2004 Overheated - Cooling fans died?

[JH32552]

Good Morning Guys....

My friend in Boston called last night to tell me that her 2004 6 cyl Camry overheated and had to be towed to the dealership. They looked at the car and said that the cooling fans had to be replaced to the tune of $900!!!!!! I'm having a hard time believing this, especially since her car only has 21,000 miles. My first question is... why would both fans die at once. Second would be, doesn't this sound more like a coolant temp sensor or a thermostat problem? If either of those malfunctioned they would cause the fans to stop, right? (They also mentioned that the car needed rear bushings that would cost another $900!!!!) UGH!!!!!

I hate to see this happening to her, since she purchased the car on my recommendation. I told her to tell the dealer that if she wanted problems like this she would have purchased a Ford!

Can anyone shed some light on this?
Thanks again :-)
Jackie

[midunno]

it's possible that one fan died before the other.. one fan may have been enough to keep the car from over heating depending on how it's driven etc etc... and of course there could be other things that would kill both fan motors. perhaps she could get a second opinion from another shop? at 21000 miles... in there maybe a warranty to cover it?

[jdmccright]

A faulty coolant temp switch could cause the fans to not turn on. If set up similar to Gen III, unplugging the switch's connector will cause the fans to come on. Just one fan failure shouldn't cause an overheat condition unless you're running in extreme conditions (hot day, heavy traffic, etc.).

Part of that high price is the dealership itself, but sometimes you're at the mercy of the tow truck or your auto club as to how far you can go. If the car is driveable and she lives close by a trusted mechanic (i.e. no damage to the engine has occurred), unplug the temp switch connector, fill the radiator and overflow tanks with coolant and drive it with the A/C off when traffic is light and still cool outside...midmorning.

If it is just a temp switch, she's looking at a far lower bill. Another simple check is the fuse for the cooling fan circuit and A/C fan relays. The fans should come on automatically when the A/C is on. Hope this helps!