fan reversal

[NancysToy]

I was thinking that if that sensor is used to measure the air temp going into the engine, shouldn't it be mounted near the air intake for a more accurate reading rather than at the radiator.... or is there another sensor at the air intake and the one at the radiator is only used for ambient temp reading on the display?....

The AAPTS sensor should not be moved into a direct air stream.. It also measures air pressure, and can be adversely affected by a direct air stream (or a slip stream that creates a venturi effect). It plays only a minor role in the fuel mapping, and updates very slowly at that. It is also sensitive to the harness resistance, to the wire length and connections are critical. I'd suggest you either leave it alone or be very careful about where yoyu place it and how you modify it.

[Magdave]

...and the density of hot air is less than cold air...

[Jeriatric]

...and the density of hot air is less than cold air...

Pilots will ROGER that.

[jwulf74]

in English? seriously though... looks great, but any chance there is a list of commercially available parts to make that work? I only sort of understand actual diagrams like that and could probably fumble through part of it like the 2 relays, but it turns into Greek on the speed sensor part...

[Bob Denman]

When can we start discussing how many Angels can dance on the head of a pin?

[Magdave]

When can we start discussing how many Angels can dance on the head of a pin?

[Bob Denman]

It appears that I've been found, by my new Theme Song...

[Gundam]

Ok.... finally got a chance to take my Spyder out for a long (by our standards) test ride.... hit the expressways (highways in your words) to get it nicely warmed up.... and into downtown traffic where you have stop lights for every 300 metres or so.... noted the air temperature display about 40-41 degrees C (we use metric, remember?).... switched to reverse fan mode for the entire trip around town, and noted that the air temp display remains the same.... if the air temp sensor is where the manual says it should be, then I don't think reversing the air flow forward will affect it much.... it is quite a distance from the radiator to the sensor, any hot air going forward will hit the front shock absorber first, and I don't feel any difference in temp between the left and right shocks.... frankly speaking, it is the longest single ride i have taken so far, and the really hot spot that I have felt is the glove box!.... looks like my next project will be to force some cooling air into that area.... as for this current project, I have already finished fabricating the air flow switch, next, will be the mounting bracket then testing to get the correct switching point.... will report back....

[Gundam]

... that is, if anyone is still interested in this topic... the hype seems to be the new 14's RTs now....

Anyway, managed to mount the air flow paddle switch inside the ride side tunnel and do it the hard way, without removing the frunk... got the thing wired up as per the wiring diagram posted earlier, also installed two LEDs indicator lights to show which direction the cooling fan is rotating, red for fan blowing air forward and green for fan drawing air towards the back (normal direction).... and then the test ride....

The system works.... when the is accelerating past about 30 km/h, the fan switches back to the normal direction.... and when slowing down to about 28 km/h it switches to the forward direction.... but I may adjust it so that it switches over at a higher speed, about 50 or 60 km/h and also to have a larger difference between switch over points so as to prevent the fan from switching over too rapidly from one direction to the other and back again.... something I have experience during testing to find the switch over points and ended up with another episode of self induced "limp home mode" with "coolant high temp warning".... other than that, it works as what I have planned.... Will report back when further adjustment is done.... and also photos....

[Bob Denman]

NoNoNo...
Please keep this information coming!
There are a whole of the 2013s out there, and I'm sure that all of your hard efforts will be very useful, in helping them to find answers for their own bikes too!

[Jeriatric]

NoNoNo...
Please keep this information coming!
There are a whole of the 2013s out there, and I'm sure that all of your hard efforts will be very useful, in helping them to find answers for their own bikes too!

​13's ?

[Bob Denman]

And prior models too; they just seemed to lodge the most heat-related complaints...

[jwulf74]

I am slowly getting parts to do mine too... but at -8 degrees out it's too hard to get too excited about it

Hopefully by the end of March we will get some heat around here.

[poordom]

I am slowly getting parts to do mine too... but at -8 degrees out it's too hard to get too excited about it

Hopefully by the end of March we will get some heat around here.

I have read most of the messages pertaining to the fan reversal idea.

It is a great idea, but the concept to activate the reversal seems complicated, in my mind anyways.

Anybody think of using the brake as a possible way of controlling the fan.

I usually use my brake in traffic, start and stop, or when slowing down, so taping into the brake light, to trip a Double Pole Double Throw relay, should work.

In essence, if you are moving the fan blows as it normally does, if you stop the fan reverses.

Dom

[Bob Denman]

But what if you tapped your brakes at highway speeds?
There'd just have to be some sort of a delay in the system to allow for the function of slowing down from speed... (For example; for a sharp turn during a "spirited "ride.)

[jwulf74]

The brake idea is interesting, but it wouldn't help in slow moving traffic when you might want it unless you rode the brake which the nanny won't like.

[Bob Denman]

...Stopped in traffic; it'd be just fine...

[Gundam]

Sorry for the long delay in posting folks, but work that brings in the cash must come first, got my hands full for the time being.... my system is working well so far, I haven't really got a chance to ride on a long deserted road to test exactly the speed at which switching points for fan reverse and forward occurs but from normal riding to and from work and glancing between the indicator lights and speedometer occasionally, I would say that it switches back to normal fan direction at around 40 km/h, but far more important is that it switches back to reverse at around 30 km/h... a difference of 10 km/h instead of the previous 2 km/h, which is good, so that rapid switching between on/off states of the relay is avoided.... the area of the paddle switch has been reduced to about 50mm by 80mm from a previous size of 76mm by 100mm..... I will find time to do some more testing before deciding whether to reduce it some more or leave it as it is....

In reply to poordom, and for the rest, my system works like this.... once you got stuck in heavy or stop & go traffic or you feel your right foot is getting too hot for comfort, just flick a switch and the cooling fan reverses direction and blows hot air from the radiator forward and away from your right foot.... the fan will continue blowing forward as long as your speed is below about 40 km/h, once your speed goes above 40 km/h the fan automatically switches back to the normal direction.... you can leave the switch as it is or if you are constantly riding at highway speed then you can flick the switch back to the normal mode, that is, no fan reversal... my system also has another override mode, where you can switch the cooling fan to run all the time, this has the advantage of at least bringing down the coolant temperature by one notch on the digital display from the usual 5, and the difference can be felt!.... so far, all I can say is, it works!....

[Gundam]

DSC_0062.jpgDSC_0063.jpgDSC_0060.jpgThe pictures show the air flow paddle switch used to control the direction of the cooling fans.... neatly installed inside the right hand side tunnel, not visible at first glance.... the box houses the switch which is fitted to a L shaped bracket mounted at the roof of the tunnel, the paddle hangs below it.... the speed at which the switch activates can be changed by altering the size of the paddle... so far it works well, now to see how reliable is the various components....