1970 fan

[Pete M.]

I am trying to find a correct fan for my 70 350/300 a/c coupe. All of the suppliers I checked don't carry it or have discontinued it. I believe it should be the 7 blade fan. Anyone have a source for this? I have a 6 blade flex fan in it now and car runs hot.Just wanted to put things back to orignal before I search for other issues.

[Joe L.]

Re: 1970 fan

Pete----

The fan you require is GM #3955182. However, this fan blade assembly was discontinued by GM several years ago. As far as I know, it's not reproduced. It's easy to identify, though, as it has the part number stamped on one of the blades. This is a hard-to-find item.

[Pete M.]

Re: 1970 fan

Since this is just a driver, will something else retro-fit? they do list a 7 blade fan for 71-77 Is this a different bolt pattern? Or maybe something from a camaro or chevelle? Thanks for the help

[Joe L.]

Re: 1970 fan

Pete-----

The 71+ fans will not easily retrofit because, as you've surmised, the bolt pattern is different. They can be retrofitted but a lot of other changes have to be made, too. This would include waterpump, fan clutch, and, in some cases, parts of the pulley system. For other resons, this may be a worthwhile conversion, but there's a lot to it.

However, all is not lost. There are other fans that can be used. As far as GM fans go, GM #3770529 is a 5 blade fan that will fit perfectly. Current GM list price is $70.67. This asembly does not have as great a blade pitch as some others, including the 3955182, but I think that it will work alright. There very well may be other GM fans used for other carlines that might work, too. I don't know what they are, however.

Another option is a reproduction fan. As I say, the 3955182 is not currently available (but, I bet it will be in the future), but it's predecessor, the GM #3888366 is available. It's also a 5 blade like the 3770529 but the blades have a greater pitch and will pull more air. It's expensive, though, at about $200. It was used for many 66-67 Corvettes, including those with A/C and/or big blocks and all 1968 Corvettes.

Another option is aftermarket. There are some aftermarket fans out there that have configurations very similar, if not identical, to GM OEM fans. I'd check with Hayden or other cooling system part manufacturers. All of the aftermarket fans are not flex-type fans. Many look just like their OEM counterparts, save for minor details.

[Pete M.]

Thanks Joe *NM*