a guy came into work (an autoparts store) wondering why his fan wouldn't kick on while idling but apparently kicks on while regular driving. its a 1987 porsche 924. i didn't have time to check it out but i was just trying to figure it out. i told him to just wiggle the connectors for the temp sensor and make sure there's no crud in it that might somehow keep it from running when its idling but its a new sensor so there shouldnt be any major problems except for maybe the wiring any help would be appreciated

thanks
-dave

 

was his car up to normal operating temperature. could be many things.

 

yeah, his car is at normal temps. but it should still kick on when he's sitting idling because it still gets hot.. but yeah, can be many things

 

the word new means nothing when dealing with napa, carquest, etc. parts.

 

he got the sensor from porsche

 

its because the brushes in the fan motor are worn and aren't able to make a strong enough contact with the electrodes on the rotating assembly. there for it wont start the fan from a stopped position

when he is driving on the other hands the fan is already spinning from ambient air being foced through the front of the car (or wherever) so when the fan is spinning (even just a couple rotations per minute) the fan motor then has enough power to start adding speed to the already spinning fan blade


call me for more details im tired of typing already

 

ah, that makes sense. i never thought of that.. i'll let the guy know to check that out.