Do you need the fan shroud?
 

Anyone out there going without the fan shroud? Mine is torn up pretty bad and my "Car Guy" has suggested going without. Would the next best option be going electric?

Any comments or suggestions are welcome.

Well, of course you know it is to aid in cooling.
The air would not flow through the radiator as effectively.
I guess if you live in a very cold area, it would not matter (not implying that you live in a cold area).

Be a guinea pig, I guess. Try it and see how you make out...
I can only speculate not having tried it myself.

i am
 

i m running mine without and its fine but i also don t have ac anymore and the ac rad is restrictive so i say give it a try and see what happens

If you use a/c, you need one in city traffic to make enough air flow through the condensor.

i ripped off all airconditioning and didn't run a fan shroud but i do live in a coldish climate

I'll take all of that as a no... :) I'm getting my new rims and wheels installed early next week and then I'm going to tear into the dash replacement. Have a new radio to install too... The process is starting!!!

i dont have one on my car. i live in georgia so it gets pretty hot here and its just fine. although my ac needs to be recharged so im not using it right now.

NZ a bit chilly??
 

Hey, it looked to me like Frodo & friends was getting "chilled out" a lot there. HEE HEE.

I guess it is debatable if the fan shroud is needed, (not so much when driving) But if your into maintaining an even temp while sitting in gridlock traffic with the ac running on a 105 degree day you may want to keep it..imo

It is the shroud that makes the thermo clutch fan work properly. With out it, your clutch fan will not see as high of temps from the air passing through the radiator and it will not engage the clutch correctly when it is needed the most.. If it is cooling related, why take a chance??

7M's dont seem to last long when they over heat.

there whole purpose of the shroud is kinda to create a vaccum with the fan and pull air through the radiator. so if the shroud is cracked it kinda defies the purpose right? if i had my choice (which would be having lots of money and buy all the parts i want) id go with an electric fan with a shroud.

J3pz: That is a good option and will also free up some extra power in the motor but may not be as effective as stock.

To demonstrate how a fan shroud is effective, Take a old (junk) 12v 3" muffin fan from an old pc and plug it in to 12 volts and feel the air flow moving through the fan.

Now cut the shroud off of it and re check the flow of air. It is now totally useless as an air mover..All it will do is make a mess of the surrounding air..

Edit: Now want to see something really cool, Find a cardboard tube that is 1/6th of an inch bigger than the muffin fan blades. 3" tube should work. Now put the fan inside the tube and apply 12v and hold on to it good...;)

This is now a "ducted fan" and it will not only moves air, but it will create thrust:)

i also think they make the engine look that much better... oh and not to mention they are supposed to be more effective than oem fan

You only need the fan for idling really. If you dont drive 20 miles to work in traffic, you should be fine. It can cool itself effectively once your moving. Mines been off ever since my shroud broke and fell into my fan and broke it. Im planning on just getting an electric fan anyway, and they kinda have a built in shroud. BTW, is there any toyota/lexus cars with radiators similar to the 7m, but with electric fans? id like to adapt one

2005 camry
 

I was in the dealer today getting an intake manifold gasket and saw someone leaving with a plastic shroud for twin electric fans, I asked him for what car and he said 2005 camry. Looks to be the right size.