All right, i just bought a 1986 Trans Am and everything was great until....Well, the car always ran hot since i had no lower air baffle but i fixed that problem caused i ordered one from hawks.Now i have a new problem..My fan by the radiator wont turn on at all. I changed the fuse and still nothing.The car overheats in about 3 minutes its rediculous.I dont know what to do.Im 17 and money is tight but i do what i can for my baby(the car)anyway any suggestions? Shoud i go to Pontiac to check it out, since my mechanic is jerkin me around cause im a kid. I mean i must have refilled my coolant 3x in the last week and now i dont drive it since i dont want to dmage anything..Please anyhelp would be appreciated.

Adam

 

i would say your fan motor prob. burnt out, that just happened to me and i picked one up at a junk lot for $45, and put it in and now i have no probs. at all, i do have to turn it on manually sometimes(toggle switch) but that is because i'm missing the air dam underneath, which i think i'm gonna pick up next week

 

I think you got ripped off if you paid $45 dollars for a old used radiator fan motor. You can get a new one at a parts store for $25 with a lifetime warranty ($23.99 at Advance Auto).

Anyway, I'd check your fan relay too, make sure its functional.. Then try manually applying power to the fan and see if it kicks on then..

 

How do i check the relay? and where is the relay for the fan?

-Adam

 

If I remember correctly for that application, the relay will be one of the ones in the upper right corner (standing in front of the car, looking down on the engine compartment)..

 

The primary relay should be just behind the right side headlight. On my Camaro, it was mounted to the upright frame supporting the radiator. Just tucked back in a little. There were 4 wires going to it.

 

I thought the ones behind the headlight was for the headlight.thats my logic at least.Anyway i did see the relays at the top right corner of the engine compartment but which is the fan? and again how do i check to see if the relay is good and how can i check to see if the fan works at all????


-Adam

 

I got to looking at your signature/profile and realized you're running an 86 5.0 TPI.

I know Chilton's is not the official GM document, and some items have to be questioned, but the drawing describing component locations on my 88 5.7L has been absolutely correct so far.

Using that manual's location diagram, it shows the coolant fan relay on your 86 5.0 TPI, should be in the exact same location as mine, that I mentioned above.

I found that Chilton's was off on the color code for my 2nd fan (5.7L gets two) so I got a separate wiring diagram from a mechanic buddy for my 88.

Unfortunately, the wiring diagram and color codes I have are for an 88 5.7L, so I can't say I have a good source of data for the following info.

According to Chilton's and stuff I've read on these boards, the wiring to the primary (or single) fan motors is pretty much the same.....a rust colored wire from the 30 amp fusable link to the fan relay that is always hot, and a black with red stripe wire going to the fan motor. Putting a good Jumper across these two leads at the relay connector should turn on your fan. There is another black ground wire from the fan motor to ground on the car.

As far as wires controlling the relay, there is supposed to be a slightly smaller brown wire that get's 12V when you turn on the key. The voltage is routed through the c/h-fan fuse in the fuse panel under your dash.

The fourth wire in the relay connector should be dark green with a white stripe. According to the diagram I have, it comes from your computer. I guess when the coolant sensor under the throttle body on the TPI manifold gets over 195 degrees the computer senses this and puts a ground on that green/white wire to allow the relay to energize and turn on the fan.

As far as components on the firewall, according to the diagram for your model/engine, there should be 4 components on the firewall between the driver's side fender and the brake booster.

In order from the fender toward the center of the car, you should have the MAF sensor relay, the fuel pump relay then the MAF sensor burn-off relay with the Electronic Spark control module kinda stacked on top of it. It does not show any coolant fan relays in that area . Tthe 88 5.7L has the same type of relays in the area I just described and I didn't find any fan relays there either.

Hope this helps you out.

 

Wow, thnx, sounds like you did some research.Well i took my car to a mechanic today and well it wasnt the relay.It was the thermostat.It apparently was sticking and the engine was getting the message to turn the fan on. But anyway, he said the actual thermostat is 50 bucks.Im not sure if its good or not but the place is great and he changed all my lights including fogs which are a pain for nothing so i thnk it evens out.Anyway, i shoudl be getting my car back tomorrow cant wait. one more thing, what is a normal running temp for these cars? I mean with the baffle and good running condition..180-200? not sure. And once again thnx for the help

-Adam

 

I have a 92 b4c camaro with a 350 TPI but it came with a 305, it has the dual fans, and im trying to find where the coolant sensors/senders are for my application and the fan relays,
main thing is theres a long yellow wire from the wire loom above the starter that is loose and when i touch it to the battery the left side fan turns on, I'm just trying to make sure the sensors and all that are hooked up correctly
also where is the knock sensor and what type of connections should the knock and coolant sensors have? with wire colors
any help would be great
thanks
tim
oh also there is a rusted metal rounded box thing that is about 2" wide, 1" tall and about 1/2" deep attached behind the left side headlights that have two or three wires coming from it that looks jerry - rigged, does anyone have any idea what that is

 

50 bucks for the thermostat? thats like a 3-4 dollar part at autozone!

 

yeah don't buy an OEM one. there really isnt a diiference in it except the price.

 

-Adam, if this mechanic is seroiusly charging you $50 to change a thermostat, you need to:
A) Start looking for a new mechanic
_or
B) Buy some tools and a drain pan to do some work on your own.
(the lattter would be best for the financially handicapped like myself)

Normal operating range is anywhere between 195-230º depending on driving conditions and ambient temp

BTW, you need to add a "/" in your signature to make the image show up, I believe. Like this [img"] pic is here[/img]

And that is one cool looking sig. I wish my car wasn't such an eyesore so I could try to make a nice sig like that...