96 SL1 sucking in all anitfreeze and battery light coming on

Discussion in 'Saturn S-series' started by Champion2k2007, Jun 11, 2007.

  1. I have a 1996 Saturn SL1. The car keeps sucking in all the antifreeze and
    the battery light keeps coming on. I have replaced the thermostat and my
    brother came over and was messing around under the hood and checking some
    fuses and harnesses and fix the problem for a little while but now it has
    come back. One thing I know for sure is the radiator fan doesnt work, but
    when my bro did what he did(which he dont know) the fan wasnt working
    still, but the anti freeze was staying normal and no lights were on. Can
    anyone help???? Thanks
     
    Champion2k2007, Jun 11, 2007
    #1
  2. Champion2k2007

    BläBlä Guest

    SOHC, check oil for coolant contamination. Pressure test cooling system.
    Fan comes on at roughly the 3/4 mark. How have you not over heated it.

    Clean battery connections, test alternator at autozone or something...
     
    BläBlä, Jun 12, 2007
    #2
  3. i drive with the heat on all the time. there is no anit freeze in the oil
    tank and no leaks.
     
    Champion2k2007, Jun 12, 2007
    #3
  4. Champion2k2007

    Gyzmologist Guest

    Check the fan itself. Disconnect it and run power directly to it using
    jumper wires to ensure it does work. Some cars have a thermal switch
    near the thermostat or at the bottom of the radiator that triggers the
    fan relay (make sure you have the right one). Unplug the thermal switch
    and jumper the two wires in the connector. If the thermal switch
    connector has only one wire, then ground it to test. If the fan runs
    then the switch is bad. If the fan still does not run then the fan relay
    could be faulty. To troubleshoot it further you will need a wiring
    schematic.

    --
    Gyz

    07 Saturn Sky
    98 Dodge Status ES
    94 Mitsubishi Eclipse GST
     
    Gyzmologist, Jun 12, 2007
    #4
  5. Champion2k2007

    Bob Shuman Guest

    Explain please exactly what "sucking in all the antifreeze" means?

    If the fan does not run, then it is more likely you are overheating and the
    coolant is going out the overflow tube from the reservoir. It would then
    suction back the remaining coolant into the engine block while it cooled,
    and yes, it could have too little left to stay at the full cold line.

    Find the source of the fan not running first. The fan is turned on by the
    CPU based on voltage received from the Coolant Temperature Sensor (CTS),
    which is a known weak point in the Saturn engine. The CPU then activates
    the fan relay which turns on the fan. A little diagnostic work should tell
    you the source of this problem.

    Bob
     
    Bob Shuman, Jun 12, 2007
    #5
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