1993 Volvo 940 OVER HEATING

NYARTIST

MEMBER
1993 VOLVO 940

Engine Cooling problem
1993 Volvo 940 All Wheel Drive Automatic 166, 00 miles

My Volvo started overheating in traffic when driving slowly or idyling at a light. I was forced to turn the heater and fan on to bring the needle down to center where it normally is. The mechanic checked everything and couldn't find anything wrong.

I kept driving the car and kept having this problem and as the weather started getting warmer, it's become a nightmare driving with the heater and fan on high.

Yesterday, the engine cooling fan stopped working. I brougt the car into the mechanic and they are stumped. They set me up with a temporary fan that I turn on manually. So, it is not the fan itself but something that causes the fan to go on that broke YET. Even with the manual fan going non stop, the car continues to overheat.

I'm bringing the car in again tomorrow but no one has any idea what is going on and I feel that I'm spending money for the mechanic to poke around in the car but not come up with any solutations.

I am hoping that someone else has had this experience and can tell me what to do.

Thank you.

1 Reply

MATHIASO

MECHANIC
1,209 POSTS

Hello NYArtist

Fan relay, thermostat, and coolant sensor must be checked

One way to check the thermostat is to start the engine and feel the upper radiator hose (or use an infrared noncontact thermometer to read its temperature). The hose should not feel uncomfortably hot until the engine has warmed-up and the thermostat opens. If the hose does not get hot, it means the thermostat is not opening.

The best way to check the relay is to find one in the engine compartment and switch it with the suspected one, making sure there is power to it. if not, wiring from the relay to the motronic module must be checked, if wiring are good, driver circuit will be suspected.

Coolant sensor can be tested using an ohmmeter and check the sensors resistance based on the temperature of the engine.(here is the chart)