Alternate Cooling Method.... Worth it or not?  By  mopojo (Read 2,077 times)

The PC fan likely would only be of any benefit when standing still and would probably do more to block air flow once you were moving. On most of the more well thought out bikes that panel already has louvers near the bottom to give it some airflow however without any fins on the valve cover the final impact on engine temperatures would be extremely minor if at all measureable. The real cooling of the return oil comes from the airflow around the timing chain area where the oil pumped up through the cylinder and head returns to the sump.

the thing about DIY in regards to airflow, are you taking advantage of natural airflow.
for example what is the airflow like underneath a car?
it would seem the air should flow one way, but due to certain designs, the airflow is actually opposite.
yes, i know we aren't talking about a car.
but the same thing applies to chinese scooters because of body plastics.

the only thing i can say is, go with what works, trial and error my man.

BTW, radio shack sells a 6 inch, 12VDC, brushless "computer fan"
it doesn't seem to be very weather proof though.

This puppy will flow 240CFM.
Will work with a 4" hose so you could mount it somewhere else and run the hose and Bell type duct work anywhere you may want it.
These are Weather proof, the little computer fans would be a joke and waste of time. Gotta Flow some CFM.
www.jegs.com/i/Allstar-Performance/049/ALL13009/10002/-1
I'm unsure if your Scooter Electrical system will run it for long.
There are many in-line type fans on the market for the race car industry that would get it done.

I got some fans that BLOW and use very little resources. I can figure water-proofing the wiring but the fan motor itself would become the rub.
Electrics are good and pushing at rates (not sure haven't checked inna while bit charges battery and runs all lighting for three years). Same battery and wiring... well a little splice with solder here and there.
Just thinking airflow and have some ideas (apropos to the situation).
Thanks for the comments... will figure something out: Got a little spare time once in a while and this is my partner/girl-fiend/hobby. It is my ride. LOL
Peace and safety to all and be blessed... don't forget to bless others.
Edit: I like the idea of passivity as an alternative. Thnks; sure it will fi tn somewhere.

Ok I like that. you have been blessed[/quote]
Have you read the edit? Thinking passive now as i really do not want to push a good thing.

If you have cooling issues, this might help.

In Texas, I often ride in over 100-degree weather. My original Chinese 150 did run a little hot, with the oil-temp approaching 200-degrees.  I figure oil-temp is a pretty good benchmark for overall engine temp.  "If the oil's happy, the whole motor is probably happy..."

I added one of those "fan scoops" which helped "slightly" lowering the temp a few degrees. I then made an extension from PVC pipe which moved the scoop outboard of the plastics. THIS lowered the oil-temp from 195+ down to 170-175 on a 110-degree day! I believe the stock cooling-fan shroud is SO far "inboard" of the plastics that it suffers from starvation of fresh air, even at speed.

Consider, the fan is sucking hot air from all around the engine-bay even when moving.  (Adding more cool-air access like you want to do, would certainly help).

Of course, heat will always be a problem when sitting idling. Any longer than a couple of red-lights and I shut off the motor, restarting when traffic in front begins to move. I do that even with my current water-cooled Kymco when the temp gauge gets near the top, and that habit has worked well for me with bikes for more than 50 years... It WAS a little more "pesky" inconvenient with kick-start Hogs in the 1960's... but still a good way to keep the bike cool.  Electric starters ARE the "cat's-" nowadays...

Here are some pix of the simple fan-scoop extension from my old 150 GY6. It's pretty simple to make, and really does lower the oil-temp a LOT on a hot day...














Getting the "scoop" out past the plastics (which MAY produce a "votex" of "dead air") really worked for me. In temperatures below -degrees, it may not matter as much, but the engine can use all the fresh air it can get...

On my old 150, I replaced the black fan-shroud with a chrome one, and trimmed the extension with chrome mylar tape to make it all match.  Strictly "cosmetic" but the whole assembly could be simply painted flat-black, or any color.  It's the function that matters... LOL!

Ride safe,

Leo in Texas

Pistonguy,

OK, the expansion/contraction chamber... Yeah, it got a lot of comments.

WAY back in the 1960's I was a go-kart fanatic. When the chamber pipes came out, they were amazing, pulling the fresh air-fuel charge THROGH the cylinder, and ramming it back in for an honest-to-goodness "supercharging" effect. MONSTER power, but only at the rpm tuned for.

We experimented by running them on 4-stroke engines with great success (but of course, NO "supercharging" effect).

The way they perform on a 4-stroke is that the expansion part of the pipe DOES "pull" the exhaust out, in effect, scavenging the exhaust better even than a straight-pipe. The contraction cone part produces a little back-pressure which the average 4-stroke still needs to run right.

The combination makes for a 4-stroke with the exhaust-scavenging properties of a straight, wide-open exhaust with the smooth running with easy tuning and a general improvement in overall drivability. The perfect setup for a daily-driver scooter.

The pipe won't make monster horsepower like on a 2-stroke, but in my experience it's the BEST general performance setup on a daily-driver 4-stroke. the little "stinger" on the pipe is mainly to tame the otherwise LOUD exhaust note. On a 150 4-stroke however, they "just ain't all that loud" without it... It just looks cool, and, it was already on the pipe.

That pipe in the picture is actually from a 50cc 2-stroke. I found it under the cushions of a couch at a thrift-store! They wanted $7 for the couch, so I gave them the seven bucks and took the pipe, letting them keep the couch... LOL!

Many modern riders don't like the idea of an expansion pipe on a 4-stroke, but I've been using them for 50 years with great results. They make for easy tuning, great overall running, are not required to be "tuned to the engine" and are not all that loud. Works for me!

Ride safe!

Leo in Texas

PS:  A few years back, "Vento" 150 scoots came with a chamber pipe.  I actually have a NOS one, all chrome and shiny somewhere in the shed... However, it will not just bolt up to every GY6 150.  To place it on a different model, it might need to be cut off ahead of the chamber and adapted.  Also, the mounts don't fit all Chinese scoots either.  There are a lot of differences in Chinese 150 exhausts.