1997 Dodge Ram 3500 Electric Fan - Keep Your Cool

The twin electric fans that take the place of the mechanical fan flow a whopping 5,500 cfm at full power. Unlike with a mechanical fan, the full amount of airflow is available even at idle.

The little black box on the top of the fan shroud is a small controller that will turn the fans on at 60 percent power when the engine is up to temperature or the A/C is on. If temps continue to rise, the fans will ramp up to 100 percent power.

Some of the wires can be stripped before the fans are installed. If you have ever seen one of these trick gunlike wire strippers in use, you know you have to get one.

The overflow tank is mounted on the aluminum shroud before the fans are installed. With some careful positioning, the whole assembly will drop right into place where the stock shroud was located. Fitment was very good-nothing bumped, scraped, or was in the way of anything else.

Now for the fun part-wiring! Don't be nervous; it isn't as bad as it looks. Just make sure you go slowly and follow the instructions, and if you have any questions, don't be afraid to call the Flex-a-lite tech line.

The main power wire is run through the firewall so the fans will trigger when the ignition is turned on. A sneaky way to make this easier is to tape the wire to a screwdriver so you can push it through the rubber grommet.

After the wire is pushed through, it is connected to a fuse in the fuse box that will trigger when the ignition is on.

John Stuen from Flex-a-lite tests to see which side of the fuse is the hot lead. That way, if the fuse ever blows, the fans will still function. The fans themselves have their own 40-amp circuit breaker that is wired on the top of the shroud.

The A/C condenser can become too hot to touch in just a few minutes of use, so the fans were wired into the factory A/C positive so they will turn on when the A/C does. That means the fans will not only cool the engine on hot days but also help cool passengers.

The last step is remembering to refill the coolant that was drained out.

After the fans are installed, the vehicle should be road-tested and adjusted, as needed. On the Flex-a-lite controller, there is a screw that can be turned to adjust the starting temperatures of your fans-clockwise is hotter, counterclockwise is cooler.