320CE getting hot

[turnipsock]

My car was getting hot when stuck in traffic the other day. I decided to have a look and started to wonder if somebody might have added some fans.

I can't see the point of these fans as they will restrict the flow of air, produced by the main fan.

When these fans switch on they won't increase the airflow as the main fan will be going by then.

All this system will do is cause the temperature to fluctuate dramatically.

Question 1: is this a factory fitted thing?

Question 2: Should there be some cowling at the sides of the radiator.

My radiator seems to be sitting up there on it's own with plenty of room for air to bypass the radiator, not to mention providing a better route for water to find its way to my engine electrics.

 

[LNM]

Search for "head gasket", "overheating" and "cost" all along with W124 to see the implications. These fans are probably there because you're viscous coupling has packed in or an attempt to overcome the effects of a blocked radiator or a warped head.

 

[turnipsock]

Are these fans not standard then?

 

[stwat]

Im pretty sure their standard mate. Especialy if your car has aircon.

Does your car have an electro magnetic fan like the 190's? Ifso i would check out your fan switch cos i was having overheating probs and a new switch sorted it.

If yours is an electro mag fan i can tell you simple way to check if its the switch or not. Just undo the connection to the fan switch and get a piece of wire, a bent paper clip will do. Now plug the wire(or clip) into both ends of the connection thus creating a circuit(just as the switch does when it gets to a certain temp) Now switch on your ignition, if you hear a clunk from the fan, your fan is fine(ie the magnetic clutch is kicking in) and the switch is faulty. If you dont here the clunk then your fan is faulty.

Stu

 

[190]

These fans are standar on some w124 models.

 

[LNM]

Wish they'd been standard on mine. Huh.

Turnip

Is there a big fan on the other side of the rad ? Intrigriged now.

All

Someone must be able to "Lay This To Rest" .....? (there's hundreds of posts about this sort of thing + debate continues to rage)

Which models, age, W number and engine number (for example, W201 190E, or W124 M104) had which had what type of fans.

On a spreadsheet if poss.

 

[turnipsock]

There is the big fan fitted to all W124s behind the radiator as well.

This was why I wondered about the two extra fans. What is the point of the extra fans if the main one is there? It seems daft having fans blowing in and others sucking out, they are moving the same air!

The two extra fans look like they would block more air than they would move anyway.

I have also found what looks like some sort of thremostat contol behind the radio...is that supposed to be there?

I may go and pick the brains of the stealership.

 

[turnipsock]

I have heard tell that there is some mythical potion that you can add to the radiator mix to increase the cooling capacity.

I'm on a quest for it now.

 

[SLinKyjoe]

I have heard tell that there is some mythical potion that you can add to the radiator mix to increase the cooling capacity.

I'm on a quest for it now.

water perhaps?

 

[davidsl500]

There is the big fan fitted to all W124s behind the radiator as well.

This was why I wondered about the two extra fans. What is the point of the extra fans if the main one is there? It seems daft having fans blowing in and others sucking out, they are moving the same air!

The two extra fans look like they would block more air than they would move anyway.

I have also found what looks like some sort of thremostat contol behind the radio...is that supposed to be there?

I may go and pick the brains of the stealership.

If its like my SL then the big fan on the engine side is viscous coupled/electromagnetic clutch or whatever and its rpm is governed by the engine speed - as you go faster there is more air flow though the radiator from forward motion so the fan slows down. Of course there are many occasions (and remember we are not talking just UK here) where the outside temperature is high, your doing 2mph in and endless bank holiday traffic jam or climbing mountain passes at low speed and the the engine fan cant cope - especially when you may be running your aircon full as well - so the front electric fans kick in and save the day....

 

[turnipsock]

http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/catal...WW&GRP=MP099&PGRP=M007&CLS=MSPORT&from=search

ah, but this stuff makes the water wetter!

