Been a little while since I've posted anything. Since my last post (which was also my first) I have gotten a lot done on the van regarding repairs and while I've gotten a few performance things done it has been limited due to finances. I had to rebuild the entire front end as it was shot. While the front was all apart we lowered it about 2.5in. New brakes and shocks all around, woo. The big thing that's happened is I put a corvette servo, shift kit, and a higher stall 12in converter in the 4l60e. I still plan on swapping to a 4l80e in in the future, but since money was getting tight and I had these parts sitting around as spares I figured why not. While I was doing all that I also tracked down some leaks on the engine (rear main seal, fill tube not pushed in valve cover all the way). When everything was in, I had my tuner go in with HPTuners and remove torque management, some emissions codes, the speed limiter, and adjust shift points and rev limiters. He also added ~25% more timing which gave the van a bit more oomph. Overall these changes make me happy as it is substantially quicker. I am still going to pursue more power by way of cam and nitrous, but winter is coming and its time to just drive it. Oh, and does anyone know anything about electric fans for our vans? Constructive criticism and input appreciated

 

Pics, or it didn't happen!

I'd be interested in knowing what shocks you went with. I have no experience with electric fans on these vans, but I did a '76 Chevelle wagon back in the day, and noticed some improvement, but the biggest supriise was that it revved like crazy in neutral. Huge difference. What motor do you have?

 

I have the 5.3 (LM7) and I went with KYB Gas-A-Just for the shocks. They ride nice, they are a bit firmer than stock. I don't have pictures of the transmission work or tuning, but I can get one uploaded of the dropped front end in a bit. I was hoping the torque converter I put in would raise the stall just a bit higher than it did, but for free it's not a bad improvement.

 

My problem was it was too stiff. My '16 was 1 year old w/ 19k. The shocks were barely broke in. But it is a big honkin' 3500 long wheelbase. I went with Fox Racing RideTechs. Noticeable difference. Da Wife approves.

 

Hi StanVan, what do you mean "it revved like crazy in neutral"? And what was the huge difference, the revving or cooling of the motor? Did you remove the original fan blade, and it revved freer without the blade resistance?

 

Yes. Back in the days of dealer installed options on imported cars (before the Japanese wised up and built factories here), the fan gets upgraded when A/C was installed. So I had a couple electric fans laying around. I got a wild hair one weekend , and swapped out the stock fan for an electric. Without the drag on the engine fan, it revved much quicker, and seemed to have a bit more low end power. The car had idiot lights instead of gauges, but it never overheated.

 

Hurk,

Electric Fans will reduce the drag on the engine as Stan pointed out, and you will gain a few HP and Ft-Lbs of torque as a result (there are electric water pumps too if that's your goal). However, I'd recommend looking up some info about them (Engine Masters had a couple youtube videos about different fan setups, but I can find the link anymore). Typically, electric fans do not have sufficient cooling capability of the stock clutch fan at higher RPMs in demanding situations (i.e. towing), but they can have significantly more cooling capability when the engine is at low RPM or idle (additionally electric fans can run with the engine off). If you plan to use for long trips or towing, I'd strongly recommend avoiding an electric swap for the few HP gain. If you plan to take your van to the drag strip, go rock crawling, or if you have excessively long times at idle/low RPM (stop & go in a city) you could benefit from electric.

I did a lot of research on the topic for my own van. I wanted the best cooling set-up for towing a large travel trailer, and I determined that I'd benefit more from the stock clutch fan and a few less HP/Torque then risk overheating. YMMV

 

I have done a fair bit of reading on it and am on the fence about it because I do a lot of highway driving (this van will never tow). I was mostly just curious if anyone on here had done electric fans on their vans and had a good experience with them. I am looking to squeeze as much power as I can afford to out of the van, and have several side projects going that should help. I also still want it to be able to take long trips for vacations and racing with friends so finding a reliable way to make a lot of power in a heavy vehicle is something I have to work on.

 

DID I READ THAT RIGHT >>> ( NITROUS ) WHA WHA WHAAAATTT..
please do explain why would you install that on a VAN ?

 

If you have to ask you won't get it lol
I want to hurt people's feelings. Anyone can get beat by some Camaro or Mustang, but to get beat by a van is humiliating. I've had this idea in my head for a while and I really like vans. Plus nitrous, if done properly, goes well with just about everything