Question for Horton fan owners?

[Cooker]

I just installed a Horton fan on my truck and I am not convinced the coolant temp sensor is working properly.



The Horton manual states the fan when engage when the coolant reaches 200 degrees. Since Dodge decided not to mark the temp gauge very well, which probably doesn't matter anyway becasue I am sure they are not 100% accurate, I have no way to determine when the coolant reaches 200.



If I sit and let the truck idle I would imagine the coolant temp would easily reach 200. The gauge will get to the half way point between 190 and the next mark and the fan has still not come on. It's 90 degrees out today and I can't seem to get the temp any higher to see if it will come on or not. The fan does come on with the manual switch and the AC pressure switch.



Where is the needle on the temp gauge when your Horton fan come on? Does the fan not engauge for coolant temp all that often?



Thanks for the help.

Ryan

 

[JohnMcIntyre]

I agree with your comments... . 190 deg F seems to be pretty much a steady observed value on my dash readout, even though the last couple of weeks we've been seeing unseasonable highs around 100 deg F and the Horton still does not kick in?



If i've been travelling slow in heavy traffic under these conditions, I'll flip on the manual override to engage the Horton fan and I notice the temp gauge will dip to the left - other than that, I guess you could even be running fanless..... I wouldn't get too uptight about it, I've run it for over 2 years and 35k+ miles and it's been as good as gold - it's a shame that DC and Horton didn't see eye to eye in 2001, but regardless a great product and a sound performance upgrade.



Hang in there!!

 

[Cooker]

Thanks for the reply John. I'm feel better knowing that I am not seeing anything abnormal.



I did a little checking on the Horton site to see if I could come up with anything. Although their instrucitons for a Dodge do not mention anything about the operating temperature, their general instructions do:



Page 11 here:

http://www.hortoninc.com/horton_inc/pages/contact_pages/pdf/22687.pdf



Also they sell different coolant temp sensors. I am wondering if I would like to install a 195 instead (at the next fuel filter change, no need to bleed if unnecessary ) I didn't really like to see it get much past 190 without the fan coming on.





Thanks again.

Ryan

 

[Cooker]

I just had another thought.



I wonder if it would be worthwhile to install an extra temp sensor to kick the fan on with the auto transmission fluid gets a little too warm? It appears they have snesors from 195 to 210 in 5 degree incriments. Very rarely have I ever seen temps over 200, but I am wondering if that will change with the increased engine operating temp?



The extra temp sensor plug on the harness could be used along with another sensor from Horton.



Just a thought

 

[dezrat]

If your 96 cools anything like my 94 you will never get the Horton to engage at idle. I only need mine climbing hills or driving around town(Las Vegas) in the summer. The rest of the year most of the time it is off.

The 12 o'clock position on my coolant gauge is 190* and I have never seen it above that unless I forget to manually turn the Horton on. I do that to keep it below the 190* mark. It is way above that mark when it auto engages but I don't know what that temperature is.

The other day while driving all over Vegas the temp needle did not get to 190* with the fan on(manual). This was in stop and go traffic and the ambient temperature was 105*

Trans temp got to 170* in the pan but I have a DTT 91 converter so it runs hotter.

I think your's is working correctly. It's a great addition to your truck.

 

[juicedcummins]

Which port did you stick the sensor in? In my instructions it was wrong for my rig. Not sure but the application might have been right for a 12 valve but not a 24 valve. I ended up moving it up top right beside the heater hose in a factory plug.

Great fan for us that see very cold temps and high heat. The one on my rig will never run empty out on the highway and will only kick in [with the air off] after idling for about 15min after a hard run. The 200 mark is a good high temp for this application.

Why drive a fan if you don't need too!

 

[JohnMcIntyre]

Originally posted by juicedcummins

Why drive a fan if you don't need too!

I could not have said it better myself!!



JMc

 

[hammersley]

How hard are these to install

AND what is the cost and best place to buy?????

 

[illflem]

I have an aftermarket coolant gauge in my 3500, the only times I see 200° is towing in 95°+. Block off your radiator and see if you can get it to kick on.

 

[Jeff H]

I thought Horton stopped making the fan clutches for the Dodge? I can never find any info on them either.

