Any auto mechanics here?

I'm going to be taking my minivan in for repairs tomorrow.

I have a 1997 Grand Caravan. The cooling system is on the blink--basically the radiator fans won't turn. My husband changed the thermostat, didn't really help. He checked the fuses--found they were fine.

The fact that both fans won't turn leads us to believe that it's the wiring or a sensor that went out.

If it's a sensor, anyone have any idea how much it would cost to replace it? Thanks!

The ones I have replaced for GM cars runs about $15-$25 depending on the application - and GM parts usually run a little cheaper than Dodge parts.......but, I just looked up your part online at the parts store, and they list it at 13.99.

Quite a bargain.

However, do not discount the entire problem on a sensor. The electric fans are wired through a relay, which lists at about $60-$90 for your van if the relay is bad, and it could - of course - be a bad electric fan as well.

I would advise having a mechanic check the relay and the fan first before you throw any money at it.

Thanks! I was afraid it would cost a lot--like a few hundred.

My husband thinks the fans are wired serially, which might be why they both went out. While driving the van at highway speeds, the temperature is fine, but stop at a light and the temperature gauge red-lines. We know water is circulating...just the fans aren't turning.

I had that problem with my car before I got rid of it.

I had a older car though, so I could take the cheap and easy route of just unplugging the wires from the switchy-thing (sorry, I'm not mechanical in any way) and taping them together. I found it was cheaper to just have the fan turn on when I started the car than bothering to fix it.

I don't know if that would work for a newer vehicle though.

just unplugging the wires from the switchy-thing and taping them together.

I have pulled that trick on many older cars. Works great !!

On a newer vehicle I would probably not do it though.

Originally posted by Duzey
I had that problem with my car before I got rid of it.

I had a older car though, so I could take the cheap and easy route of just unplugging the wires from the switchy-thing (sorry, I'm not mechanical in any way) and taping them together. I found it was cheaper to just have the fan turn on when I started the car than bothering to fix it.

I don't know if that would work for a newer vehicle though.

Yes, I had one as well, that I just bypassed the sensor and let the fan run anytime the key was on. Later, they decided to let the computer decide when to turn the fan on or off, so you can't just hotwire the sensor - you have to hotwire the relay instead. This is my setup on my car now, since I really don't feel like replacing the computer just so it can turn my fan on and off for me.