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Flex-a-lite
Fan-tastic Cooling: Chilling Out with Flex-a-Lite
by Steve Temple
photography by the manufacturer
Your destination is the top of a mountain. The view, sweeping from the Sierras to Death Valley, promises to be drop-dead gorgeous. The trail, a long-abandoned mining road, coughs up rocks the size of Great Danes mixed in with ruts and steps that holds your 4x4 to a crawl. At every sweep around the edge of the mountain, jaw-dropping scenery hints at what’s to come. But, wait! What’s that mist coming off your hood?
Uh-oh. How long has the temp-gauge needle been lying on its right side in the red zone? Do you have enough bottles of Evian to resuscitate your radiator? Or will a helicopter be sent up here to retrieve a dead 4x4? Are you screwed, or what?
This ugly scene isn’t limited to 4x4s. The powers that be didn’t put that emergency tank of water just below the peak of the Sherwin Grade on the east side of the Sierra Range for novelty’s sake. The tank serves as a welcome oasis for the legions of pickups towing or hauling campers equipped for large, extended families. Overheating isn’t a uniquely Western problem. The heat index in this country’s humid zones east of the Mississippi sap the life out of man, beast, and internal-combustion engine with equally devastating results.
The best way to avoid ruined trips, emergency stops, or the worst-case scenario — a blown engine — is to ensure a fresh breath of air is getting to the cooling system, whether by an auxiliary cooling fan or a high-performance replacement. In average driving conditions, the stock belt-driven fan provides enough cool air to keep the engine happy, whirring around in direct proportion to the speed of the engine. In contrast, off-roaders spend a lot of time climbing at low speeds, hence the need for an electric fan that’s activated by engine temperature and cools independently, engine or road speed.
That’s where Flex-a-lite comes in. For more than 40 years, this company has been in the business of cooling off engines with electric fans, and, more recently, oil and tranny fluid coolers.
The advantages of electric engine coolers go well beyond maintaining a more efficient operating temperature. Belt-driven fans work off the engine, thus pulling power away from the more important task of making the wheels go ‘round and ‘round. The fewer accessories the engine has to supply power to, the more horsepower is available to the drive wheels.
Flex-a-lite is now on its third generation as founder Eddie Davis’ granddaughter Lisa Chissus prepares to take over the helm. Nearly 45 years ago, Davis cooked up the first fan, literally, by baking its fiberglass blades in his kitchen oven. Today, Flex-a-lite and its sister company, Cascade Plastics, covers 96,000 square feet of manufacturing and administration space in Milton, Washington, and have grown to 90 employees.
Getting to the nitty gritty of fan terminology and functions, the line of Flex-a-lite fans are either pushers or pullers — the terms are self-defining. Pushers, generally auxiliary fans, are mounted between the vehicle front grille and radiator. Pullers, or fans that replace stock equipment, mount between the vehicle radiator and engine.
Another feature that plays a vital role in keeping your engine as cool as a cucumber is the company’s Variable Speed Controller (VSC). As the name implies, the VSC turns the fan on at 60 percent when the engine reaches a pre-calibrated temperature. As temperatures increase so does the fan’s air flow; when the vehicle’s air conditioner is turned on, the VSC tells the cooling fan to go into full, 100-percent function, regardless of engine temperature. That’s why the heavy-duty, dual Flex-a-lite fans include VSC, which also is available to install as a valuable accessory on other Flex-a-lite models.
If you didn’t know the link between engine overheating and a blasting air conditioner, you’ve never noticed those “Turn Off Your A/C” signs at the base of steep grades. Maybe A/C isn’t considered a valuable asset for 4x4s crawling up the side of a mountain — sweating is part of the adventure-but for tow vehicles or 4x4s that double as daily-drivers, A/C and summer are synonymous.
For those roaders who regularly encounter mud bogs and water crossings on their 4x4 obstacle courses, having an override switch that cuts off the cooling fan is a valuable feature. It keeps rocks and debris from being sucked through the grille and wreaking havoc with your radiator and fan blades, not to mention preventing water from spraying all over the place. Many Flex-a-lite fans offer this override A/C switch as an option, complete with a dash-mounted toggle switch.
Here’s a quick rundown on Flex-a-lite cooling fans, starting at the top with the aptly named Monster electric fan.
