out and about there some day.
Cheers.
Hi Nathan. Great video!. I guess in this setup fans did not give any significant difference due to air blockage at the other end of the intercooler. In this senario the intercooler needs to be moved outside with complete pass through airflow with fans in suction position. This should show some difference as there would not be any return airflow. would love to see a video on this if possible. P.S The snorkel might help if it is thermal insulated with free flow air intake ex. K&N without filter enclosure. What do you say?
Thanks mate. Potentially, however my theory is that the airflow just wasn't effective at entering or passing through that intercooler at all. No doubt the suction fans would work much better, however at a much more expensive cost given the alterations needed to the intercooler. I guess I was just trying to show here that low cost simple modification to a standard intercooler isn't going to provide a great difference.
In relation the the thermal insulated snorkel, I'm not sure this would provide noticeable difference. My intake temps (after the airbox) are only about 3 degrees warmer than ambient temperatures. Even if we got this to ambient temps, I believe they difference or any benefit would be minimised through the movement around the intake and turbos.
Cheers, Nathan.
@@XploringOz True that!.. well im gonna try this soon. As i have an hyundai i20 diesel with stock front mounted intercooler (complete pass through) with 3 300cfm fans on suction with fiberglass thermal insulation from airfilter (k&n) all the way to the trottle body. Probably even insulate the intercooler on the sides due to major heat soak problem. The car came with 90hp. After the air filter the power came to 118hp in ambient temp. One day i woke the car at 4 am and dyno'd it in engine cold, it resulted 132hp just for a few mins till the engine got hot. Any better suggestions on how to cool the intercooler down? Except NOS. Cheers!
@@gurmeetmarora Interesting to hear how different those results were in real world testing. In terms of cooling the intercooler, you could maybe test water sprayers? Spraying water onto the intercooler during testing uses both conductive and evaporative cooling which is quite effective. Not so much for 4WD's though due to attracting dirt and debris and the finite quantity of water that can be carried, but for road vehicle, could be worth looking at? Also could consider Interchiller? There's plenty of information on their website about how they work and some of the benefits and considerations that need to be taken into account.
Cheers.
Awesome video. Excellent content
Thanks mate, appreciate it 👍
I havent read the other messages but id be more inclined to think that removing the factory shroud has removed the seal to the bonnet, and your likely sucking in air passed through the radiator as well as the bonnet scoop. not air directly from outside
The factory air ducting on the underside of the bonnet draws air direct from the grill. This bypasses any engine or cooling components and is the freshest, coolest air you're going to get into this intercooler without installing a bonnet scoop.
Cheers, Nathan.
This is a very interesting video Nathan, as is your more recent video on the sand. It defies logic somewhat to see the results you are getting but it makes sense the fans will be blocking some of the flow from the intake. I'm wondering if the fan speeds are too great and there would be a benefit to slowing them down via some speed control? Based on your paper test I feel better efficiency could be gained at a slower fan speed. Is it also possible the fan cfm is exceeding the bonnet intake flow capabilities and hot air is being pulling from the engine bay? Either back through the intercooler sections that are not under the fans or around the bonnet seal? Something to think about I guess. Keep up the great work mate, your videos are very informative and thorough.
Cheers mate. I can agree that these results definitely surprised me and wasn't what I was expecting at all...
I'm not sure the fans are necessarily blocking the airflow per say, I believe the issue is the ability for the volume of air that the fans produce to pass though the intercooler fans. A lower flow rate may work and may be something that could be tested in the future.
Further, I don't believe that the CFM would be exceeded through the factory ducts. These ducts are fairly large and given they are designed to accept airflow from high speed highway driving, believe they could cope with the CFM.
Cheers, Nathan.
Excellent video you can't argue with the facts
For sure. If there are any benefits to these fans, I'm yet to discover them...
You may want to improve the seal around the fan so the air can be pushed through the intercooler grille instead of escaping through the gaps
Yes, I see your point, however the back pressure wasn't coming from those gaps. It was being emitted from within the fan radius. Even with those gaps filled up, the air would still be returned from the fans.
