Thread: Air conditioner fans and engine temp

On a RRC the fans turn on at 102C and off at AFAIR 96C.
I am pretty sure that a D1 would be the same.
I have only seen mine go on once on the Mt Pinnibar climb on a 37C day.
BTW a D1 v8 should run at over 88C all the time except for a very cold morning.
The fans on an RRC work all the time that the aircon is turned on whether the compressor is operating or not. I don't know whether later D1s are different but I think not.
So I would be checking whether the fans work by hot wiring them to the battery. You could first check them with the engine running by bridging the switch on the thermostat housing.

Regards Philip A

All sounds pretty normal to me as far as increased temps go, although the rise may be a bit exaggerated if the front fans are not working. Then again mine weren't working for the first 18 months I owned the D1 and yet I never had any real issues, given that rest of my cooling system was in good nick. A good radiator and hoses are essential.

And yes, the fans should come on as soon as you flick the AC on.

i'm pretty sure mine come on as soon as the aircon is turned on as well, regardless of the temperature.
The relay for the fans is at the back of the glove box and I connected a switch so I can turn them on without the aircon on.

Disco v8 electric fans are supposed to come on when the air con is switched on and when the engine temp is getting high (I don't recall the specific temp).
I have certainly had mine come on after some hard sand driving ( I don't often use the aircon - too stingy).

Thanks fellas,

Reading the manual it does mention a temp sensor to regulate the fans so that implies they are designed to flick on at some point, but from the sounds of it, on some D1's they just run when the air con is turned on.

As my air con struggled last summer on the hottest days I figure i need them turning whenever the air is switchd on. Can't hurt can it and it should help the radiator out.
Now to figure out how i sort it. Unfortunately I'm next to useless when it comes to electrics. Eg assuming I can find the relay switch, how do I proceed from there, do I give it a slight bash with something as per the old tv method, or do I attempt to check it with a multimeter which I barely know how to read or use. Hmmm...this is where I'm inclined to start from scratch and wire some new fans up independently and stick a switch on the dash or find a power source related to the internal air con fan- i know that is working.

Any ideas (or warnings) most appreciated.

Chrs

Mark

Reading the manual it does mention a temp sensor to regulate the fans so that
implies they are designed to flick on at some point, but from the sounds of it,
on some D1's they just run when the air con is turned on.

Mate, the fans have 2 purposes.
One is to cool the condenser for the aircon, so they go on all the time the aircon is on.
Second is to help the engine viscous fan when theengine gets really hot to avoid damage.
There are two separate switching circuits.

If you are not confident to do the couple of tests that I have suggested , you really should take it to a Land Rover specialist to be sorted out.
Regards Philip A

Hi Hendrous,

I couldn't find a way of adding an attachment to the PM so here is the pic of the relay and thin black wire you need to ground to turn the condensor fans on.

Cheers
Mark

For what its worth I had to replace both of mine several years ago when I purchased the vehicle.The fans are a sealed non maintainable part so I bought two second hand units.
I didn't have any cooling issues but was aware of the potential risk of overheating due to the dodgy temp gauge so thought it a worthwhile investment to replace them.
As outlined previously they operate off two independent circuits.Are they spinning freely? One of mine wasn't as it had a bunch of bugs leaves etc jammed behind it.
Another quick way to test them is to unplug each fan and test with a multimeter firstly that you have 12V at the supply wiring plug (A/C on) and secondly resistance across the fan (unplugged of course).This will quickly establish if you are getting power to the fans with the A/C turned on and if so whether the fan is open circuited as both mine were.
From memory the plugs were ok to access and I managed to change the fans out by removing the grill with a bit of patience.