Ryan Weaver's 1969 Olds Cutlass S W31 Club Coupe

[Ryan1969Chevelle]

So I will keep looking for one

Ryan

[Stefano]

Yes Ram Rods and W-31s had fan shrouds.

[Ryan1969Chevelle]

Stefano, could I bother you for a part number?

I don't want a new part, as I have seen you can still buy these from GM, but a modern part:-(

Ryan

[PeteLeathersac]

Not sure w/ '69 W31's but besides HD cooling, some rear axle ratios dictated whether shrouds were included w/ other 68-72 A-bodies.
Destined for Canada or CA may make a difference too but what axle is your car Ryan also is the ratio of the one Stefano posted known?
[img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/hmmm.gif[/img]
~ Pete

[Ryan1969Chevelle]

Mine has 3.42, I think Stefano's is 3.91

V02, vs V01 Radiator

Ryan

[83hurstguy]

Ton of info (and arguments) about shrouds here: http://classicoldsmobile.com/forums/...n-shrouds.html

Post 13 starts a discussion on '69 W-cars. The PIM appears to say &quot;no&quot; for an OAI car with manual trans, other people are saying &quot;yes they got them&quot;.

If you are planning on street driving this thing, I would put the shroud on it. Points for correctness don't matter when you are puking antifreeze everywhere on the side of the road. [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/smile.gif[/img]

Dave H does not have a shroud on his original owner '68 Ram Rod. I just double checked my MCACN pictures to be sure.

One other side note, Stefano, the shroud on that Ram Rod is a '69-up piece due to the square bump for the hose strap (that's not there), so it's very likely not original to the car. '68 used a one year only shroud, the upper hose straps directly to the top core support instead of the plastic shroud in both small block and big block cars.

[Ryan1969Chevelle]

Thanks Luke, I will definitely be using a shroud!! After a 41 year sleep this W-31 will be driven, she needs to be reliable!

Do you know the part number, or have pics of what to look for?

Ryan

[83hurstguy]

No prob. 402995 (more details in that thread). They were still available NOS a few months ago, or a wanted ad on classicolds should get you more of an original/patina nice one if you are going for the unrestored look. Should be easy to get one.

There's a generic HD Delco fan clutch for later Olds 307 that should bolt on and keep it cool as well if your original is toast. I don't have the p/n handy at the moment... It's not a perfect original, but with a shroud, you can't see the clutch anyways... My 68 has the original OS clutch in good shape, I may switch to the new HD one so it stays cool. Haven't decided yet...

[Ryan1969Chevelle]

Great stuff!!

I will find one!! (Shroud)

How do you test the clutch fan?

Ryan

[83hurstguy]

The most obvious issue would be leaking fluid. Other than that, you can try to spin the fan with the clutch stationary, and the fan should &quot;drag&quot; and not spin more than 1/4-1/2 revolution. If it freewheels, it won't be spinning under load. Of course, the final test is keeping the car cool at idle. You should be able to give it a quick spin test without worrying about ruining the &quot;barn find&quot; patina for MCACN. [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/smile.gif[/img]

The AC Delco HD clutch is 15-40108, found it. If your clutch is good, I'd be inclined to run it, use this number as a backup or if it wants to run hot at idle.