My radiator fan is stuck "on". I've done the research and the tests--as much as I can--to figure out what could be wrong. Here's what I've come up with:

1)Could be the relay. If it is, then the relay must default to "on".
2)Could be the fan unit. If it is, there must be a sensor that defaults to "on".

I've checked the radiator fluid and the oil. Neither was great, but sufficient. I added a bit of each without going over the max line just to be sure. The fan stayed on.

I unhooked the battery for 20 minutes. Fan turned off--surprise. I then hooked it back up and let the computer reset (or whatever it does). As I hooked up the battery, the fan stayed on.

Took out relay and cussed at it. Fan stayed on regardless of relay being pulled. This leads me to believe that the relay's function is to tell the fan to turn off. If it's broken, it won't do that. The fan stayed on.

I unhooked the fan. Fan turned off. I hooked the fan back up, and you know what? The fan turned back on. I then cussed at the fan. The fan stayed on.

I pulled the fuse and cussed at it just for fun. The fan turned off. I put the fuse back in; the fan stayed on.

I now have the fan unit unplugged. I drove it around a bit in 80F weather with no ill effects. I will have to bring it in to the dealership on Monday to have them fix it.

dan

 

It is safe to assume that you don't have your AC on?

 

If I remember someone saying there was a relay in the fan that can stick and thus a replacement fan was needed. Sounds like this might be the case here.

 

Prob what daflake said, assuming your a/c was off. But, more importantly, it sounds like only because of this fan problem, you checked your oil and coolant, which you found "not great." The fan issue aside, you should be more careful with these maintenance things. Also, I would not run without the fan. Until you get it fixed, just unplug it when you park.

 

Defiently don't want to run without the fan. Just overheat for a split second and you can hose the engine.

 

This topic comes up about every 6-9 months on NAM.... See below..


https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...an#post1020468

 

Granted, not a good idea to run without a fan, but I am in the Northwest. It ain't all that hot here at the moment. Short-term fix...

To the nuts and bolts:
It turned out I happen to know a spectacular mechanic who is very good to his fellow PDXMINI members. He brought my car in today and looked it over. There is a small sensor in the fan--likely a $20 part--that broke. Looking at it, I could see that there is a metal coil wrapped around some other-material tube. The coil had snapped about half way up. I don't know how that part works; I just know that it was broken. Also, I know that this small part cannot be replaced. Instead, it requires the purchase of the entire fan unit. (which are expensive, by the way)

I have to say, though, that with 96,000+ miles on the car, it being our daily and only driver, one mechanical issue in this time is spectacular--especially since it gets its doses of "spirited" driving on and off road.

dan

 

two days ago I drove my '02 mini 150 miles R/T on the highway (NH/MA), pulled into the driveway - the fan came on and wouldn't turn off. The temp gauge was normal. the fluid level was at max. The engine oil- normal level. The dealer rep told me how to disconnect the fan. Knowing that the engine was cooled, I disconnected it until I drove again. Same thing after each short in-town trip. Next trip, next day after a 180 mile R/T (all highway) on a hotter day (by 10 degrees F in the mid 90's - yes it can get hot in MA) I pulled into the driveway - the fan didn't come on after the trip...just heard from my dealer/mechanic after his diagnosis that the fan housing needs to be replaced - a $745, 3-hour job....gulp!!

 

Had this on my 02 ... the rad' fan stuck on.

To replace the offending sensor requires replacement of a component that requires pulling the entire front end off.......

I'm sure this designer also has their fingers in the oil filter and is STILL laughing about it....

Mine was done under warr' but the cost otherwise was $750 +++

Some days I DO wonder Y I bought another 1

 

This is a moderate replacement job. The fan is in the $350 range plus labor--the book says 3 hours no doubt, regardless of how long it actually takes. I managed to negotiate a deal and replaced the whole fan unit. If you know a good mechanic, have 'em pick up the unit from BMW and slap it in there for you. Maybe you can get better than dealer rates.

dan