What temperature should my cooling fans kick in??

[AJ-V5]

Car was sat while i was taking some pictures- and the car just nudged past the thicker line after 90. Is that 100?
I think at that point the fans did kick in, and switched off when it dipped below the thick line again. I was always under the impression that these VAG cars pretty much stuck to the 90 line.

I seriously hope i havent overheated it. When i got back home, i let it sit for a while and it started moving just off of the 90 line again.......

Not long had the car so i really dont know what is normal and what isnt

Cheers

 

[AJ-V5]

Right ive been back out- left it idling for 5-10 mins and the fans were kicking in, both with AC on and AC off and the temp stayed at 90.

It was probably idling for a good 15 minutes before- but surely the fans shouldnt let it get that hot?

Im hoping i havent blown anything considering its still staying bang on 90 at the moment

 

[AJ-V5]

Worked out the scale and that thick mark is about 106 degrees.

 

[AJ-V5]

Right just gone out in her to check everything is ok and i havent blown anything. Still drives fine- the Cilmate Control diag thing showed a solid 90 throughout a good 15 minute drive, and then a 5 minute idle when i got back.

So **** knows what happened before. All i can think off is the humidity in the carpark i was in was crazy so maybe the low speed fans couldnt cope? Would have thought the high speed ones would kick in lower than 110 though?

I can still hear the low speed fans kick in without the AC and with. AC ones are faster, but without the AC on they definitely kick in.

Where is the fuse box on these so i can check

 

[AJ-V5]

I'm doing well at solving my own threads at the moment

Checked the owners manual and the thick line is normal and the max of normal running temps so all looks ok I hope

 

[m0rk]

Should be... but it's very rare for it to go past the midline.

106C seems high for the fans to kick in too - might be worth replacing the fan temp switch - or checking that the rad has no air in it etc

 

[kewe]

Both my fans were staying on yesterday even without the aircon switched on, but it was nearly 30 deg C here. A few times sitting in traffic the revs dropped at idle to about 400-500rpm, just a quick drop then back to normal but it did alarm me. I could feel a vibration through the clutch pedal and could hear a whining noise. I am assuming this was the fans going to full speed, but the temp gauge never moved from norm 90.

 

[AJ-V5]

Hmm ok.

Where would i find the fan temp switch?

 

[AJ-V5]

More for anyone elses interest on the subject if it comes up in a search. Got some defining info on this from someone on the Golf V5 forum which has been lifted from the VW service manual.

The scale on the dials is 7.5 per line.
This means that the thicker line in between 90 and 120 is 105.

The low speed fans kick in at 92-97 degrees, and then keep on until 106 degrees when the high speed ones kick in.

The service manual says anywhere between 75 and 105 is perfectly acceptable running temperature, but the 90 should be the displayed temperature for most of the time.

Mine just ticked past the 105 line which then caused the high speed fans to kick in, until it went back to the line, where the slow speed fans took back over again.

This is with the AC OFF.

With the AC ON, the high speed fans should be on intermittant all the time to keep the car at 90.

So yeah, i was worried at first- but as it turns out, everything was working as it should be.

It is only when the car breaches this 105 line that you have problems- and as such the warning light and buzzer should come on.



Edit- I forgot to add. Where possible, if you are worried if the gauge is showing at high temps- try put the digital display up as it is much more accurate than the manual gauge. What looks like 110 on the gauge may only be 105, explaining why the fans havent kicked in yet as they are still 1 degree off.

To do that, hold the recirculation button down, and then press the up arrow. You should see a 1c then. Using the temperature up and down buttons- select 51c. Press the recirc button to display the value which should be coolant temp in degrees.

It is useful as, i have noticed that if the car has been running a while, and you park up- when you come back to start the car it will still display 90- but the coolant temp has more than likely dropped considerably. After a 10-15 minute stop my gauge was still showing 90, but the digital value was giving me 40 odd.


Hopefully that will be of help to someone. Certainly reassured me as to whether anything was wrong or not

 

[kewe]

Good info mate, well done and good to know everything is OK

 

[GrayT]

That's all good info. Nevertheless in all conditions winter or summer mine never creeps above 90 unless there's a problem. It's happened twice. Once when my fan fuse went and then again the other day when a pipe let go. In fact I lie, the temp stayed at 90 this time but I presume the header tank drained so fast that the gauge was duped and I didn't know I had a problem until I saw steam and the red light and buzzer went off. God knows what temp I was at by then as most of my coolant was on the floor. I've had the hose replaced and things seem good for now but I've not given it a long run and the test will be in the stop start London traffic. They checked emissions as part of the subsequent tests and they were slightly high (but not to the extent of MOT failure) and they reckon the head gasket might have another year. Time to get rid? That said it's worth sweat FA anyway.

 

[AJ-V5]

Yeah it has never done it since. The fans definitely are working as they should. I think it was just THAT hot and humid that the low speed ones couldnt keep it at 90- hence the high speed ones coming in at 106.

I am keeping a closer eye on it from now on though with the digital gauge etc, but as far as i know it was all normal behaviour so shouldnt have caused any damage.