I posted this in an old thread but sometimes, they don't wake up. So...Please help if oyu can

"Hate to wake up the dead "thread" but...
My car has had the fans running after I shut the car down more this year than last. Even if it's only like 70 outside and I wasn't driving hard. It's almost anytime the car reaches full operating temp. I recently had the radiator light come on so I put in a few ounces to bring it back to top. That happened once last summer too. I'm thinking the fan coming on by itself after I walk away from the car an the radiator being a tad low in the reserve bowl may be related.
Anyone??"

 

How many miles on the car and what kind of maintenance has been done to it?

 

The fans coming on after you shut off the car should not worry you. All rx8s do that. Once the coolant temp reaches around 195 degrees the fans will work to cool off your engine. The fans will remain working even after you turn off the car. As far as the radiator light there are many reasons it can come on. Just make sure that you have enough coolant, do not overfill, and make sure you do not have any leaks. Further, when you keep your revs high the radiator light comes on because the sensor gets confused. If the radiator light comes on, although your coolant level is good, you might have to clean the sensor located under the coolant tank (search in the forum and you will find the answers).

 

83k miles. Perfect maintenance all it's life. I'll check the coolant sensor. Basically the fan is coming after it's shut off, too often as compared to how it use to be. This is NOT normal.

 

How many times have you flushed the cooling system?

 

The coolant is fresh. In fact, this morning it was cold out and I drove a few miles. Turned off the engine. And then the fan came on. No leaking and the temp gauge was normal.

 

The temp gauge is useless for the most part, it won't move until 240F+. The fans coming on after you stop is normal.

 

It's pretty normal, what is your "perfect" maintenance schedule btw?

 

Well, like I said, it didn't behave that way before. This issue is very recent. If you're right about the temp gauge being useless then maybe the car's getting hot and I can't tell. I was driving along in the cold air and the radiator light came on again, and then went quickly off again. I guess I'm gonna flush the system and check the temp sensor.

The maintenance is all up to date and all work done by me and the dealer. (Like that even needed to be answered)

 

Well it's normal. The ECU tells the fans to turn on at a certain temp and off at a certain temp for a certain time, etc.