Hey guys, first I know there are a bunch of threads covering this, and i have searched/read most of them and I'm still stumped. I just bought my first xj, a 95 with 200k miles and a shiny new radiator. It came with the idiot lights so I did the gauge swap, new sending units, and I noticed its running hot. About 235 or so, just barely touching red, then cooling back down a little. Almost like the t-stat is opening. First things I checked was the elec. fan and it only clicked on when the A/C is on. So i drained the rad, did a flush, replaced the upper and lower hoses and the temp sensor. (Idiot me forgot to replace the t-stat while I had it empty) filled it back up and its still doing the same thing. Temp doesn't climb at highway speeds, stays in the same ballpark, and the hoses aren't collapsing. And even with the ac on and the fan running same deal. Im going to drain her again and change the t-stat but needed to know if there was anything else I should do.Any suggestions? Thanks for the help.

 

The electric fan comes on at a certain temp triggereg by a sensor on the thermostat housing, Maybe the sensor is bad? Does it look like its the original sensor? Also are you using the sender that for the gauge that is on the head by the firewall?

 

I changed the gauge sender when I did the gauge cluster swap. And the sensor in the front I think was OEM so I changed it but the fan still doesn't click on without the A/C being on.

 

I remember reading something about the fan only coming on when the AC is on or when the engine is above a certain temp and people adding a manual switch to manually control the fan but I am not sure where.
Maybe do some searching here on the forum for Electric fan and AC.

Try this link:https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f2/overheating-due-electric-fan-100106/
posts #7 and #11

 

The electric fan should only come on when the temp hits a certain number like 235 or something like that. Check the engine temps using an IR temp gun to be sure the gauge is correct is a good place to start.


A cooling system in good condition rarely gives you any problems clean and flush the whole system including the heater core a few times for good measure. Then thermostat, water pump, fan clutch, radiator is all there is to it.