Cooling Fans Not Working?

[Ecto1]

I recently noticed that the electric cooling fans on my car don't operate when I shut the car off after driving it a while. Enough to get the engine to normal operating temp (Cylinder Head Temps above 180 - according to the selectable gauge function between the speedo & tach). I've let the car idle when the temp is above 180, opened the hood, & checked the fans. They're not running. The car doesn't overheat and the cylinder head temps report just over 180 while I'm driving and idling but the fans don't seem to be working. I'm used to cars with electric fans operating when the car is shut off until the coolant temp drops below some threshold but this car doesn't seem to.

Is this normal? Should the fans run while idling with the hood open? Should they run after the car is off with the hood open or closed until the temp drops enough?

Thx.

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[TeeLew]

I don't know what temp they come on, but it's higher than 180.

 

[Ecto1]

I don't know what temp they come on, but it's higher than 180.

Thx. On my trip home from Orlando yesterday (~100 miles in 90+ degree temps w/ A/C & seat coolers working the whole way...) the cylinder head temps maxed out at 185 & the trans fluid temp maxed out at 203. No idea if this is normal or not, just my first data point.

I scheduled a visit to the Ford dealer on Monday to have them take a look. Can't hurt. I'm still puzzled by the fans NOT working with the car idling & the cylinder head temps above 180. This is where the temps max out while driving & idling in traffic. The fans should be running.

 

[Ewheels]

I've never understood why cars and motorcycles have the fans run with the engine off and not circulating. They would only be cooling the fluid in the radiator; the fluid within the block would be unaffected.

Unless our cars have electric water pumps...I don't believe they do though

 

[TeeLew]

I'm still puzzled by the fans NOT working with the car idling & the cylinder head temps above 180. This is where the temps max out while driving & idling in traffic. The fans should be running.

Why are you so concerned with running fans? What do you know that Ford doesn't?

 

[Ewheels]

I'm still puzzled by the fans NOT working with the car idling & the cylinder head temps above 180. This is where the temps max out while driving & idling in traffic. The fans should be running.

CHT temp is always above water temp and the OEM thermostat opens at 190° (also when the fan kicks on) so you are under the threshold. Your fans are working correctly

EDIT: what I said above is for a GT....not sure if Ecoboost cars have different thermostats

 

[b058038]

I know for the GT, the fans run at 40% speed when the CHT reaches 212 degrees F, and they run at 100% when the temp reaches 223 degrees. Not sure if the same for EB, but it's worth mentioning. I just can't recall where I collected this data, sorry.

 

[Andrew@Lethal]

I recently noticed that the electric cooling fans on my car don't operate when I shut the car off after driving it a while. Enough to get the engine to normal operating temp (Cylinder Head Temps above 180 - according to the selectable gauge function between the speedo & tach). I've let the car idle when the temp is above 180, opened the hood, & checked the fans. They're not running. The car doesn't overheat and the cylinder head temps report just over 180 while I'm driving and idling but the fans don't seem to be working. I'm used to cars with electric fans operating when the car is shut off until the coolant temp drops below some threshold but this car doesn't seem to.

Is this normal? Should the fans run while idling with the hood open? Should they run after the car is off with the hood open or closed until the temp drops enough?

Thx.

The fans kick on when the thermostat opens. Operating temperature for the fans are usually 200-220 fahrenheit. Drive the car on a small trip and pop your hood and see if the fans have kicked on. They will not go on right away.

 

[K4fxd]

The fans kick on when the thermostat opens. Operating temperature for the fans are usually 180-190 fahrenheit.

Wrong.

This is a stock 2 gen PP car read

 

[Ecto1]

I figured it out. The fans are working correctly. I read somewhere on line that the fans ONLY turn on when the A/C is on OR the coolant temp is above 220 degrees F. So I turned on the A/C while the hood was open and the engine running and the fans came right on.

So 'its normal' for the fans NOT to operate.

 

[Ewheels]

Many cars do, along with electric oil pumps to keep oil circulating in the turbo and or sc bearings. No need to ride gard and put away wet though I idle for a min or so before shutting down even then they still run.

But does our car?

 

[K4fxd]

I figured it out. The fans are working correctly.

Yep they turn on 40% at 212 degrees and 100% at 223 degrees

 

[Texstang]

Looking at the PIDs in my 2016 EB, it seems like it's a dual-speed fan setup with a low/high speed mode for the fans. Low speed = one fan on, and high speed = both fans on. The service manual talks a bit about this and confirms that the EB fan connecters are the relay-controlled type as well and show the PCM connectors correlating to the HFC and LFC output circuits.

It also seems like there are a few variables that modify the lookup table that the PCM references to determine fan speed output.

• Coolant Temp
• Vehicle Speed
• A/C Demand Status
• A/C Evaporator Pressure
• Not mentioned in the service manual, but possibly these also:
  • Ambient Air Temp &/or Intake Air Temp
  • Cylinder Head Temp (separate from coolant temp)
    

I've looked at the fan speed operation in my car, and it's definitely different based on speed and A/C power. From my memory, when I have the A/C on (doesn't matter whether it's in max defrost (heated), standard cold A/C, or Max cold A/C), the low speed fan is almost always on in idle. Where I live it doesn't get too cold, but it might turn off in very cold (<32 deg F) weather. When you're on the highway, the fan can turn off if the A/C is on, as long as it's not terribly hot out, and provided the coolant temp is <212 deg F or so. It kicks on once you turn Max A/C on though or turn down the A/C temp significantly.

When I have the A/C off, the low speed fan doesn't seem to want to turn on until the coolant gets to ~212-215 deg F, and turns off once it goes down to 190 or so (at idle). If I'm not running A/C, I think the fan turns off once you get up to speed, but it's hard to determine exactly how much, and it depends on coolant temp. I think I've seen anywhere from ~40 mph up to 50 mph as the cutoff point.

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