Right now I am in the process of working the bugs outta a 89 GTA that was purdy much converted into a TTA. We just did the swap this past weekend and now we are getting those lil problems that make you want to smack you head off the wall for a few hours lol

My question is, does the A/C Engine cooling fan switch have to be connected to anything at all even tho you don not have A/C at all. If so how would that effect the fans and charging system?

Thanks

Kat

 

Kat,

All GM cars of that era are pretty much the same, hairdrier or no. The AC switch simply provides an alternate path to ground. Generally, the relay is hooked up with a switched 12V supply on one side of the coil, and several "ground paths" on the other side. The relay itself is hooked up with constant +12V on the input side and the output goes directly to the fan +12V pin. By not using the AC switch all you are doing is removing one of the ground paths on the relay coil. All of the ground paths function independently of one another (such that any ONE of them will turn the fan on) and the presence or absence of one will not affect the others.

In simple words, no. The only thing it will do is make it so the fan doesn't automatically turn on when you flip the selector lever to AC or Defrost. It has nothing to do with charging.

I've seen that you've measure the voltage on the battery. Have you measured the voltage at the post on the back of the alternator yet? The best way is to measure the voltage differential between that post and the positive battery cable. I like to see 0.1V or less, but anything up to 0.5V is probably acceptable. If your charging wire is bad you'll see it here. It usually obvious too, my car had 13.5 V at the battery and 17.5 V at the alternator post (4V drop on the wire). Not only does that not charge worth a damn, it wears out the alternator very quickly.