Cooling fan relay?

Hello,

Editor's Note: This vehicle is not equipped with Cooling Fan Relays. The fan is controlled by the PCM via electronics integral to the Totally Integrated Power Module (TIPM).

The car does not have a cooling fan relay per say, it is a speed control module and TIPM located near the cooling fan down low. Here is a wiring diagram (below) along with a location diagram to help you change it, they had big problems with this part.

Here is a guide to help you do some testing:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-use-a-test-light-circuit-tester

Check out the diagrams (below). Please let us know what you find. We are interested to see what it is.

Hm, this is from AllData

Editor's Note: This vehicle is not equipped with Cooling Fan Relays. The fan is controlled by the PCM via electronics integral to the Totally Integrated Power Module (TIPM). For more information, please refer to:

See: Radiator Cooling Fan > Electrical
See: Power and Ground Distribution > Electrical > Integrated Power Module

Can you please shoot a quick video with your phone so we can see what's going on? That would be great. You can upload it here with your response.

These are not traditional relays in this video. These are solely for current switching. The control relay is in the TIPM.

Spin the fan by hand to see if it's free or tight. A tight motor will draw excessive current leading to the blown fuse.

I can't get into the Chrysler web site right now, but you might look for a 4-terminal electronic relay connected to the fan motor. They went to that design in the mid '90s to allow for variable speeds to address the people who were whining that they could "hear" the fan turn on when they were stopped in traffic. Being an electronic module, they cause a lot more trouble than a standard relay.

Also consider that the engine rocks when you accelerate and tugs on wiring harnesses. I helped a friend with a Caravan that blew the radiator fan fuse intermittently. At about the fourth time in the shop I also noticed the backup lights weren't working, but they were okay after he replaced the fuse link yet again for the fan. The next time he fixed it and started to back out of the shop, I saw the backup lights go off. Checking right then proved the fuse link was blown again. Turned out to be the wire harness running under the battery tray had been sliding back and forth for years and the wire going to the radiator fan was rubbed through and bare. The backup lights were on the same circuit. Chrysler does that a lot. You might never know your backup lights aren't working, and that could be a safety hazard, but you will notice when the engine runs hot.

Another approach is to unplug the fan, then drive only at higher speeds so the fan isn't needed. Plug in a pair of spade terminals in place of the blown fuse, then run a pair of wires from them to a 12 volt light bulb. You might also want to bypass the relay so the circuit is powered up all the time. Hang the light bulb where you can see it while you're driving. Since the circuit is turned on by bypassing the relay, if the short occurs, the bulb will be full brightness and will limit current to a safe value. If the bulb turns on with the fan unplugged, there's proof the short is caused by something other than the fan motor.

The fan motor could be acting up intermittently too. It's not as common for them to short but it is possible. Usually the brushes wear and make intermittent contact.

A loose ground won't cause a fuse to blow because that will reduce or stop current flow. Fuses blow in response to too much current.

Did you have the fan disconnected while you were driving the car? If so, the relay should have turned on shortly after slowing down or standing still with the engine still running. All you can say for sure is if the fuse blows while the fan is unplugged, the fan motor is not the cause. Intermittent problems like this are always the most frustrating to find, and a lot of people get angry with their mechanic when he doesn't "just fix it".

If you wait long enough with the engine running, the fan will turn on while you're standing there. Listen to how it sounds. It should be running fast enough and not be making any squealing sounds. If it runs normally, flex the wire harnesses to see if anything makes it stop or slow down.

The closest book I have is for an '01 Neon, and that shows just a basic, simple, reliable fan relay and motor with a 30 amp fuse. All that can be wrong there is a grounded wire or bad motor. My next suggestion is to click the link right below here for Mitchell Manuals. I have never been able to even get to he sign-in page without getting an error message so you might also go to:

http://randysrepairshop.net/index.html

then click on the AllData picture.

Either site will give you access to diagrams and repair procedures, but while you can own the manufacturers service manual forever, the online services also give you service bulletins, recall information, part numbers, and lots of other things like that. A five-year subscription for one car model costs about half of the Chrysler service manual and gives you much more information.

Hi wem3,

Thank you for the donation.

Yes, your vehicle do have a dual speed motor.

The common fault with Chrysler vehicles are faulty fan motors.
High and low speed are controlled by the PCM via a high and low speed relay.

To test the fan motor high speed circuit, apply battery voltage to the yellow wire anf if the fan does not work, it is faulty.

Sorry for not making myself clear.
You can jump without disconnecting the terminals. However shoudl you wish to disconnect the connector, then you would have to provide a ground for the Black wire.

Applying battery voltage to the Green wire would start the low speed operations and with battery voltage to both terminals would have the fan at high speed.