z28boycali

1997 Camaro z28
i changed the Waterpump on my lt1 due to the bearing in the back of the waterpump making loud noise and had gone out,also while at it put in new temp sensor when i put everything together and started it the temperature kept going higher and higher the fans werent kicking on the. I decided not to mess with it again and take it to a mechcanic this mechanic had it for a week and couldn't fix it i decided to take it to a real shop that's where the car is at now they cant get to the problem either had it for a week and a half now. They have put in a new thermostat and bleeded the system and still the fans ain't kicking on.
The fans go on when i they test them so they good.
what can be the problem? i need to get back on the road this week. please someone help
car never overheated until i changed these things

FastandBlue

Hmm, well first off, I'm not sure how bleeding the system and a new thermostat are actually going to fix your fan problem... Might help keep your engine cooler if the t-stat is bad and the system wasn't bled correctly, but that's about it and it's still irrelevant since your car's fans aren't coming on.

1. Don't trust everything the mechanics tell you. I would grab a voltmeter and see if you are getting the correct amps/volts at the fans.

2. As you might find out, there might not be. In this case, check the fuses see if one is blown. If not, then start checking wires. Perhaps you pulled something loose or accidentally shorted at a wire?

Also, how high did you let the temperature get? The second fan kicks on really late, so it might be worth your while to let it creep up within 10-15 degrees of the red line and see if it kicks on. I thought the second one kicks on at 226. Is this right guys? It would make more sense for one fan to be damaged than both, so you might want to verify that.

Injuneer

He has a 97... they have low and high speed dual fans, not a fan 1/fan 2 setup. Low speed on at 226*F/high speed on at 235*F. If I'm reading correctly (hard to do with limited punctuation and run-on sentences) the fans do work. They just don't respond to high coolant temp.

Are you sure you put the water pump drive shaft coupling back in?

When you changed the coolant temp sensor, are you sure they gave you the correct 2-wire replacement sensor. There is a single wire coolant temp sensor in the driver's side head, and that powers the gauge. Might have given you the wrong one.

If it appears to be the correct 2-wire sensor, is the wire harness connector on it firmly? If so, you need to check the sensor, using Shoebox's guidelines:

http://shbox.com/1/4th_gen_tech2.html#ect

If you have access to an OBD-II scanner, hook up the scanner and see what the reading is for the coolant temp sensor, as the dash gauge indicates the coolant is heating up. While you have the scanner on it, check for codes.

When you say "the fans go on when i they test them so they good"..... how are you testing them, to turn them on? Do they go on when you turn the A/C on?

FastandBlue

Really? I never new that! Was that changed over with the OBD-II system?

But yeah, it sounds like something just went awry when he changed over the coolant. I'm with you on the sensor. Either that or the wiring, but he would have had to hit something really hard to damage it.

Injuneer

No. It was changed mid-year 94. Count the fan relays in the under hood box. If you have 2 fan relays, it's fan1/fan2. If you have 3 relays, its both low/both high. I have a "late" 94 nad it has 3 relays, labeled Fan #1, Fan #2 and Fan #3.

Shoebox's 95 wiring diagrams show both systems:

http://shbox.com/1/1995_pcm6.jpg

FastandBlue

Huh.... This leads me to some questions about my own car. I don't want to hijack though, so I'm starting a new thread.

Dtimekw

Go back to basics like Injuneer pointed out. Start over if you have to.