Chrysler Repair: 98 neon over heating, radiator fans, dodge neon

Question
QUESTION: Does the 98 dodge neon sohc reguire both the radiator fans to be conecteted to work? and will a bad engine ground prevent the fuel pump from activating

ANSWER: Hi Lee,
I checked both the '97 and '02 manuals that I have and while I do see that when you have A/C two fans are provided, the wiring diagram only shows a single motor, so perhaps those two fans are wired in parallel which would mean that one could run without the other one having to work. If they were wired in series, then both would have to be good for them to work. You could look at the wiring provisions and let me know what it looks like. The diagram shows that in '97 the power came from fuse 7 under the dash (25 amp) while in '02 there was a second power box under the hood with relays inside and in that year the power came from fuse 6 in the box (30 amp).
The power arrives at the fan(s) on a green wire and a black wire grounds it.
As for the fuel pump, it is located in the tank at the rear and the ground for the pump is at a screw in the trunk on the driver side at the edge of the trunk lid opening (horizontal surface nearby). The fuel pump circuit is designed to only operate when the engine is turning over or running, but it will also run for about a second when you first turn the key to the 'run' position and you should hear that hum if you listen carefully. It will not start running again until you use the starter and continue running if you release the key only if the engine continues to run on its own. That is a safety feature to prevent the pump from running when there might have been an accidents that broke a fuel line. So if you hear the pump run for a second as I described then it is working properly. Once you start cranking with the starter motor it will be hard to hear it above that sound level.
Roland
PS Sorry for the delay but I just found your question in the pooo to which it had been referred by Kevin. If you would be so kind as to rate my answer and where you see the question about 'volunteer of the month' consider a 'yes' if this response has proven to be helpful to you. Thanks


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I fixed the fuel pump problem (old security system). I still have an overheating problem the fans now work but it still overheat. I have replaced the upper and lower radiator hoses, the radiator, thermostat and verified that the water pump works. I ran the car with cap off until thermostat opened up top off water and ran a little more to make sure there where no air bubbles after radiator install. Will not over heat at idle and there is no oil in the water or water in oil. It does smell a bit rich from the exhaust and comp spits out o/2 sensor and misfire codes. the codes it does spit out are as follows :11, 12, 21, 22, 27, 42, 43,52. Anything would be great. Also fresh oil, filter, and plugs/wires.

Answer
Hi,
I would suspect that one of the injectors is leaking or has a bad wire connection to the pcm. That would cause the rich mixture, the 02 sensor codes, and the misfiring, and possibly the overheating for that reason. The 11 code says there is an issue with crank sensor, which if true could cause a misfiring and also an issue with the ASD relay function. 12 just means the battery was disconnected recently, so if that is not true you might have a loose clamp or a bad ground wire connection. The 22 says there is an error in the voltage level from the coolant temp sensor which if correct could cause a delay in the fans coming on and also an incorrect mixture. That is one thing you might want to replace first an it isn't expensive. 27 says the injector actuation circuit is not behaving as it should which prompts the question of wire to the or an injector control coil itself. See if any of the spark plugs seem to be wetter than the others as a clue as to which injector is the problem. 42 and 43 are about the ASD relay circuit and the ignition coil primary circuits, respectively which as said earlier may be the crank sensor. Those could cause a no start, of a misfire due to a weak spark. The 52 just says the mixture is too rich based on the 02 sensor. There are thus alot of possible causes for you to look into.
Roland