Oktobernv

I have had my 8 back for about 10 days now.

Just started to notice something weird with the engine fan.

I was driving the 8 home from work yesterday and it was pretty HOT outside.

About 104-105 in Vegas yesterday.

Did a lot of city driving, made a few quick stops.

I knew the car was HOT.

When I got home and pulled into the garage, I turned the car off and got out.

The engine fan came on right away and was running full speed.

It ran for about 4 seconds and then stopped!

I put the key back in, but did not start the car.

As soon as the car had power to the console again the fan came back on.

It ran at mid-speed for about 10 seconds and then up to super-speed.

I left the key in and took some stuff into the house.

I came back in about 5 minutes and the fan was still run at super-speed.

I could feel LOTS of heat coming from under the car - being blown from the engine.

It was HOT HOT air.

The fan ran for about 8-10 minutes total and then slowed down.

Finally stopped.

My question is this, why didn't the computer know to run the fan without the key being in?

I never remember this making a difference before.

And, NO, my A/C was OFF. I checked that.

Other problem is, I have been driving the car for 10 days already and it has been HOT.

I fear that my new engine may have already taken some fresh damage because the fan has not been running properly once the car stops.


Thoughts?

Rob in Vegas.

Nemesis8

iTrader: (3)

Mine does the same thing on the N flash. My fan has never run very long after I pull into the garage, so it is not just the new flash that does this.

Oktobernv

Hmmm....

Well about 6 weeks ago, before my 1st engine blew, I had my 8 in for service at Courtesy Mazda in Henderson.

I was having the lose of power problem and those retards told me that all I needed was new ignitors and a re-flash of my CPU.

They "told" me that they did flash my CPU.

I assume that would have taken me to the "R" flash.

I remember my fan running for long periods of time after taking the key out with that flash.

But now it does not.

Either way, this seems like a BAD thing.

Why would the fan NOT run?

How could that hurt anything?

Is mazda worried about draining the battery?

Why would the fan run with the key in but NOT run with the key out?

Odd.

Rob in Vegas

KYLiquid

My 05 will do this, somedays when i get home the fan comes on for about 30 secs then off, if I put the key in it will start running again, if I take the key out it will turn off.

Although sometimes it will run how I think its supposed to run, where you turn off the car and take the key out and the fan runs for about 10 mins.

Im on the latest flash. Its kinda intermittent.

Its clear that the fans CAN come on without the key....so I would guess for whatever reason the car figured it only had to run the fans for a short time...then putting the key in FORCES the car to run them for a while.

They should be tied into a thermostat so that if XXX temp is detected they run until XXX temp is met. so i dunno exactly whats going on.

grapes

Either way, this seems like a BAD thing. Rob I agree. This could not be good having all that heat buildup and no place to go. Hope some Mazda techs may be may be looking at this forum.

Oktobernv

Yes, this is BAD.

Makes no sense at all to me.

When I got home yesterday, my car was HOT!

The fan ran for maybe 10 seconds. Then off.

After I put the key in.....shazammmm fan starts running *****-out.

I tell you, the air that was flowing from the engine compartment was RED HOT.


Why the computer was initally "ok" with a 10-second cool down period is beyond me.

I guess I will have to start leaving my keys in the car when I get home to avoid melting down another engine.

Weak.


Rob in Vegas

beachdog

This is a logic issue. You are driving, you stop and the engine temp is marginal for fan run-on. You take your keys and you leave the car, fan runs for a short time and then off. The logic is that you have left the car for a while and convection cooling is enough. If you are stopping the car and leaving the keys in the ignition, the logic is assuming that you are stopped somewhere and going to start again shortly. Fan stays on for quicker cool-off before you restart.

It's like any other computer software. The engineers put together a decision tree for all of the possible scenarios that they could think of and then made the code. Doesn't mean that all their decisions were correct.

Oktobernv

Beach, your reply does make sense.

But, what concerns me about this logic is that what if you are doing a lot of start and stop driving? Running quick errands?

That is what I was doing yesterday.

I made about 4 stops on my way home from work. Each time I had to leave the car.

When I got home, I could feel the heat from the car.

I was assuming that it would run the fan for a bit, but it did not.

Maybe the logic was assuming the car was going to run again soon.

It was wrong.

Either way, I would feel better if the fan ran for more than 10 seconds.

I know the engine was HOT.

Rob in Vegas.

Nemesis8

iTrader: (3)

I had this problem in an old VW. I ended up hot wiring the fan switch to a toggle in the car. I could run the fan anytime I wanted and for as long as I wanted.

Time for a phone call to the dealer.

zoom44

hot to you isnt necessarily hot to the engine.

beachdog

Rob, I know that you are worried after all you went through. Under the same circumstances, I would be too. If you want to go to the dealer and get their opinion, do it.

If you have plans to keep the car a long time, why not get real temp guages installed. Both oil and water. At least you would have real information to cause concern or put you at ease.

In reality, the couple of minutes that the fan runs just cools the coolant in the radiator. With heat soak, maximum temps are reached well after shut down and as long as the thremostat is open, convection (and radiation) is going to take care of the majority of the cooling off.

Nubo

I've only had the fan run on maybe 3 times. Each time was after a spirited driving session. I've driven it on hotter days when it didn't stay on at all.

But dang, that thing is loud. You can hear it in the house.

Vertigo-1

iTrader: (3)

I have this exact same "problem", and it worries me as well. My fan has been coming on more often ever since installing the Mazdaspeed strut bar with no engine bay cover. Ambient temperatures are around 85 degress where I live, and it's muggy heat. I believe the fan actually comes on sometime during driving, although I don't hear it come on, and when I park the car, that's when I can hear it more clearly...but after turning the car off, it only runs for about another 3 seconds before shutting off. But from what I know, I thought the fan was supposed to run by itself for up to 10 minutes after shutdown. So yeah, I just hope the fans aren't being prematurely shut down without properly cooling the engine first.

Go48

The fan blows ambient air over the fins and tubes in the radiator and, thereby, cools the liquid IN THE RADIATOR. Coolant in the remainder of the cooling system is not being circulated through the radiator as is when the engine is running and the water pump is pumping so that coolant is essentially unaffected by a blowing fan. (Except for a very little circulation due to heat transfer.) So, you can run the fan all day and it won't contribute much if anything to cooling the coolant in the engine and hoses.

Yellow888

My fan still running after I stop the engine. But stop running after I trun the key ON (not starting the engine) and OFF.