Cooling fan turns on once ignition is off and stays on until battery dies
#1
Cooling fan turns on once ignition is off and stays on until battery dies
Hi Everyone! First post here.
I have a 1998 Honda Civic EX and am having a problem with the radiator fan turning on once the ignition is off and staying on until my battery dies or I pull the fuse.
Oddly enough the fan turns off as soon as I turn the ignition on and back on as soon as I turn the ignition off.
I tried swapping relays with the condenser (same part number) with no luck.
I tried unplugging the cooling fan switch going into the thermostat housing and the fan remains on so I don't think it's the cooling fan switch or the thermostat.
I can turn off the cooling fan by unplugging either the cooling fan fuse OR the condenser fan fuse. Why does pulling the condenser fan fuse stop the cooling fan?
Any help is greatly appreciated!
I have a 1998 Honda Civic EX and am having a problem with the radiator fan turning on once the ignition is off and staying on until my battery dies or I pull the fuse.
Oddly enough the fan turns off as soon as I turn the ignition on and back on as soon as I turn the ignition off.
I tried swapping relays with the condenser (same part number) with no luck.
I tried unplugging the cooling fan switch going into the thermostat housing and the fan remains on so I don't think it's the cooling fan switch or the thermostat.
I can turn off the cooling fan by unplugging either the cooling fan fuse OR the condenser fan fuse. Why does pulling the condenser fan fuse stop the cooling fan?
Any help is greatly appreciated!
#2
Honda-Tech Member
Re: Cooling fan turns on once ignition is off and stays on until battery dies
Because you are taking the power away from the circuit. It is likely you have a problem within the under hood fuse box OR a ground wire is shorted somewhere within the circuit.
#3
Re: Cooling fan turns on once ignition is off and stays on until battery dies
I keep checking the wires with no luck so far.
I've read on other cars that the cooling fan resistor pack going out could cause this. The way to fix it is replace the whole cooling fan assembly. Do you know if my Honda has a resistor pack? It has an electrical fan but I can't find any information on a resistor pack.
I've read on other cars that the cooling fan resistor pack going out could cause this. The way to fix it is replace the whole cooling fan assembly. Do you know if my Honda has a resistor pack? It has an electrical fan but I can't find any information on a resistor pack.
#4
Re: Cooling fan turns on once ignition is off and stays on until battery dies
There is no resistor pack.
The wiring is very simple. The thermal switch grounds the wire to pull in the relay and start the fan. The control wire also connects to the ECU, although I think that this only an input to advise the ECU that the electrical load is increasing. In other words, the ECU can't start the fan.
There is basically no way what you describe can happen if the wiring is stock. Check for modified wires around the ECU as well.
The wiring is very simple. The thermal switch grounds the wire to pull in the relay and start the fan. The control wire also connects to the ECU, although I think that this only an input to advise the ECU that the electrical load is increasing. In other words, the ECU can't start the fan.
There is basically no way what you describe can happen if the wiring is stock. Check for modified wires around the ECU as well.
#5
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Re: Cooling fan turns on once ignition is off and stays on until battery dies
What mk378 said is correct. If the wiring is stock and functioning as intended, the problem you're describing cannot happen.
The first thing I'd do is pull the relay when the problem is happening. If the fan doesn't immediately shut off, you'll know for certain that the factory wiring has been messed with. If it does shut off, check for power and ground on the switching circuit in the relay box. You may have a good ground depending on engine temperature, but you should not have power on the switching circuit. If you have power there, pull the fuse in the wiring diagram and recheck. Power should go away.
The first thing I'd do is pull the relay when the problem is happening. If the fan doesn't immediately shut off, you'll know for certain that the factory wiring has been messed with. If it does shut off, check for power and ground on the switching circuit in the relay box. You may have a good ground depending on engine temperature, but you should not have power on the switching circuit. If you have power there, pull the fuse in the wiring diagram and recheck. Power should go away.
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