 

[JohnMcIntyre]

Horton and DC.... TT,TWTANBTT, SHMG

Originally posted by Jeff H

I thought Horton stopped making the fan clutches for the Dodge? I can never find any info on them either.

The following information is in the public domain (if you know where to look). The last "official" year that Horton supported their fan product for DC trucks was the 2000 production model year. DC then made some subtle wiring loom changes in their 2001 production model year, which for whatever reason, they decided not to share with Horton, despite Horton asking.



Speaking from personal experience, the Horton Fan system can be installed and works as intended in the early 2001 production models, albeit with some relatively minor modifications. (At the time I spoke with Horton direct and was made aware of these minor changes to the Horton electrical interface with the DC wiring loom. Obviously, without the manufacturer's support, Horton could not make any guarantees, but I had already decided to be my own warranty station about 12 months earlier , so this was a no-brainer.



I cannot speak for the 2001. 5 aka late 2001 production models, but I have been very pleased with it's performance and have no regrets. Hope this helps...



PM me if you want the translation for "TT,TWTANBTT, SHMG"

Scroll back earlier in this thread for truck profile details.



JMc

 

[David Oxland]

Hello Cooker, you finally did it!



When we towed our 7000 # trailer down the west coast to AZ we would have to hit more than an 8% grade and get slowed down to less that 50 mph be for we could generate suffiicent heat to call for a fan cut in. When it cuts in it would stay cut in for about 10 to 20 seconds and then off for five minutes if the grade continued. Never saw it cut in cruising at 70 mph on the level no matter what the outdoor temp. As Illflem says if you're really determined to see it cut in, block off the radiator and work it for a while. (idling doesn't really cut it unless you have infinite patience)

David

 

[Cooker]

Update

I just found this thread again and thought I would post an update.



I did have the fan automatically engage twice since it has been on. Both time were when I got out to unhook the trailer and left the truck idling. I would say after 3-5 minutes it eventually would kick on. So at least I know that it works



Overall I am happy with the Horton setup. The only other time the fan comes on is with the AC. I also don't like seeing it over 190 so I have turned it on a handful of times manually. I am not a big fan of the small amount of clearance between the wiring harness and the fan, but I guess it is enough. It does seem like they could have designed a little better bracket.



As far as mileage is concerned. I cannot say that around town my mileage picked up at all. If it did it was not enough to notice between the variations from tank to tank. I have only taken one long trip since the install and on the highway MPG's seem to be up around 1. 5-2 MPG's (this was verified because I took the same trip earlier in the summer before the install of the Horton).



Thanks again for you comments and your help.

 

[MikeBeggy]

The reason that Horton has the 5 degree separations in sending units is to match the fan with the engine cooling system thermostat with the fan. If you watch your guage closely, under load at constant speed, ie towing slightly uphill in hot climate, you will see the guage rise until the thermostat opens. You want the radiator to do it's job before the fan kicks on. I had to change mine because the fan would cycle needlesly in hot weather towing. The folks at Horton were very helpful. Any time one modifies the original factoy design, there is a little dialing in to get optimum results.

 

[Bob Beauchaine]

At 90 degrees - towing about 8000lbs - my coolant temp was at about 200. In 95 degree weather the fan will come on by itself at just ove 200 degrees. In 90 degree weather if I turn the fan on manually while towing the temp drops to under 180. I've got an Autometer Coolant Temp. guage so the numbers should be fairly accurate.



Bob

 

[WadePatton]

While we're on the subject

What really bugs me is the way the OEM fan kicks up a cloud in dusty conditions when it is OBVIOUSLY not needed--and I've just washed the truck



So I see a 1. 5-2. 0 mpg improvement claimed. What about HP? Anybody seen a dyno difference?

 

[Cooker]

Wade, the MPG improvement I have seen is only on the highway and that was over two 700 mile identical trips one with the Horton one without. Around town the mileage has remained the same. The only reason I stress this again is that I would hate for you or anyone else to be dissapointed if your mileage gains are not similar.



The stock fan, when fully engaged robs you of around 25HP. Most the time the HP draw will be less than that because very rarely is it ever fully engaged.





Bob, thanks for the numbers verified by an accuate, non-oem gauge.