escort fan

It sounds like the thermal switch which controls it has either failed in the on state, which would be unusual but not unknown, or more likely IMHO has been bypassed because of a switch failed in the off state. Pull the wires off the switch, which will be either in the radiator or in the thermostat housing according to model, then see if the fan still comes on. Also look for any changes to the wiring.

Steve

hi steve took connection off thermastat switch and fan stops working, do you think this needs replacing then

That doesn't sound right. At average m/way speeds, why would a fan be needed at all? Mike.

i would assume the connection bridges the relay out, and is really for use by mechanics to test the fan, or have it working if they are tuning the engine for a long time,

on my van (an iveco turbodaily motorhome.. not one of the ford ones) i recently replaced the engine driven fan (had an electromagnetic joint, that only attatched the fan to the pulley when the temp got over 83 degrees C) with an electric fan,

i've only had the electric fan come on once, and that was when i was stuck in a traffic jam for an hour, all other times there's more than enough air flow through the rad from the van moving to keep it cool, didn't even affect it when i fitted an intercooler that sits infront of the rad, it's effectively half the height of the cooling rad, twice as thick, so must block some air flow a bit, but hasent affected the temp the engine runs at,

But it does seem a common bodge be past owners of ford or more usually VW polo's, to wire the fan so it's running all the time, the fan temp switch can't be that expensive can it? i know it's only about £12 for the one for my van, and iveco's being scaled down trucks, are notoriouse for their expensive parts (most items are 3 times the size of what they need to be tho)

I recently purchased a Fan Temp Switch for my Escort, and mine only cost £4.25

OK, the switch is stuck in the closed(on) state and needs replacing. The connection by the fuse box, does it look like original ford wiring or a later addition? The switches for fans generally are often bypassed not because of the price but because of the perception that the reliability of them is not what it should be. Also removing it allows the coolant or some of it to escape, meaning replacing that too. All of which makes the replacing of the switch more trouble than it's worth.

They usually fail open circuit(off), which means the fan does not come on at all and the engine will overheat in traffic.

My advice would be to replace the switch with a new one, losing as little coolant as possible, it's not that difficult if you're quick, and test it by leaving it running. This means that heat is building up but not being dissipated by airflow through the radiator. The fan should cut in before the needle reaches the red, in practice it usually happens at about 3/4 of the way up.

HTH

Steve