The Monster is a dual fan system specifically designed as a replacement cooler for full-size trucks. The fan features 15-inch blades that move an incredible 5,500-cubic-feet per minute (cfm), cooling off the engine quickly. According to Flex-a-lite, replacing the stock belt-driven fan with this electric system can boost horsepower by 17 and torque by 20 pound-feet and offer two to three more miles per gallon. Those numbers aren’t estimates, they’re dyno test results.
The Black Magic fan series offers a range of features engineered for 4x4s as well as higher-horsepower vehicles and sport trucks. These include an adjustable thermostat that gives the driver the option of setting the temperature that initiates fan function.
Running at slower speeds and under heavy torque loads, 4x4s on the trail build up heat in the engine quickly and sustain those temperatures for long periods of time. All this in a hot, dusty environment adds a lot of wear and tear on the system and can lead to premature engine problems. With the Black Magic, the fan can be programmed to kick on at a lower temperature.
The manual switch also gives the driver significant control over fan operation. If your 4x4 produces high horsepower in relation to its size, the ability to switch the fan on when you know your engine needs extra cooling is invaluable. Again, if you and your 4x4 sit in commuter traffic, the Black Magic keeps the engine cool, regardless of the low idling rpm.
Not to rest on its laurels, Flex-a-lite introduced the Black Magic X-treme earlier this year. The X-treme covers 45-percent-more radiator surface (or full radiator coverage for some vehicles) than the not-so-extreme Black Magic. Touted as the most powerful single fan available, its one-piece nylon shroud supplies 45-to-50-percent-more heat transfer than a caged fan of equal performance. The rigid bracket mounting system eliminates thru-core mounting, and, like all the Flex-a-lite fans, the X-treme comes with complete installation instructions and wiring diagrams.
The next in the Flex-a-lite lineup are two electric fans available as pullers (replacements for power-draining belt-driven stock fans) or pushers (auxiliary fans that add extra cooling). The Electra-Fan II series moves just under 2,000 cfm and includes adjustable thermostat, manual switch connection, and A/C relay, with the manual override switch available as an option.
If you peer into your engine compartment and can’t figure out how to add an auxiliary fan, the Low Profile series should solve the problem. With the lowest profile available, this fan is designed to go where others won’t. Available in pusher or puller models, the single fan Low Profile requires a mounting surface that measures a scant 15x13 1/2x2 5/8 inches, and the dual-fan version needs only a 26-inch width for mounting.
In addition to this broad range of fans, Flex-a-lite also offers radiators, oil, fuel, and transmission coolers and the Mohave heater.
The company’s aluminum radiator features a cross-flow design with internal fins performing as heat sinks to absorb heat more quickly. The heat is radiated through external fins that increase the tank’s radiant surface threefold. Installation is simple and the radiator provides multiple installation points for primary or auxiliary cooling fans.
The company’s line of fluid coolers is in keeping with the whole concept that a cool-running engine is a more efficient, longer-lived engine. The engine oil cooler kits come in moderate, auxiliary, or heavy-duty applications. The heavy-duty, remote units work with both extremes of the speed spectrum — solving the overheating problems of high-rpm runs or long, low-speed 4x4 climbs. The remote units are fan-assisted and can be mounted wherever space is available. Flex-a-lite’s tranny fluid coolers kits are ideal for tow vehicles that regularly subject the transmission to lengthy, grueling climbs under full load.
Switching from cool to hot, Flex-a-lite’s Mojave heater keeps you toasty warm when the wind howls and the snow falls. If your 4x4’s heater bit the dust a while back and you dread the thought of finding replacement parts, the Mojave is a good alternative. The source of the Mojave’s heat is the hot water in the vehicle’s cooling system, just like the factory version’s, but its compact size allows it to be mounted in a variety of spots, even under the dash. The optional plenum features adjustable louvers plus a flange for defroster ducting.
So, whether freezing your buns off during winter trips or frying your engine on long, steep climbs in the summer, Flex-a-lite’s product line provides a solution. To find out what models fit your vehicle, Flex-a-lite’s web site (www.flex-a-lite.com) provides a quick-reference application guide. Of course, it would be good to do that before you head for the mountain top, since all you’re likely to find up there is an emergency tank of water.