Demler's comment in the SP section referring to a plastic seven bladed cooling fan set me wondering whether there was a similar bolt on fan for the Conquest. There is a similar product for the Austin Healey which is also a direct bolt on for the westminster. Advantages would appear to be lightness and better cooling at tickover.

Hi Andy,
We have just fitted a new radiator to a LHD Conquest.
It looks like LHD Conquest models where sold with a different fan blade. This one has six blades.
I think they just aded an extra blade to it.
I drove it on a long run on a very hot day. No overheating problems at all.
Befor the new radiator was fitted there where no overheating issues as well. It just got a little hole.
But you would not believe how much stuff was in the radiator that had Blocked it up. And it was still not overheating.
And yes the temp instrument is in working order.
Chris

Hi Chris the original fan is a metal two blade one. I was just wondering whether there was a plastic multi blade fan that fits straight on.

When I had the DJ254 I was worried about over heating as she seemed to run hot. I had been told that the export Conquests and Centuries were fitted with a 4 blade fan so I asked Alan Doig whether he had such a fan was available.

Alan supplied a good s/h two blade fan which i fitted on at right angles to the one on the car. There are 4 bolts on the pulley so the job was quite easy - I just get very grazed knuckles.

Dennis

My Conquest Century is fitted with a 6 bladed fan as, I believe, all Australian Conquests were. Refitting the blades after changing the water pump caused much scraping of knuckles and paint blistering profane language.
Ian

The Majestic Major 6 blade fan is a direct substitute for the standard UK DJ range 2 blade fan; same centre bore and 4 bolt fixing. Probably it is therefore the same as the export market DJ 6 blade fan. An MM fan is perhaps not easy to find; I was fortunate to store a spares donor state MM for a time before Marcus Jones bravely came and rescued it. My reward was the fan and the twin SU HD8's that are currently on the SP250.

Before I fitted that fan I had rodded out the Century block to remove much debris, rust fragments and casting sand after I bought it in the mid 90s. The radiator was also removed and thoroughly backflushed then, and as far as I know it is the original item.

I fitted the fan after experiencing repeated episodes of engine failure in hot weather and static traffic, which were eventually cured by fitting one of the Distributor Doctor's splendid red rotor arms, but I left the fan on thereafter although the car has never actually had any cooling problems on the road in any weather following clearing out the block; temp gauge needle always rock steady. To my mind good airflow at idle seems to be a generally good thing, esp in the summer, to help control underbonnet temperatures.

But it also seems to me that recurrent cooling issues in an old car should be addressed by first removing all the core plugs and clearing out the block, if that has never been done, as well as dealing with the radiator, before going on to other parts of the cooling system.

Cheers

Geoff