Problems with your Honda Accord overheating can often stem from your cooling fans not turning on. Knowing how to test your Honda Accord cooling fans is actually pretty easy, but most people just don’ t know how. Today we’ll be showing you how to test for the most common faults for cooling fan failure, in a 2001 Honda Accord with the 2.3 liter F23 engine in it.
There are two cooling fans equipped to the back of your Honda Accord radiator to help pull or draw the incoming air charge through the core. This allows for an increase in cooling ability, as the fans increase airflow over the fins and tubes of your radiator. This action is vital if you want to maintain an even temperature and keep your ECU operating in closed loop mode efficiently.
When your Honda Accord begins to overheat, your ECU will not be able to maintain a condition called closed loop mode. This mode is designed for maximum fuel economy, as the ECU uses the oxygen sensor inputs to accurately adjust the fuel injector pulsewidth. Raising or lowering this pulsewidth signal delivers more or less fuel as your engine needs it.
If your Accord is overheating, it will run poorly and overly rich meaning your spark plugs and catalytic converter will be needlessly overworked and could possibly fail. Even worse is the constant danger of overheating, which can really cause some serious damage to your Honda Accord. Because your F23 engine has an aluminum cylinder head, when overheated the surface can warp leading to leaks between the oil and coolant passages of your Accord block.
This will in turn blow your head gasket, which can be an expensive and unneccessary repair, especially if you use our guide on how to test your Honda Accord cooling fans.
How do I know my Honda Accord cooling fans have a problem?
There’s a couple of telltale signs that are obvious indicators of your F23 overheating. One of the obvious ones is your temperature gauge rising above the halfway point of your Honda Accord. When the needle of your Accord temp gauge begins to rise near the red, you run the risk of seriously damaging your engine. There’s also a few other signs that your Honda Accord is running hot or needs some preventative measures.
- Boiling or bubbling coolant in overflow tank
- Once heated up the Accord won’t start
- Coolant spilling over from excessive overflow
When you see any of these signs, you should learn how to test your Honda Accord cooling fans immediately. This job is easy and can be performed without the use of an automotive lift. You will need a multimeter to test the operation of your cooling fans, and if you have a device that can send power or ground to the terminals of your cooling fan, even better.
To begin open your hood and prop it up, locate your primary cooling fan, which is the one on the passenger side of the Honda Accord. If your Honda Accord is equipped with air conditioning, your Accord uses primarily only the radiator fan switch to operate the cooling fans. If you have air conditioning, the driver side of the vehicle is where you can find the air conditioning condenser fan.
Using a butt connector is the best way to go about this very simple test. Crimp the end of a electronic female spade or butt connector to a wire at least 12 gauge and long enough to reach the positive terminal of your battery.
You will need two wires with the female spade connectors as shown. Connect just one of these to the PIN 1 of your Honda Accord cooling fan connector. This wire lead can be connected to the positive terminal of your battery, and once you connect the PIN 2 of your connector and ground it, your cooling fan should kick on.
If your Honda Accord is equipped with air conditioning, or even if it isn’t you’ll want to insert a jumper wire or paper clip into the radiator fan switch. This switch is a green two prong weatherproof connector that’s located near your VTEC solenoid on the 2.3 liter F23 engine. To access this connector, you will need to remove the air intake ducting as well as your factory Honda Accord airbox.
If your Honda Accord cooling fans turn on with direct power and ground sent to the wiring connectors, then chances are there’s a problem with your Honda Accord fan relay or radiator fan switch. For our guides on how to test your Honda Accord fan relay, check here so you’ll know how to test your Honda Accord cooling fans properly.
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