Does the a/c and radiator fan work together?

Hi Kim,

I can feel your frustration. It sounds like you've done all the logical stuff already. The "donut hole" in your process would seem to be not changing the water pump. The water pump as you might imagine, is responsible for circulating (pumping) the relatively cool water in the radiator into the running engine that contains the hot water. Hoses connect the two together. A thermostat is between the radiator and the engine. Once the water in the running engine gets to a certain temperature, the thermostat opens allowing the water pump to send cool water into the engine and hot water out to the radiator to be cooled. The heater core is usually on the passenger side firewall area.

It sounds like the water pump is the only thing left to change - if it isn't working - it can't circulate the water - and will result in overheating. Lastly, a clogged heater core shouldn't cause the engine to overheat - in fact, if the engine begins to overheat, you should turn the heat to HIGH fan and HIGH temperature to help remove some of the heat in the coolant.

Good luck!

ck your water pump, sounds like no water movement,

Check that the fan is working properly, whether it is electric or a belt driven fan. A car will overheat if the fan doesn't function as originally designed.

Some thing too check:
Make sure coolant level is up to line and clean (not dirty, do to clogged radiator, may need to be flushed or replaced).
Make sure air flow through the out side of radiator is clear (dirt, leaves, ect..) .
Make sure fan is working properly equip t (is not running too slow). Or Manual (belt driven) fan clutch is working properly, not loose or spinning too freely?
Check for broken or cracked fan blades itself.
Check radiator cap, (no gasket tears).
Could be thermostat going bad ?
Could be coolant temperature sensor/switch (from computer) going bad?
Check radiator hose(s) (too soft, may collapse)?
In some rare cases:
Timing could be off.
Could be water pump.
Could be blown head gasket(s).
Could have cracked head(s).
ECT..............Hope this was some help???

You've already eliminated #3 and #6, so keep checking...

Priority Action Part Type Cause
1 Inspect Radiator Cooling System Clogged.
2 Inspect Radiator Radiator Fins Obstructed.
3 Inspect Radiator Cap Worn or Damaged Radiator Cap.
4 Inspect Radiator Fan Motor Faulty Fan Motor.
5 Inspect Belt Incorrectly Routed, Adjusted (Tensioned), Missing or Worn Drive Belt(s).
6 Inspect Thermostat Faulty Thermostat.
7 Inspect Water Pump Worn, Cracked or Leaking Water Pump.
8 Inspect Radiator Fan Relay Intermittent Failure

it could be several things wrong here. let's start with the basic problem. is the fan working? if not, replace the fan. next, is the thermostat stuck( that happens most of the time)? an easy fix, replace it(ask, I'll tell you how). next is the water pump. is the belt tight? is the pump working? hard to tell, the last is the radiator, is it clogged. check the fan, and see if working, if not, check your fuse and relay for the fan, if it's working, change the thermostat (problem most of the time). If you still have a problem, tell me, and we will go through for the last two. this way you don't spend a lot of money. hope this helps you

This is very vague and hard to diagnose without more detail. I have a hunch the the brakes "locking up" is a different problem than the engine overheating. To check the engine: Remove the radiator cap from the cold radiator. Be sure the radiator in almost topped off with 50/50 antifreeze & water. Start the car and let it idle until either you can turbulence in the radiator, or the engine is getting really hot. Is the water temp gauge working? You can keep an eye on it during the process. If you see turbulence then the thermostat is opening, and the water pump is pumping. The thermostat is fairly easy to replace. The water pump is lots of work. Usually the timing belt, tentioner, pulley, and accessory belt is changed at the same time as the water pump, because the labor costs more than the parts. Hopefully nobody ever put straight water into the radiator. It causes corrosion, and lots of related problems.

have sex with it,.. it will feel better promis

2 Inspect Belt Incorrectly routed, adjusted, tensioned, missing, or worn water pump belt(s). 3 Inspect Oil Pan Gasket - Performance Ruptured, cracked or leaking radiator hose. 4 Inspect Radiator Cap Worn or damaged radiator cap 5 Inspect Thermostat Thermostat stuck closed 6 Inspect Fan Blade Broken, missing, or defective fan blade(s). 8 Inspect Water Pump Damaged, worn or leaking water pump. 9 Inspect Intake Manifold Plenum - Perform Leaking water pump gasket. 10 Inspect Cooling Fan Control Faulty cooling fan control or circuit. 11 Inspect Cooling Fan Switch - Radiator Faulty radiator cooling fan switch or circuit. 12 Inspect Engine Temperature Sensor Faulty engine temperature sensor or circuit. 13 Inspect Temperature Switch Damaged or faulty temperature switch or temperature switch circuit. 14 Inspect Fan Clutch Worn, loose or faulty fan clutch. 15 Inspect Ported Vacuum Switch Damaged, leaking, or faulty ported vacuum switch. 16 Inspect Radiator Obstructed radiator core or radiator cooling fins. 17 Inspect Head Gasket - Performance Head gasket leaking coolant into cylinders here is a list of things to check Shaun

1. start the engine and leave the radiator cap open.
2. put a cardboard cover or a rug in the front of you radiator.
3. let it runs 20 minutes or more, see if it is overheated and see the water or coolant in the radiator circulated or not. If not, as soon as you have already changed water pump. thermostate and check the hoses, no leak, I think your radiator was blocked.

Did you put stop leak before?