2001 Dodge Dakota - 4.7L Clutch Fan And Electric Fan Replacement

[smallenginemaster1]

do you think 4.7l electric fans would fit on a 3.9l

[TheTexasCoder]

@smallenginemaster1 I am not 100% sure if the same 16" fan would work, but I found some great info over at SPAL's site, and I actually emailed a sales person the height/width/depth of my radiator and he gave me a couple of products that would fit. One of them was a dual 11" setup that I am saving up to buy. The dual kit, if I remember correctly, runs about 379.00. Thanks for the comment!

[mastervolume]

nice video. I've been thinking of doing this on my '01 dak. Are you on the dakotadurango forum?

[TheTexasCoder]

@mastervolume I have an account on that site and a few other Dodge sites, but between working on the dakota and my job, I dont have alot of time on the computer. I am actually responding to this from my garage on my phone. I am shooting some video on replacing the power steering pump as I type this, just taking a short break :-) Thanks for the comment and for watching, hope to chat with you on the forums!

[mastervolume]

@TheTexasCoder I hope you never have to make a video on replacing the heads,timing chain,guides and tensioners. I just went through that. What a pain! Keep up the good work.

[infiniti05g]

Hey I just got a 01 Dakota 4.7 quad cab for the harsh winters up here in new England. I don't have any over heating issues at all but also can't stand the Mack truck sound coming from the engine. I want to do exactly what you did but am confused on exactly what I need, and also the wiring. If you could just clarify what I need, recommend any changes due to being up north, and a easy wiring picture/diagram that would be very helpful. Great video and thank you!!

[TheTexasCoder]

@infiniti05g Thanks for the comment! After running my single fan for a couple of months, I have decided that this coming spring I am going to change it over to a dual 11 inch fan setup from Flex-A-Lite. Most fan configurations will come with a wiring diagram and in some cases the wiring harness should match up completely with your factory plug. I will get video this spring of my new fan install and that should help you. Thanks again for watching!

[hottdi]

I'm surprised you didn't go for a dual fan I wouldn't think that 1 small fan would do it but still good job looks nice.

[tim4766n]

What did you do about the water pump pulley? Doesn't the clutch fan hold it on? Did you get a nut to put on it with your fan kit or can you buy something at a local hardware store that will work?

[TheTexasCoder]

@tim4766n Interesting question, thank you for posting. In all my dealings with the durangos and dakotas I have not seen a pulley that was removable. The water pump and pulley should be one assembly, in which case you can just leave the threads at the end of the pulley exposed. Some folks buy after market chrome "covers" to dress it up, but that is purely for looks and does nothing mechanically to the water pump pulley.

[rerc85]

What'd you do about the windshield washer fluid and coolant overflow tanks?

[TheTexasCoder]

@rerc85 Thanks for the comment! That is a very good question, most folks that do this modification usually buy aftermarket pieces (Jeggs, JC Whitney...) to hold the washer fluid and radiator overflow. Some folks have even built their own using PVC piping. For me, I just left the factory upper and lower fan shroud in place, so I could continue to use the washer fluid reservoir and radiator overflow reservoir.

[rerc85]

@TheTexasCoder I ask because I did this mod too but with a 99-04 stock Jeep Grand Cherokee fan and shroud, supposedly pulls 4000 CFM. I looked around for a pre '99 Dakota or Durango washer reservoir which mount to the firewall and installed that and got a universal coolant overflow tank at the parts store, you may want to look in to that.

[tim4766n]

I purchased an electric fan yesterday should be here in a few days.i dont have overheating or AC problems it's just the noise it drives me nuts,they said my fan would just plug into the harness "2001 dodge dakota 3.9l" it looked like that's what you did? it seems odd to me they would have a plug there for something that the truck didn't come with? Did you have to cut into your harness to install a plug or is it a strait plug in and go like they claim?

