Grill Blocking in warmer climates

[bradlington]

I am at sea level and never push my accelerator.( Kids say I drive slower than my mother -in-law)

Being in the location where we never get below freezing - temperatures range from 10 degrees in late at night sometimes to average of 30 - 35 deg Celcius at peak daytime.

My question - being in this climate would grill blocking add any value to risk .

My CRP123 shows 94 degrees on average then the first fan kicks in .
My Subaru Legacy GT non-turbo has two fans .

Thanks in advance

Bradley

[teoman]

Then it starts to depend on the type of commute you do.

The fans will waste energy, so they should not be coming on.

I suppose the only advice i can give is try and see. Also try to go modular, then you can decide how much you can get away with bolcking.

[Daox]

I bet you can at least block some of the grill. It won't have as large of an effect as colder climates, but you're also pushing yourself through less dense air, have less warm up time, etc. So you already have an advantage of sorts over colder climates. Like Teoman said, just monitor how much your radiator fan is coming on. You don't want it running a ton. I don't mind mine turning on a couple times on my commute because the faster warm up is worth it to me. Alternatively, you can make a grill block that you can open up and close.

[me and my metro]

Just remember that grill openings are designed for the worst cooling conditions possible. I will use bumper to bumper stop and go traffic in Houston Tx as an example. 100 degrees and 90% humidity will make cooling fans run on high and really tax your cooling system. So unless this is the “normal” condition for your car you can start to cover up.

[Fat Charlie]

Get a gauge that displays actual cooling temp. Then you can watch the thermostat open, watch the fan kick in, and see when you ought to shut down and remove the block.

[redpoint5]

If your fans are kicking on, then don't grill block.

I've run a partial grill block in the summer, but I monitor temperature and have an alarm set near where the fan activation temperature is.

If you use AC, then I wouldn't bother grill blocking. Better to get good AC efficiency.

Slow acceleration doesn't really save much fuel. Engines are efficient at higher loads. Avoiding brake use is much more important.

[bradlington]

From all accounts my first fan kicks in at 94 degrees exactly .

With this I think grill blocking is not an option in my climate.

Thanks for all the good info .
regards Brad

[Fat Charlie]

I live in New Hampshire. When it was below freezing I couldn't take off my gloves for my whole 40 mile commute. When it was below zero I couldn't take my hat off. When I blocked the grille, I had them all off within 20 miles.

So the fan kicks in sometimes in the summer. I put in the block in 2015 and haven't had to touch it since. I'm okay with that.

[JRMichler]

I've had my full grille block in for several years. My cooling fan has never turned on, even up an extended slight upgrade at 91 deg F (33 deg C). But the radiator is sized for a larger engine pulling a heavy trailer.

[ThermionicScott]

Originally Posted by bradlington

From all accounts my first fan kicks in at 94 degrees exactly .

With this I think grill blocking is not an option in my climate.

Thanks for all the good info .
regards Brad

Yeah, if the fan(s) kick in without a grille block, I definitely wouldn't add one.