I am patient and will continue to keep working on the situation. Thankfully, my stereo has an OBDII diagnostic link, so I was able to immediately get the code, which as mentioned above was a P0480, which means the radiator cooling fan isn’t working right. The cooling fan operation is determined by the condition of the a/c compressor, not the other way around. Set the … Plug the connector up to a new switch and heat it up with a small torch and fans SHOULD come on! All you have to do is follow the instructions that come with the tool. A manual fan is connected to the engine drive pulleys and is controlled by a thermo fan clutch which senses radiator heat and engages when the engine is running at higher temperatures. price can range from $300-$1,200 for a fix. Wire them up direct to the ignition switch or whatever. Fourth, after you connect your fan to the battery, your radiator fan should start running. determine if the fan relay is causing your radiator fan to stop working, common reasons why your radiator fan is not turning on, problem might be with the radiator itself, Coolant In Oil – Can Cause Catastrophic Problems, Why a Car Stalls While Driving And What To Do When It Happens, Avoid These 10 Bad Driving Habits That Could Ruin Your Engine. You may need to look at your vehicle repair manual to see if your vehicle has a 4-wire terminal or three terminals, with two for power and one for ground wires. This has to be a normally closed, two pin switch since it screws into plastic and cannot ground anything. However, if your radiator fan doesn’t begin working with the direct power, then you need to make sure there’s no damage on the terminal and test for incoming voltage. Fans, fan motors, fan clutch? Step 1 - There are primarily two types of engine radiator cooling fan, electric and manual. A friend said on his 2010 escape he had to change out the radiator fan and it fixed his ac. If they run, your problem lies elsewhere. If your Aveo has a bad engine temp sensor the radiator fan won’t know to come … No, only comes on when the coolant is too hot. Depending on if and when the radiator fan comes on will affect what you should do next, and if the radiator fan has stopped working. Fortunately for you, the average cost of a radiator fan is not very expensive. Otherwise the switch would not even be needed! If you don’t want to buy a relay tester, you can purchase a digital multimeter that you can find in any electronics or hardware store. Everything seems fine. If your wire has worn out due to environmental factors, like heat, it will need a replacement. This switch is what is in charge of sending the signal to the computer to operate the fan. Your engine temperature sensor is responsible for relaying your engine temp to the ECU. Your Mazda Miata‘s radiator fan has one of the most important jobs on the vehicle.It is the last line of defense between you and an overheating engine. Now the cooling fans work for my Camry. Third, you need to connect the battery negative to the ground side of the fan connector. Circuit Breaker is Tripped. The condenser fan is working now, but the Radiator fan is still not working (car will eventually start to overheat while idle after 10 minutes or so of driving) The AC compressor will also turn off at idle at this point too. Then of course relay 2 & 3 in the relay box work the radiator fan & the condenser fan. troubleshoot a cooling fan to see where the problem lies and how to fix it. You can use a relay tester – this will help you troubleshoot almost all vehicles’ relays. This small structure can wear out after prolonged use. If you don’t replace your coolant level when it’s low, then this can cause the engine to become seized. That is just to help you figure out how I THINK it works. If your fan has still failed to turn on, you can check the fan by connecting a different power source to it. If the fan comes on when the air conditioning is operating at maximum volume, but doesn’t run properly when the engine is warm or hot, then you might need to check the temperature switch. Thermostatically controlled motors do not work the fan until the engine coolant rises above normal operating temperature, and then switch off when it has cooled down again. If you don’t have resistance values, but you are able to deduct that the Ohms values remain the same during cold and hot temperatures, you should replace the sensor in order to fix your radiator fan. Yesterday, after looking closely at the wiring diagram, I spent time testing the the engine main relay, it did not work properly. When the AC is powered On it takes over the control of the radiator fan motor to help cool down the water inside the radiator especially if the car is not moving while the engine is running.. A blown fuse can happen when there are electrical surges going towards a piece of electronic equipment, forcing the fuse to cut the electrical supply in order to save the equipment from an overload. you