Renault Clio engine cooling fan, advice please.

logie28

Hi , I need help on this one please. i have a Renault Clio 16v w reg,2000.
I have not been blessed with luck since i bought it 2 months ago, cam belt snapped on second day of driving the thing!!!

Any how, a few hundred quid later and a lot of stress i think ive found another problem. I might be being paranoid and i admit I'm looking for problems, after all timing belt, new valves ,head gasket , gear box mount, rear door not opening, two new tyres and a new exhaust shield after two months of owning the car, I'm suspicious!!

To think i only bought the car because someone drove into my car while i was asleep writing it off then driving off!!

Now then, the problem is my fan isn't kicking in .i really cant afford to spend any more cash at the min so I'm looking to fix it my self, here's what ive done up to now.

I have put a live to the fan , nothing happened, i checked the fuses . all OK, i swapped the relay, still doesnt work. when i put a live into where the relay switch fits the fan" does" work.

The car is not over heating, it sits on half on the temperature Gage, i do a lot of town driving, still does not over heat.

I am going to Blackpool next week so need a bit or reassurance. local garage has a weeks waiting list.

Sorry for the long post, any help. greatly appreciated!!

anewman

I suspect the timing belt was not renewed at the specified interval hence it failing? Seriously bad luck two days after buying though.

If by relay switch you mean the temperature thermostat switch then it is likely that is at fault.

asbokid

logie28 wrote: »

the problem is my fan isn't kicking in .i really cant afford to spend any more cash at the min so I'm looking to fix it my self, here's what ive done up to now. I have put a live to the fan , nothing happened, i checked the fuses . all OK, i swapped the relay, still doesnt work. when i put a live into where the relay switch fits the fan" does" work. The car is not over heating, it sits on half on the temperature gauge, i do a lot of town driving, still does not over heat.

if the car isn't overheating, how did you come to concern yourself with the cooling fan, and whether it works or not?

those things hardly ever fail.. when you were trying to get it to spin, you were probably just energising the wrong pins in the fan's electrical connector. some fans have multiple pins for running at several speeds.. if the fan doesn't work now, it's probably because you burned it out with your tinkering!!

best advice is leave well alone.. since it ain't broke so don't fix it!

anewman

asbokid wrote: »

those things hardly ever fail..

Fans will generally come on in all cars if stationery with the engine running for an extended period as air if not flowing across the radiator. A non-functioning fan is often not fun in hot weather when you're stuck in traffic.

Temperature switches are usually the first thing to fail.

Rallydriver

Fans are triggered one of two ways, a wax switch in the radiator itself or by the cars ECU.

If its a wax switch in the radiator then its simply a case of bridging the two wires to the switch. If it comes on then the fan is fine, if it doesn't then it needs a new fan.

If it comes off the ECU or if the fan works in the test above then I'd recommend testing it when you arrive home from a drive and just leave the car idling for a bit while you sit inside the car watching the temperature gauge. All cars temp gauges differ, some only go up a little before the fans kick in, some go up to over 3/4 of the way to the red zone. I'd say don't let it go much past that 3/4 of the way mark before you shut the engine off, but the fans should kick in and cool it down first.

Do that test first and see how it goes, once thats done it'll be easier to see if there is a problem and a recommended solution.

logie28

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asbokid wrote: »

if the car isn't overheating, how did you come to concern yourself with the cooling fan, and whether it works or not? [STRIKE][/STRIKE]

Just by being paranoid really, i have obviously been checking coolant and signs of oil leaks after the timing belt was replaced, I just noticed that my fan has not kicked in since i have been driving it, i left it stationary and it still did not kick in.

Maybe the engine isn't getting hot enough, i will take the advice given on here and run it , leave it standing. Maybe the engine will get hot enough and it will work. If not and the car still isn't overheating ill leave it alone.

I'M just really paranoid after everything that as gone wrong, ill just chill and stop looking for problems.

Cheers for all your good advice.

flang

Rallydriver wrote: »

If its a wax switch in the radiator then its simply a case of bridging the two wires to the switch. If it comes on then the fan is fine, if it doesn't then it needs a new fan.

I did this on a nissan bluebird that used to over heat! we left the cross over wire in all time meaning the fan would be on even if its -1 outside!!!
We drove it like this for over a year until selling

hewhoisnotintheknow

i dont think ive ever heard the fan on my car, once upto temp the water and oil seems to stay at exactly half no matter what i do

Lakeuk

You could try http://www.renaultforums.co.uk/ a good source for diy'ers

logie28

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hewhoisnotintheknow wrote: »

i dont think ive ever heard the fan on my car, once upto temp the water and oil seems to stay at exactly half no matter what i do

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Thanks , what car do you have.