What is it when the fans are not cooling the car?

Answer 1

In many cases, if the engine fan "works" and its, turning, the fans "clutchs" may be worn , or inoperative, causing it to "free-wheel" and not push air like it should causing coolent heatup. This has happened to me before and i never knew a fan had a clutch on it. I did everything but replace the fan itself : ie- took the radiator out, had it boilied, rodded out, and replaced, Took the Thermostate out "completely"as to not restrict the coolent flow at all,,, only to have the same problem. I also made sure the belt was very snug to not slip. Still the car heated up. Finally i took it to a mech and he told me in 1 minuite that the fan clutch was blown, and i replaced it[the entire fan] and never had a problem again. lesson learned. I am assuming you have a non-electric fan setup. If you "do have an electric fan setup" i would suggest this: make sure the fans actually come on, and are working in the first place... let the car heat up, and when it does, you should be able to "hear it [ the fans] come on, or you can get out quickly and do a visual... to see if they are turnning. If they are NOT turning, i would check your "engine fan" fuse[s] or relay box, and replace. Fuses and relays are in various places on different cars, so ask a small repair shop to show you where they are if you cant find them on your own. Each fuse/relay are marked: wipers-heater fan- headlights.... etc. If the fans are indeed turning on like they are supposed to when your coolent reaches a designated heat mark, then i would think your Raditor is plugged , and not allowing enough air to push through it to cool the anitfreeze. It will need to be removed and rodded out, and replaced, **OR** you can just do a "Coolent Flush",which will clean the radiator With special chemicals, but these chemicals cannot be left in the raditor as it may eat thru rubber hoses in time, and cause leaks. You are to drain the anitfreeze, add the cleaner, then fill with water"not antifreeze"!! and run it for a day or so, to allow the cleaner to run thru the raditor and clean all the gunk that has built up inside.... then COMPLETELY DRAIN all the water, flush a few times with more water.... completely drain, then replace with antifreeze. If this still does not correct the problem, then it could be the "Thermostat" has gone bad. Over time they can just wear out, and "stick" in one position, entirely open, entirely closed, or in the middle... you never know. When your engine is cold , the thermostat stays closed to cause pressure in the system to build up heat,,, once it reaches a certain temp, the thermostate automaticly opens to allow the antifreeze to flow "unrestricted" and run at the regular temp. Most thermostats these days are 180 to 195 degrees... ask a parts store for your exact thermostat. These are things you can do on your own, if you have the time, or are a do-it -yourselfer... but if you dont want to mess with it, take it to your local mech and he will help you out, im sure.