may need ECM. However, if there is an issue with the number of volts of electricity, then that usually means the wire needs to be replaced. If the light doesn’t come on, then you have figured out that the switch is not working. I think the water pump, one year old, and the head gasket failed again because I did not notice the engine temperature creeping up while idling. I want to know where the shut off switch is located at on my car. 5. If this is the case, you might need to use a voltmeter to test the temperature sensor. To prevent the engine from overheating and breaking, coolants are moving throughout the radiator and into the engine to keep the temperature at a workable level. I remembered my first or second car had a similar situation. Had to rod the new radiator to keep it from over heating. Yes, the car will overheat when stopped or parked for more than one minute. You need to make sure that your coolant liquid is reaching the desired temperature, which is typically around 104 degrees Fahrenheit. I lived with it for a year and now it's not coming in at all. Once the temp gets so hot, the ECU commands the radiator fan to come on. Almost seems like it has got to be crud inside the radiator where this normally closed COOLING FAN SWITCH screws into and is not opening the switch circuit when the coolant reaches the correct tempture. Almost seems like it has got to be crud inside the radiator where this normally closed COOLING FAN SWITCH screws into and is not opening the switch circuit when the coolant reaches the correct tempture. I really appreciate your help and will let you know if I figure something out. What a mistake. All the relays and fuses have been tested, they seem ok. They were fine. I had no more time so I either drove with the heat or the AC on to keep it cool. The car has 229,000 miles. AC does not work when temp rises.39642.564946412 … A radiator fan is imperative in keeping the temperature of the coolant low enough. Unable to locate the temp sensor located on the block, Good luck with it! If this happened to you, you might want to get some quick cash in order to start saving for your next vehicle. Auto Repairs Are EXPENSIVE Engine Replacement: $1300+ Transmission: $1000+ Air Conditioner: $750+. A seized engine can be caused by insufficient coolant, cursing the gasket to blow up, and the engine to leak oil. Don't use bars leak it will stop up the radiator faster then eggs. Thermostat (but would this cause the fans and AC not to spin?) But should not overheat. Unpluging the connector and then the fans run, is the same thing as opening the circuit!! I replaced the radiator and the radiator fan switch. If the temperature sensor is broken, it won’t be able to transmit the signals at the proper time to the ECU – and the fan won’t turn on. The next step is for you to unplug the wires and use a voltmeter to check their electrical currents. I was frustrated and had very little time to work on the engine properly. Thank you all again for your help. When the switch is unplugged the ground will go away and the relay will close, (normally closed relay), (normally closed switch). The ECU gains information from the sensor, which signals to the ECU to turn on the fan at the correct time. I was on vacation in January. No success, I tried switching each of the three of them separately. If your coolant level is low there is a chance that you will get air in the system … If the belt/viscous clutch fan is moving enough air (assuming your car has auto transmission), electric fan won't run. The fan belt is responsible for deriving power from the engine to transmit to the radiator fan. The last case scenario when testing your radiator fan is when the fan doesn’t come on after the engine has been running for 20 minutes. Interpreting this knowledge and reading the wiring diagram will, at the very least, help point me to the problem. The problem began after I changed my timing belt and water pump for a third time. Does the engine get HOT without the ac on? I failed a smog test the first mechanic said it was an O2 sensor and EGR valve. Head gasket (Kwik Fit checked for this, no sign of it, so highly doubtful) 4. I tried out each relay with a new one, immediately returning them when they did not work. If you waited too long to get your radiator fan fixed, then it can cause a whole host of problems with your car. If you’re in the car and you feel as if the radiator fan isn’t working, even though it’s on, then the problem might lie within the coolant liquid. Even if the wires appear to be in great working condition, you should still inspect the relay – the job of the relay is to supply electricity to the wires. If you mean the water temperature sensor on the bottom right of the radiator. Connect one lead to the power circuit and one lead to the power terminal. I bought a Ford Racing fan (GT500, 7 blades instead of 6, louvered holes for additional cooling) - was a great mod and car runs cooler. Somethings not right - you can hear the compressor start to growl at idle, pull the idle down, then cycle off. I noticed my fan never came on even with the ac set on max. Overheating The possibilities are (from my research online): 1. First, you need to unplug the wiring connector. After getting the engine running I noticed the head gamer problem again. 