Technical Heater fan problem

[timeforheroes86]

Hi,

My girlfriends 56 Grande Puntos heater fan broke last year, was taken to a garage who done a "temporary fix". Not sure what the done but it worked up until last month when it stopped blowing again. They have now quoted 300 odd quid to fix it which sounds very expensive to me. They say it is a wiring loom. Is there any way to check what the exact problem is with it as I have seen other posts about melted resistor packs etc? Want to order and possibly fit the part myself if anyone could tell me how big a job it is?

Sorry for asking a question thats been asked a million times before, looked through all the other ones but cant quite get the answers I need.

Thanks

 

[jameshobiecat]

I think there is often a melted wire as it enters a connector, you should be able to find this easily. I have seen photos of it on this forum before, more searching required!

If that is the problem a bit of soldering should fix it. If you can trace the other end of the wire it would be worth replacing the whole length with a larger gauge.

 

[timeforheroes86]

I think there is often a melted wire as it enters a connector, you should be able to find this easily. I have seen photos of it on this forum before, more searching required!

If that is the problem a bit of soldering should fix it. If you can trace the other end of the wire it would be worth replacing the whole length with a larger gauge.

Thanks for the reply! No soldering equipment im afraid! How much should this cost roughly? Anyone else with any input?

Cheers

 

[jameshobiecat]

A soldering iron shouldn't cost much more than £15 from halfords but if you don't want to do it there are plenty of auto-electricians in the yellow pages. I'd check it is the wire first though.

 

[Bolder]

You're much better off getting the wiring loom replaced as it could potentially catch fire if you just fix it. I've just had my loom replaced and they said it was quite a big job because you have to get behind the dash and everything. My motor also stopped working so i had that replaced as well, all together it cost around £300. If they've just quoted that for the loom take it to another garage. I would recommend getting the loom replaced first (£150 ish) and then if it stops working again get the motor replaced.

 

[timeforheroes86]

Hi, just had a look at the wiring loom connector and the first brown cable is melted a bit. Best just to get the full wiring loom done then or is there a cheaper way? The motor was already replaced by a garage who said that was the problem, needless to say it made no difference.

 

[jameshobiecat]

If you replace the whole wire with one of a higher gauge and do a good job of the connections at each end then it should be as good if not better than a new loom. Of course a new loom is the official fix and would give peace of mind. Getting a pro in to replace the wire is a middle ground. The choice is yours.

In future you may want to try and avoid using the max fan speed setting as much as possible.