[TheTexasCoder]

@tim4766n Thanks for the comment! If your truck is equipped with A/C, then you should already have an electric fan on your radiator. But yes, the new fan should have a plug that connects to your factory plug. If your truck does not have A/C, then it will not have the electric fan, in which case you will need to wire in your new fan. But the new fan should come with instructions on how to do that. Let me know how it goes, I am glad to meet another Dakota owner!

[arandao11]

How did you take off the Clutch fan? I have a 2001 durango 4.7. When i turn the nut the pully turns. And there dosent seem to be a place to hold the pully.

[TheTexasCoder]

@arandao11 Thanks for watching. You have a couple of choices, the way I do it is with my air chisel to impact the nut loose and then spin it off by hand. The other options is to rent the tool (spanner tool) from your local auto parts store. Just ask them for the tool to remove the clutch fan assembly. There are other ways, but they risk damaging your actual fan blades. The best way is to rent/buy the spanner tool so that you can lock the fan in place, then you will be able to loosen the nut.

[millwrightman99]

I have one of those clutch units in my Jeep Liberty -- but its not noisy at all -- It might have been an option because it has both the electric smaller fan like yours also ..Personally I would rather use the old stile flex blade units if they were available for the Jeep --Very simple and no extra moving parts .or electric draw .

Different strokes for different folks .

[TheTexasCoder]

@millwrightman99 That's cool, I did not know the Liberty had a clutch fan. The electric fan is there solely for your A/C you should notice that the electric will only kick on when the A/C is engaged. Thanks for watching and the comment!

[Mr88NATE]

First off thanks for the video and i'll be waiting for the next video when it's runing with the fan on!, but i wanted to know where was your temp needle at when your in stop and go traffic!. thanks again the video was very helpful!

[TheTexasCoder]

@Mr88NATE Thanks for watching and for the comment! Before I removed the clutch fan, the needle was sitting just about dead center between C and H, now it hover just below the center in stop and go traffic, and a noticeable amount closer to COLD when on the highway. It has been pretty good so far. I plan on getting an after video here in a couple of days, since we are experiencing some really hot temps here in Texas (105+)

[spunkzilla123]

@TheTexasCoder I own a 00 dakota with a 4.7 myself. I didn't like the fact that the needle went almost up to 210. After some searchin on google I found a 180 thermostat. Its fully open by 195 and my truck runs alot cooler now. I'm gonna go and get this fan now and see how it does on my dakota. Thanks for the vid~!!!

[TheTexasCoder]

@spunkzilla123 Thanks for the comment and for the thermostat tip! I am going to try that out. I like my electric fan, but I think I am going to go with a dual 11" SPAL (Part#: 30102052). I found that this Texas heat was really hard on my dakota with just one fan. But with a dual setup and the thermostat I am curious to see how it does. I will make a video of the dual fan install when I get the part in. Thanks again for watching and the tip!

[spunkzilla123]

@TheTexasCoder The only place i could find one is on autopartswarehouse.

The dual setup looks like it will work alot better. I'll prolly get that instead.

[JustRide626]

did your dakota come with a plastic radiator? thanks.

[TheTexasCoder]

@JustRide626 It has an aluminum radiator, but the overflow tank and windshield wiper fluid reservoir are made of plastic and sit about the radiator fan and clutch fan

[Delphi450r]

Nice video, thanks! What was the reasoning for the upgrade? did you have any over heating issues or just precautionary/HP? Any chance of getting a video of the NEW fan running for audio purposes?

[TheTexasCoder]

@Delphi450r Thanks for watching, and for the comment! The only reason that I replaced the fan clutch was strictly because of the noise. I replaced my fan clutch with a new one from NAPA, and it was still too loud. It made a massive improvement over the sound, the engine is quiet on idle and take offs, and makes for a nice long drive experience. I will make a note to get a video of it running, good idea! The fan is not noisy, I can hear it. My wife and daughter are amazed at the silence :-)