850 engine fan low speed not working

rokkein · Post by **rokkein** » 07 Mar 2010, 21:21

i've had a problem for a while where my engine fan turns on "alot", even shortly after starting the car. recently i pulled codes and only one thing came back about the low speed fan setting. I dont have the exact code but what I think is happening is that the low speed is not kicking in at all, the engine gets hot and the high speed starts (and it is louder which I tend to hear easier from within the car). so my question is, what do I check for? can the relay for just the one speed be faulty? I think most of my thermostats have recently been changed.

'96 850 Turbo

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 07 Mar 2010, 23:42

The fan relay controls both speeds and it is a common failure item. The relay is located on the fan shroud just a bit to the left of the center of the fan as you are looking at the car from the front. It is black in color and it has three connectors.

It is a relatively cheap part and very easy to change.

...Lee

Post by **jblackburn** » 08 Mar 2010, 09:46

ALTHOUGH this "I've had a problem for a while where my engine fan turns on "alot", even shortly after starting the car" sounds like a bad engine coolant temperature sensor. Granted, it may have taken out the relay with it, but once you get that fixed, that's something else you will definitely want to look into if the fan keeps coming on. A common way to tell is by a funny-acting temperature needle, since the thermostat usually fails in the open position and takes the ECT sensor with it. If your car takes more than 2-3 minutes to warm up, or the needle doesn't stay planted at the halfway mark, that's exactly your problem.

Try sticking a wire between both sets of pins 2&1 on the relay - I can't remember which ones do high & low, but you should be able to get the fan to activate on both a high & low setting that way.

rokkein · Post by **rokkein** » 08 Mar 2010, 10:51

If your car takes more than 2-3 minutes to warm up, or the needle doesn't stay planted at the halfway mark, that's exactly your problem.

That is not the case at all. I will try the wire test to see if I can get the low speed fan to turn on without the relay.