BMW e36 compact 316 radiator fan woes...
Discussion
Just a quick post for anyone that might be able to help.
When I bought the compact, I noticed that the cooling fan cam on whenever the ignition was turned on, regardless of the temp of the car. It stayed on all the time during driving. Further checks pointed out that a previous owner had bridged the connections to the fan switch so that the fan was constantly on.
Assuming the switch was duff, I switched the cables back to how they should be and have been driving around with it since. The other day (one of the really hot ones) I got stuck in traffic and the temp gauge sat in the middle as it always had. After a while it started to creep up until I decided the fan wasn't going to kick in and I pulled over and bridged the switch again.
I ordered a new fan switch and fit it today. The fan still doesn't kick in. Pretty stuck for ideas now as the fan works fine when the connection is bridged between the two wires but obviously, the new switch doesn't realise the car is getting hot when it is. Either that or is knackered out of the box...
I have a few questions.
1. The fan switch has 3 wires going to it. Two of them obviously make up the circuit that tells the fan to turn on or off. What is the third? It's black/green in colour if that helps.
2. What else could cause the fan to not come on if all of the components are working? Could coolant level affect it? Thermostat? Heater blows hot air so assume thermostat is fine. Coolant level looks ok to me. I did notice though that when the temp on the gauge was over the middle, the top of the radiator felt cold, as did the front all the way to the bottom.
When I bought the compact, I noticed that the cooling fan cam on whenever the ignition was turned on, regardless of the temp of the car. It stayed on all the time during driving. Further checks pointed out that a previous owner had bridged the connections to the fan switch so that the fan was constantly on.
Assuming the switch was duff, I switched the cables back to how they should be and have been driving around with it since. The other day (one of the really hot ones) I got stuck in traffic and the temp gauge sat in the middle as it always had. After a while it started to creep up until I decided the fan wasn't going to kick in and I pulled over and bridged the switch again.
I ordered a new fan switch and fit it today. The fan still doesn't kick in. Pretty stuck for ideas now as the fan works fine when the connection is bridged between the two wires but obviously, the new switch doesn't realise the car is getting hot when it is. Either that or is knackered out of the box...
I have a few questions.
1. The fan switch has 3 wires going to it. Two of them obviously make up the circuit that tells the fan to turn on or off. What is the third? It's black/green in colour if that helps.
2. What else could cause the fan to not come on if all of the components are working? Could coolant level affect it? Thermostat? Heater blows hot air so assume thermostat is fine. Coolant level looks ok to me. I did notice though that when the temp on the gauge was over the middle, the top of the radiator felt cold, as did the front all the way to the bottom.
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