Very informative, thanks! In saying that, you've convinced me to buy a single 9" for my d'max as I will be doing 100% sand driving for 4 months straight and outside of that I tow an 1800kg around full time. I think I will setup a trigger at a certain ait voltage to trigger the fans given I do have a scoup which helps at speed.
Cheers mate, glad you found it somewhat helpful.
For sure, look every vehicle is going to be slightly different, so hopefully this works well for your application 👍
@@XploringOz I would have loved to see the effect on temps with fans fitted, but not running. Or better yet, fans with a controller to try and find the 'sweet' spot. It would differ to my car given I have a scoop, but interesting nonetheless!
Thanks Nathan, great work. Did you compare the charge air temperature with the fans fitted but not running compared to no fans fitted? Wondering if it may be worth fitting fans, but only switch them on when needed, ie slow, hard slog.
Thanks mate. So no, I didn't attempt a test like this in this video. Definitely an idea for a sequel.
Cheers mate.
How about a fan on a water to air heat exchanger?
Awesome clip...well done
Thanks mate, appreciate the feedback 👍
Thank you so much for these informative vid
I've q what if u install double 1650 cfm fan i think u gonna achieve best resut as ur fan is only 700 cfm
Cheers mate, potentially. It might make a little difference, but after running these tests and feeling the lack of power difference given the temperatures it probably isn't something I would invest much more time and money into. Further no other engine parameters appeared to be significantly affected from the temperature variations.
Hi Nathan. Do you have a link to the comment from Berrima Diesel? I looked and can't find it. Much appreciated.
Hey mate, it’s actually not a comment, rather a video: ua-cam.com/video/097dW1JV3r0/v-deo.html
Boots while grinding dude !!
Yep, learnt that one 🤣
interesting! i think for people that do a lot of heavy offroad trails it makes sense. but i agree with you that for most people it's better off.
Yeah, it was sure a surprising results though, I honestly thought they would work really well 🤷♂️
@@XploringOz me too!
Hi Nathan another excellent unbias video ,like most things on 4x4s the factory intercooler has comprises but
as you summed it up time soft sand for me is low also, crossing the Simo , Canning stock route probably the fans may have advantages. I think a front mounted intercooler would be more effective reduced heat soak but at the result of reducing air flow to radiator & auto cooler plus not a lot of room. I think a lot of accessories sold are just for a money making exercise . How far away is the new van you have me thinking !! Cheers Ian
Cheers mate. For sure, the fans would have their place in certain driving conditions and this would be individual to everyone's personal style of driving.
To be honest, these fans will probably stay in my shed until a trip like the CSR comes around.
So there has been some delay on the new van (my fault), but it is still coming. All ordered and awaiting completion, just unknown at this stage. COVID has really pushed dates out for some of these companies.
Cheers mate.
What are your thoughts on installing a single fan on the Hilux 1kd? Any advices? Since it has the Intercooler Duct directly at the hood so any chances that it will work better on Hilux?
hey mate, so I haven't had any experience with the Hilux setup, so not sure what the results would be. I dare say (from my experience with a similar intercooler setup on my 3L patrol) that it would only be beneficial if you could get a puller fan mounted underneath and then you get the high airflow from hwy driving and the higher CMF on rocks with that fan too.
Do you know if there's enough room under there for a fan?
Fantastic research. Another awesome video.
Thanks mate
Yep this validates what I have seen the only real benefit is really going be on hot days under heavy load at slow speeds, like climbing up Mt Pinnibar.
I agree. Cheers.
I’ve worked for a number of vehicle manufacturers over the years in engineering and have been involved in countless design and testing projects. What you revealed in this video is a no brainer.
OEM’s spend millions getting cars right! They have the equipment, facilities and engineers to work out the most efficient way a vehicle can perform in all conditions.
Well done with this presentation and hopefully you have educated some watching that in most cases the best thing for your vehicle is to leave it alone.
I have never seen so many mods available for a model that is meant to be the class leader.
If only all the mods were tested honestly like you have 95% of these after market places would be broke!
I agree with you there. Some things should just be left alone. I do still think there is a place for certain aftermarkets modifications, where vehicle manufactures have to cater for all types of driving styles, rather than just overloading, however intercooler fans are not one of them.
Appreciate the comments and sharing your thoughts.