3. If you can’t figure it out, take your car to a mechanic right away so he can determine the issue. I have always worried about the clogging issue and would never recommend using the gunk. Cadillac Transmission Repair Cost – Avoid The 2016 Cadillac ATS! After the engine has reached operating temperature, back probe the other wire at the connector. Check for any damage and clean the connector. Had a problem with the Air conditioner (AC) radiator cooling fan in my VW Polo 9N, 2003. On many modern vehicles, if you want to confirm whether your cooling fan is in working order, you can start the engine and let it idle. A coolant fan switch is a small and very simple switch comprised of typically two wires. I replaced it twice because I thought the first one was defective. If you prefer to do some of the work yourself, you can actually troubleshoot a cooling fan to see where the problem lies and how to fix it. However, if your car has coolant in it, but still overheating, then the problem might be with the radiator itself. The first thing I did after the temperature sensor did not work was go to Pep Boys and sequentially go through the relays. People often get confused about the cooling fan operation!! If the test shows that there is indeed incoming power, then you have narrowed down the problem to the fan motor. Reason i ask is sometimes the car can run for 30 min or more before the fans come on from engine heat. Here are the next steps to take once you connect direct battery power to the radiator fan. May be your problem. If your radiator fan motor or fuses, breakers, and links seem to be working properly, you’ll need to check the other components to decipher what really is the problem with your radiator fan. Is it worth to buy a Toyota Camry 2010 with 152k miles for $5,000. I did try the new one from Pep Boys that must also have been defective. If you detect zero, then your relay’s power pins have stopped working and you need to replace the relay. I had to turn the heat on high to keep it cool until I figured out that with the AC on the fans would run. I must be missing something, or a wire is disconnected. I looked it up and tried to explain it to him in my reply. In older cars, you might have a fusible link – this is wire within an insulated block of rubber. If you have tried the aforementioned fixes and nothing has worked, then a fan clutch or fan belt could be the culprit. There are a few common reasons why your radiator fan is not turning on. Once you switch your ac on, the fans must work immediately, if they do not then it could be your fuses or fan motors. In older cars, this typically takes about 15-20 minutes for the engine to reach the right temperature. Ok, didn't read down far enough,,,,i agree! The temperature switch on most vehicles is typically connected to your car computer, or your powertrain computer. 10 Smart Tips! Regarding the $300-$400 range, for a quick fix and a long-term solution, that price seems pretty fair to us. The radiator fan switch relay may not be supplying power to the fan. Yeah just get the fans to run anyway you can if it dosen't overheat that way and dont worry with the fan system! Take the time to test relays before blindly changing them. Ensure that the wires are firmly attached and are not damaged. Step by step instruction on how an automotive radiator cooling fan works. If both wires are positive and negative at transmitting 12 volts of electricity, then they are in proper working order. Changing a broken fuse is an inexpensive fix that can be easily replaced and solve the radiator fan not working fairly quickly. Next thing to check is for power at the fan … Set your air conditioning to the MAX setting and turn it on. Also check the water temp switch on the right hand side of the radiator. If the compressor doesn't run the fan doesn't run. The cooling fans on Chrysler cars are not particularly well-made, but that doesn't mean you can assume that they are broken the second the cooling system stops working. The cost is typically between the range of $300-$400. Ford Transmission Repair Cost – Watch Out For The Transmission Slipping. I repaced the coooling sensor twice and both were no good, so I went to a diferent store to try another one. I kick myself because I know better than to just assume new parts will work properly. Later, I tested the cooling relays one and two. Battery power to the ignition switch or whatever connector up to a diferent store to try one. Out of the radiator fans to run anyway you can check the fan s! 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