 

[TheJim]

That is a bit dangerous. If it drops your temperature by fifteen degrees at this time of year- wouldn't that mean that you could park up and end up with your engine at -15 degrees?
I would of thought that water was wet enough for most people.
How have we managed without this miracle product?
You can drive around with a broken water pump, blown head gasket and no fan belt- don't bother finding the fault and why it is overheating. Use water wetter!

 

[joe bloggs]

Looks like a dealer fit Diavia kit to me (used to fit them) fans will come on when the aircon liquid / gas pressure increases and trips the switch, they should also come on when the engine temp increases above a set point, needs to be pretty hot, this is to aid cooling due to the airflow restriction caused by the condenser radiator.

 

[turnipsock]

That would make sense Joe. The fans look pretty well enginered, but some of the wiring looks a bit third world, hence the reason I thought they might be non standard items.

The wire to the temp sensor is a bit close to one of the pulleys; the contol is lying down behind the radio; the excess wire is (was) gathered up and held in place with a tie wrap to the air con pipe. The relays look a bit crappy but the brackets look pretty well made.

The fans obviously work as the gauge starts creeping up, in traffic jams, and levels out just below 100.

I hope you didn't fit these ones

 

[jaques2k]

Both joe and david500sl is on the right track with the fans. The large fan behind the radiator is rotating according to engine rpm:s (mechanical). If you have higher revs, then the fan will suck in more air through the radiator, and also when you´re driving faster (more air will blow), the two electrical fans isn´t needed. But as david says, when you´re idling in hot weather the fan behind the radiator doesn´t rotate with enough speed (idle revs) to cool the engine, and then the electrical fans cut in when engine reaches 90 degs (and they DO blow quite a lot of air...=). On the other side I don´t know if those are original, looks a bit different than those I´ve seen as original, but haven´t seen it on any 320 CE (only on a 300 CE), so...

 

[turnipsock]

yeah but no but yeah but, surely if the engine is idling with no load on it, it won't produce as much heat, so won't need as much air.

(I think we are getting a bit to deep into this one)

 

[190]

When my 190 is ticking over the temp gauge rises until the fan cuts in I have owned the car now for 8 years and have never seen the temp gauge go as high whilst driving the car unless in a traffic jam and only moving at crawling speed. But once the fan cuts in the temp gauge drops. It?s an electro magneto fan that?s on mine not a viscous

 

[jaques2k]

I´d still want to hold on to my "guess" =D. 190 has the point. This occours of course only if you´ve been driving and comes to a stop (not idling from cold), and then the accumulated heat doesn´t "go away", especially in hot weather. The water pump is also running at slower rpm:s, so the cooling water is flowing less, the viscous/electromagnetic fan is also turning slower and no air is blowing in the radiator -> temp rises. The fan should work as 190 describes, and so does it do on my 230CE and on the 560SEC. The C220 seems to not have the same fluctuates in engine temp, but I haven´t really noticed that in summer weather, so I guess it´s the same there...
In my 230 from cold start the engine temp rises up to about 87 degrees, the thermostat is opening and the engine temp sits at just over 80 degrees in normal driving. I´ve read on this forum that when you come to a stop the fan cuts in at 90 degrees (1:st speed, "slow") and at about 100 degrees (2:nd speed "faster"). I don´t know about the speeds, but at least a normal function is that the electric fan should kick in at 90 degrees (about), and then the temp should lower quickly. At least it does so on my car, and I´ve checked with the bonnet open. So to my opinion the only thing that lowers the temp is the electrical fan, and if you want, try this a hot day sometime, and you´ll see that the electrical fans are quite powerful blowers... =).

 

[turnipsock]

Went down to the stealership. It looks like there should be a baffle/cowling thing on either side of the ratiator that is missing on mine. I've splashed out and ordered them, £4 for the nearside and £3 for the off.

I hope I get paid soon.

 

[190]

Went down to the stealership. It looks like there should be a baffle/cowling thing on either side of the ratiator that is missing on mine. I've splashed out and ordered them, £4 for the nearside and £3 for the off.

I hope I get paid soon.

Turnipsock Is it worth spending all that money on an old car?