Cheers, Nathan.
Manufacturers also have to make compromises, they have to work within a budget to minimise cost and maximise profits.
Shane without a doubt that is the OEM’s brief as you say.
But after witnessing and being part of engineering with a number of manufacturers I can assure you that if some of these so called simple add on’s were a viable addition they would use them.
If you look at the addition of these fans for example how were they ever going to work when they are trying to get more air flow through the same air inlets. They are simply a restriction in the inter cooler air flow.
@@richard4136 on the other hand, look at the wiring in most modern vehicles, if 16 gauge is ideal, but 18 gauge is 2 cents cheaper but does the job, 20 gauge is what they use😁
Haha agree but no different to any industry. Housing, white goods, tools, furniture they are all the same. Why give you more when the bare minimum will do the job. (Supposedly?) At the end of the day we are our own worst enemy.
If things were over engineered we wouldn’t want to pay for the quality.
Look at Bunnings its full of cheap sh#t that people can’t get enough off!!
thank you . very informative. as you own a prado 150 would you add a transmission cooler to the prado?
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.
I personally never had an issue with the transmission. I do believe the torque convertor in the Prado is very effective and has less slip than the 200 series. Unless you were detecting specific issues, I'd tend to leave it.
Gday.
Do you think with a 70 series from the scoop and air comes in from the top where a 200 series air comes in from the front so the fans block the flow before it goes into the top of the fans....
Wonder if there is much difference?
Different design for sure, however I have a mate who has recently tested the exact same setup on highway 2009 76 series and got the exact same results I did.
I believe that the factory Toyota intercooler is just more efficient left as standard.
Cheers, Nathan.
Can you record the noise level with it on and off please.
I haven't got the setup readily available at the moment. Are you asking about the noise level inside the vehicle with the engine running? If so, I can confirm that you cannot here it from inside the vehicle (windows open or closed). It can be heard from outside the vehicle and definitely if the engine is off.
Cheers, Nathan.
@@XploringOz was wondering about the fans cause they sounded loud, commented while watching so I didn’t know yet that you plan to remove it. Thank you!
@@rudys0951 No problems 👍They are a little loud, if they worked it would be worth it... but as you have probably seen, they are not for my setup.
Cheers.
Great vid, very interesting. Thanks.
Cheers mate, glad you enjoyed it.
great information we did a similar test years ago results much the same on a std intercooler.
on a tuned engine with higher boost the results are worse again.
Thanks for sharing. I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only person with these results.
I have a friend nearby with a 76 series who has had the exact same results as I have shown here.
It would interesting to see the results with the fans mounted but with no gaps around them so the air cannot leak backwards and can only go through the intercooler (a shroud).
Yes, I see your point, however the back pressure wasn't coming from those gaps. It was being emitted from within the fan radius. Even with those gaps filled up, the air would still be returned from the fans.
@@XploringOz is that what they call cavitation?
Can you do a test on 70 series??
Hey mate, so I don't personally have access to do these types of modifications to a 70 series, however I have taken a close look at the intercooler and the design characteristics are identical. This would indicate similar results would be achieved.
Further, I have a mate who has tried this (prior to my testing) on his 76 series and he found the temps increased about 10 degrees. Again, have no video proof, but after my experience on this topic, I wouldn't be fitting this style of setup to a 70 series.
Cheers, Nathan.
Thanks legend
I would have bet on the fans. The Totota engineers seem to know what they are doing, reasuring I guess. A bit of a hill is no substitute for soft beach sand though.
Brilliant , thanks for sharing, nice bracket too.
Thanks mate, glad you enjoyed it. Too bad the bracket won't be getting used...
Great video Nathan, thanks heaps!! I was actually thinking they might be beneficial for a trip like the Canning Stock Route, however as you suggested, I probably wont need any peak power and it is something else to rattle loose. I would be keen to see some measurements with the fans in place but turned off at highway cruising just to see whether they block cooling much and then maybe if they were on a thermal switch so they effectively only came on at low speeds such as at the beach/sand dunes etc they might be better??? I'm certain they will disrupt airflow but I wonder what that looks like in terms of temps? Cheers mate
For sure, I see where you are coming from here. The only reservation I have with setting this up (apart from more expense into a product I won't use) is that the benefits from the low speeds with the fans activated don't really seem to product any benefit at all. Even if they did provide a slightly lower temp, the gain in power would be negligible.
