After the car reaches operating temp, the fan comes on for 15 seconds, off for 5 seconds, on for 15, off for 5. Over and over and over and over. It vibrates the brake pedal when doing this and is highly annoying.

Now I know the fans come on at a certain point and cool the car down, then shut off, but this sh*t is ridiculous. Even my 91 Camaro has the decency to turn on for 40 seconds or so and get the car 20* or so cooler than the fan temp switch.

I took it to the dealer and they said it's perfectly normal. Please tell me my 08 pseudo luxury sport sedan doesn't have this extremely annoying thing built into it.

PS- 2008 TL Type-S with 2600 miles on it.

 

Its normal...

and you probably only feel it at when your waiting at a stop light or stop sign?

If you think the vibration received through the brake pedal is "highly annoying" be lucky you dont have a car that rattles like a mutha when your driving!!!

 

Did you not see the part about the 91 Camaro? :lol:

. . . with t-tops too.

 

If memory serves me correct (IDK though, maybe smokin crack) 91 camaro has belt driven fans. Whereas TL is electric fan

 

Put down the crack.

 

This sounds more like the A/C compressor than the radiator fan.

If so, you can put the A/C on manual mode rather than "auto" to see if that alleviates your vibration issue.

IIRC, the A/C and fan operation were undetectable on the Camaros because the T/top, transmission lever, dash, hatchback and back deck were all rattling like a mofo.

 

Along with anybody sitting next to you who's trying to talk.

 

Gunny.... two thoughts..... :

1. Thermostat..... possible to have a bad one out the door. Ask the Dealership to check it for you and change if necessary. I had a buddy that had this same type of issue. The Thermostat was not opening wide enough.... the car ran 15 - 20 degrees warmer and the fans were always going nuts. Not sure what temps the fans are programmed to come on at or turn off.... but 15 - 20 degrees is enough to unsettle the balance.

2. Themo Fan Switch ..... This may be completely digital these days... but once upon a time the switches that turned on electric fans were basically probes in the coolant system. Worth Checkingout.

 

Your fans were cycling with the a/c compressor and not because of engine temp. The vibration is the change in engine load when the comressor came on. Try sitting at idle again with the climate control turned off and you find that it will not occur. It will also take a relativly long time for the fan to come on.

 

Unless they changed how they build these cars-- the driver side fan is engine coolant temp controlled- the sensor is at the lower passenger side corner of the radiator, or its at the thermostat housing.
The passenger side fan is controlled by the AC- when you turn the cabin FAN on, with ac set to operate, it runs the electric fan at the radiator.
I dont know if it cycles with the ac compressor on and off on gen3- it should run all the time the ac and fan switch are on together- thats based on older cars I have worked on.
What does the owner manual have to say about it?
Go sit in another car at the dealer and see if it does it!

Service people get many hypochondriac type complaints from new car owners, and may blow off a real problem by mistake. Continure to research on your own
There could be a problem not yet detected on the new cars- a wiring issue or bad sensor- something like that
Hang in there- check out other cars and look for the fan operation with the hood open- stand there and watch whats going on
Ask the Service MANAGER or a tech to come sit in the car with you for a minute, not a diagnosis of no problem- over the phone

 

On the 3 gen both fans run when ever the compressor is engaged. Once the car gets cooled off and it doesn't need the compressor constantly, it will cycle on and off, and as it cycles, the fans also cycle on and off. If you were to sit and let the car idle with the climate control turned off, you would see one fan come on to cool the radiator, under normal circumstances one fan is all that is needed to bring the coolant back down to operating temp.