Question about the price of 340s

dibbons said
Regarding your viscous drive fan, I just installed the Mopar version (5 blade) and in traffic jams my coolant temperature has climbed to the half way mark and then a little beyond and I never have heard the fan kick-in. I stored it properly "this side up" and I never observed any fluid leaking. Very disappointed.

in the late 1960's, there were lots of "factory" and "after market" parts you could buy to make your mopar run faster. mopar sold "viscus drive" radiator fans through the parts counter Direct Connection program. mopar claimed that taking off your "solid bolted" radiator fan and replacing it with a "clutch fan" or "viscus drive" fan was good for a 5 hp increase. back then, "bolt on" horse power was the rage so anything you could "take off" or "bolt on" that would increase power was popular. that's why a lot of old muscle cars do not have power steering or air conditioning (and "young kids" couldn't afford these options) - and of course, air pollution air pumps usually got taken off in the drive way as soon as a young gear head got his ride home from the dealer. it does not surprise me that the viscus fan is not cooling your car in traffic. these fans do not turn as fast as solid fans and thus do not produce as much air. they are designed to provide air flow while reducing the "torque load" on the motor. they work better for "racing" rather than "sitting in traffic." for maximum cooling, it's hard to beat "factory design" which is: a fixed bolted fan, a fan shroud properly spaced between fan blade and radiator, correct size and in good condition radiator. remember, car companies ALWAYS spent millions of dollars finding the right "compromised" set of components and specs in order to make the car the best performing for "normal" driving. when you decide "to go racing", you are going to affect the "drive ability" of the subject car.