What the hell, car? (help needed)

"BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion" (pbs) 01/21/2014 at 11:02 • Filed to: Fix it again Tony

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I'll never criticize the chick magnet capabilities of Fiats again, they're a sensitive bunch... I mean, yesterday, I post a snarky comment about it on Turbeaux505's thread, today my car decides to die on me by not turning off the cooling fan and killing the battery in the process. And the fan's still on, when I try to juice the battery, it dies instantly. Now I have to figure out how to deactivate the fan, so I can charge the battery and bring it home, then work on it.

My gut instinct tells me it's either a bad thermostat or a shot thermostatic switch, which is what controls the fan to begin with. Also, water level seems a little low, could that be a factor in the fan not turning off? Help me out here guys...

Echo51 > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 01/21/2014 at 11:06

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Unplug the fan, simple. Might be the thermostat switch for it that's broken, but normally they just refuse to work... Low water level might've caused an air pocket which is easily hotter then the water around it to form near the switch, thus causing it to keep running?

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 01/21/2014 at 11:06

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Is there a relay or fuse for it? You could probably just unplug that until the battery charges, then plug it back in once charged and on, then unplug it again once parked.

Casper > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 01/21/2014 at 11:07

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Hmmmm, some GM cars had this problem on the interior. It was due to a BCM unit going out that caused the blower motor in the dash to run all the time. In your case, it sounds like it's the radiator fan, so it will certainly be somewhat different. The only controls to the radiator fan should be the thermostatic switch and whatever kills power after a set time. If it's on a constant power lead, it maybe the switch has failed.

At the end of the day, it's a Fiat. Good luck.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > Echo51 01/21/2014 at 11:07

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That was one of my first ideas as well, but I didn't have the right tools at the time (the Tipo's engine bay is the most crowded mo-fo ever...), so I came back home to fetch them, and a flashlight.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles 01/21/2014 at 11:08

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I tried that, I think there's a safety bypass which prevents the fan from going out when the fuse is blown, because it kept going round, round, baby, right round... Like the Oppo logo, haha...

505Turbeaux > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 01/21/2014 at 11:10

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yeah find relay, pull. Post car make model and year and I will send you a box diagram

Echo51 > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 01/21/2014 at 11:11

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If you know which is the sensor for the fan you could unplug that too and it *should* stop aswell

Squid > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 01/21/2014 at 11:15

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Well check the wiring to the fan for continuity to ground, there could be a short in the fans power circuit so trace all wiring going to the fan. also when in doubt you can always bump start a manual if you need to. good luck getting it solved, but check the wiring first before delving into other possible causes.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > Echo51 01/21/2014 at 11:32

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I can try unplugging the fuses, which didn't work, the Thermostatic switch, which I've yet to try, and then there's the fan itself, which is kind of a last resort thing... I'd have to unplug it, charge the battery as much as possible, plug it back, then start the car before it ran out of juice again. Then I can bring it home...

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > 505Turbeaux 01/21/2014 at 11:33

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It's a 1996 Fiat Tipo Sedicivalvole, shouldn't be too hard to find. I have a few diagrams on my manual, just not sure if I have the right ones.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > Squid 01/21/2014 at 11:35

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I think I'll do that if all else fails. I'm pretty sure it's the thermostatic switch though...

Squid > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 01/21/2014 at 11:38

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If that is a common failure then go with that first but good luck with it, just don't throw parts at it and waste money until you fix everything but the problem. wiring can be a bitch but it can save you tons of time if you have a diagram of the circuit or better yet a pin point test procedure to follow while diagnosing your car.

505Turbeaux > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 01/21/2014 at 11:41

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should be something like this. But it doesnt look to have a safety backup in case the fuse blows. Something wires might be fused together

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > Squid 01/21/2014 at 11:45

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It's not common, but it's happened before. Thanks to the bad fuel issues I had a while ago, I spent a looong time without using my AC, now I use it pretty much all the time. It's no wonder the switch went nuts.