I might try to test a unload towing test, just to confirm they don't provide benefit in most circumstances.
I think another interesting test would be to see whether an aftermarket intercooler would have much effect in these tests...
@@XploringOz Yeah, I just saw the sand testing as well and after that IU have to agree, why bother? It'd be interesting to see a couple of the leading or better known kits tested to see if different fans make any difference or the shrouds use help etc but after all this I doubt it very much. I'd also doubt towing would make much difference but it'd be something to check. I also agree if you are looking to improve intercooler performance, then it looks like replacement wold be the way to go. Keep up the great work mate.
@@robertgrayson3394 Cheers mate. I guess the difference with towing, particularly under load (like up a steep long hill) is that it will cause some seriously high temperatures. This will enable us to determine whether there is a temperature level where the fans might provide a benefit. Like you, I don't think it will, but something that has been highly requested and debated through this series...
Cheers.
@@XploringOz Yeah, I see some form of logic there. I also tow a 3.5T offroad van so it would be of interest to me also. Looking forward to it.
Coolerfans should be suction type fans. When you could use thoos it would bring more. The Fans now where recycling warm air around, and by that heated the intercooler up. Your vidoe was very usefull though. I was thinking of adding a fan behind my intercooler, to lower the air inlet temperture, but I will skip it.
Sure, suction fans are much more effective, however as mentioned in the video even the slimmest of fans won't fit.
The fans are still bringing in clean, fresh air through the bonnet ducts.
Cheers, Nathan.
@@XploringOz I know it wasn't possible.
great vids mate
Cheers mate, glad you enjoyed it.
Why no test in the situation where the fans would be most beneficial. Low speed high rpm work.
I suspect you'are not going at lot difference.
Like explained in the video, I don't have ready access to this environment. If I can get the chance to do this, I will release another video.
Cheers, Nathan.
Yet again you've done a great presentation of facts Nathan - science beats BS and ill informed opinions any day of the week. With a bit more room a full sized shroud would stop the recirculation, but like you I can think of very few occasions I'd need the fans - towing across the Simpson perhaps...
Thanks mate, appreciate it.
Yes, this could be an option, but yes, I don't think it's worth the effort for the marginal difference in limited scenarios.
Cheers.
That saves me thinking about fans at all for mine! So thank you for this test. I must ay I have seen lower EGTs on mine since replacing the intercooler with an HPD unit so I think thats enough. Cheers Steve
Thanks Steve! Can I ask what sort of reduction in EGT’s you achieved from this kit?
Thanks, Nathan.
@@XploringOz Easily 50+ degree improvement. In EGT's with the HPD Kit mate. I have to say I didn't set out to do the intercooler on mine but we found a hole in the factory cooler and for a bigger better cooler was on $200 dearer than Toyota. Cheers Steve
Another well done vid mate, I have a single pusher thermo fan on the top mount intercooler on my Prado 120 series, bull bar, 9'' driving lights, winch control box, can Anyone confirm that it would have the same/similar results as we see here ? (thinking about removing the thermo fan now, emm.. )
Cheers mate.
Might be worth getting some software, of even a temperature probe and just seeing how your vehicle reacts with the fan off and on.
I think each vehicle would be slightly different and it would heavily depend on how you plan on driving the car as well...
Awesome video .. got a question. At which speed ( mínimum ) stock setup becomes more efficient than the fans ? and did you considere that it's worth keeping fans on at HW speeds ?
For sure, I guess to find this speed it will take more testing, however it will also depend on how you plan on using the vehicle. Personally, especially when I'm on a trip, I spend majority of my time at highway, or at least faster speeds. In my case, the fans will cause a hinderance, rather than a benefit.
I have completed some more testing on beach sand, lower speeds, higher loads and hope to release my findings in the coming weeks. This could help answer your question too.
Cheers.
