Installing a replacement radiator shroud (From WCCC) and I am finding that it is not fitting evenly with the fan vertically. There is 1 1/2" gap on the top and a 1/2" gap at the bottom between the end of the fan blade and the inner shroud. It is fine side to side. The fan blades look to be 1/3 into the shroud with the clutch being 1 5/8" from the radiator fins. I have the shroud bolts at their lowest position. This is for a 1969 XR7 with AC, 351 Windsor 4V, FMX.
Is this okay? I can modify the shroud to lower it if required but if this adequate I will call it good.
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Pictures would help understand your issues
Check you have correct engine mounts, I think coupe and convertible have different hight engine mounts ???
Peter 
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Here are some photos. I could not get a usable photo of the bottom fan clearance but the gap is a 1/2 inch verse the 1 1/2" gap shown in the following photo:
Fan Blade Depth:
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My car is a coupe. Original Motor mounts with new insulators from WCCC.
halbey,this may not help but the factory shroud has a 19 inch opening and the fan is 17 1/2 inches. So if things are lined up properly, there should be a 3/4 gap all the way around. At least that is what I believe to be correct. Others here may disagree and that’s fine. My engine is apart right now so I can’t measure the distance of how far the fan is from the radiator fins. Is the radiator properly seated on the lower support brackets?
That makes sense. My radiator seems to be sitting correctly on the lower brackets. I will check to see if the radiator is flush on the bracket pad and also if the bracket can be adjusted lower. That would require some bending because I recall there is no adjustment on the mounting bolt. I will work on it tomorrow.
Your water pump could be the problem. Some aftermarket castings have the hub in a slightly different location than factory ones with C8… part numbers.
Great. So a original water pump shaft would be located 1/2 inch or so higher than some after market pumps?
Would my current set up effect the cooling performance of the fan and radiator?
I am going to pull the shroud and measure the fan position behind the radiator to see what the gap is between the top tank to fan blade and the bottom tank to fan blade.
Should I start looking for a original/correct water pump?
The best place for the fan to be, front-to-back, is half the blades’ width in the shroud, not distance from the radiator core.
Does my blade depth in the photo above look correct? It appears to be somewhere between 1/3 to a little less than half way into the shroud.
The radiator height between the upper and lower tank is 16" (by 24" wide). My fan blades look like they overlap the upper and lower tank by roughly 3/4". So if the fan blade width is 17 1/2" the fan is pretty well centered behind the radiator.
Could the replacement shroud be off a little and require some customizing. I noticed the cutout for the lower hose does not line up correctly no matter how far I move the shroud sideways. Easy enough to modify.
I checked both lower brackets out of the car. The saddles fit perfectly on the radiator. Both brackets are straight and I remounted them at the lowest level.
Just spitballing here…even though the engine mounts are correct, is it possible that the transmission mount is incorrect (i.e. too thick)? That could affect the engine angle/geometry at the front, and create the discrepancy you have described.
Spitball away! The FMX is original and I used the original cross member. I bought the mount from WCCC. Everything worked before I took it apart. However, there was no radiator shroud - hmmm!
I have not attached the hoses yet - still looking for more input or reassurance it will be fine as it is…
Generally the fan needs to be at least an inch away from the radiator when no shroud is present. With a shroud even gaps are ideal but not that critical. Blades should be about halfway into/from the shroud. With the blades outside of the shroud it seems to help the volume of air pulled through the radiator. Mechanical fans with thermal clutches are far superior to most electric fan setups and in my experience, more reliable.
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It looks close enough depth-wise
Don at WCCC has a youtube video showing upgrade with 69 cougar small block convertible with 24 inch radiator. Towards the end he mentions the car is fitted with one convertible engine mount rubber and one coupe engine mount. He also talks about adjusting the lower radiator supports to make shroud fit better. Not saying engine mounts are wrong, but never assume, thus double check part numbers, even Don can be wrong sometimes.
I would have liked to see the fan a little closer to the radiator, but if it works, it is good enough.