@@XploringOz thanks for taking the time to reply to me .. I have a VDJ76 ( fan setup on my own minimum HW trips ) I really appreciate your videos. Quality, your pronunciation voice modulation it's very good too ..keep them coming
@@Tapage No problems mate, I'm glad you are enjoying the videos.
Cheers, Nathan.
If there is a cutout on the hood I believe the numbers will be different.
Potentially, but the cost is significant. There are many ways to reduce the temps, but all comes down to value for money in the end 👍
Does a snorkel work
A snorkel will definitely lower intake temperatures in the first instance.
With my setup here, I'm getting intake temperatures around 3/4 degrees Celsius above ambient. Having a standard intake (where the intake is within the front guard) can see intake temperatures 20/25 degrees above ambient.
Having a snorkel will not only provide a cooler intake, but cleaner air as well. Definitely a mod worth looking into even if you don't plan on driving through water.
Great job mate! Thanks for the informative info.
Cheers, thank mate.
Great video, anyone want to buy two new, un-used & still in packets intercooler fans suit VDJ79R?
Hahaha. I know the feeling.... ah well, it's worth a try...
Great video, no 12V fan will ever match the airflow coming through the grill of the car.
The other thing is the extra drag from the alternator trying to keep those fans spinning is also going to reduce output from the engine and increase fuel consumption.
For sure, I agree with you there.
Believe it or not those holes that you made for extra airflow ended up killing any gains in heat loss as you introduced a way for re-circulation with positive to negative pressure. Nearly all OEM and aftermarket radiators have a sealed mount for fans/shroud. Let your pusher fans do their job.
I hear what you are saying, but the circulation of air is not escaping from the holes within the bracket. The air is coming back out from within the radius of the fan. Although a full shroud might effect the results marginally, I still strongly believe the results would be the same.
I'd be interested in seeing a day of slow-speed rock crawling results. I'd expect the fans to have better results, as there's no air flow from the vents.
For sure, so I haven't done a rock crawling video as such, however I have done testing on sand (higher load) at various speeds. The video can be found here: ua-cam.com/video/7n_vaW5YYQw/v-deo.html
I have also done a video of towing a van up a hill too: ua-cam.com/video/AaIM6K9Pj68/v-deo.html
Great video mate.
Cheers mate, glad you enjoyed it.
They really should be underneath tbhonest. Did same sort of test with transmission coolers at front of vehicle, best and lower trans temps was fit xlarge cooler hard mounted against ac condensor so airs pushed and sucked through by engine fan.
Yes, I see your point, however the back pressure wasn't coming from those gaps. It was being emitted from within the fan radius. Even with those gaps filled up, the air would still be returned from the fans.
@@XploringOz i seen once i finished full video 👌. They defo better without fans. Even ilding yeah temps may get a tad higher but will cool down quicker once you get moving imo.
@@Mosesk1988 I agree
dont the fans pretty much sit pretty much right against the bonnet ?
They do sit very close, but they is still clearance between them and the factory ducts, particularly at the front.
try reversing the fan direction.......
Another great vid Nathan. I’ll keep my hard earned for some other mods/accessories. 👍
Cheers mate! I wish I could of saved my money, but ah well, at least we know now...
Maybe more better with fans for heavy towing.
Although I see where you're coming from, unless you plan on towing at very low speeds they won't assist.
If you towing at 70km/h or above, as demonstrated in the testing, we can see the standard intercooler is more efficient at cooling the air over the fans. It doesn't matter how much load or wind resistance you add to the combination, the intercooler will still remain more efficient.
Again at lower speed, the fans might provide a small benefit, however it will depend on your style of driving and where most of your time is spent.
Low speed sand driving and or dunes and also one fan only would be interesting testing situations.
Low speed might be helpful eg googs track 320 sand dunes hot desert air and max speed of 30 and my avg speed was 15kmh but hard slow work each dune or rutted sand. (High speed you would kill the car period)
Fully loaded on a trip like this would be quite different result I would predict.
But interesting is so close when other (sellers) claim other wise....
As always being the only mod vs one of main might be different story.
For sure, I'll plan to do another test in boggy sand to see how much of a difference these make.
I guess the best part about having these now is if I do choose to do a track like this, I can re-fit the fans and reap the benefits.
Cheers, Nathan.