hi all, first post here. my girlfriends '01 cherokee sport is overheating at idle. after a little research i've learned at little something about an efan relay that goes bad. my question is, is there anyway to test this without removing the relay? i've read it's a pain to get to and she probably doesn't want to see me walking to her jeep with a 4" hole saw in my hand. i've also read something about just replacing the efan with a clutch fan. i'm not exactly clear on how that works, but somewhere i read it bolts to the water pump. i dunno any help is much appreciated.

thanks
wes

edit: forgot to mention i replaced the radiator and thermostat a few months ago and flushed the system, so all that should be fine.

 

over heats at idle and bumper to bumper traffic only ...replace the fan clutch

 

I concur. Also, check the tstat to see if it's functioning properly and flush the radiator while you're at it. Oh, and it's possible your water pump is not flowing enough coolant through the system. Ive seen many wp's with worn out blades.

 

The relay is not hard to get to, its in the relay box. I had the same problem. But the relay was fine, I found out it was the Aux fan control module that was bad. So i wired a switch to it and whenever i get in bumper to bumper or slower traffic where there isnt adequate air flow ill turn it on and it works like a charm,

 

to check the fan clutch start xj get to operating tem do not over heat .Shut off motor spin the fan on the passenger side it should be stiff to turn .the clutch is behind it you have to remove the 4 biolts that hold it to the pully you must remove the fan shroud around it at the same time reoplace the thing with the clutch reinstall.done

 

It was my understanding that this model doesn't have a clutch fan.

 

You should have a mechanical fan on the passenger side and an electric fan on the drivers side.

 

That is incorrect....'01 models have a belt driven clutch fan.

 

Oh I assumed belt driven was different. Is there such thing as a mechanical clutch fan as opposed to a regular clutch fan?

 

By mechanical fan I meant belt driven.

 

Okay so I don't have a clutch fan...

 

Who's on first?

 

What's on second?

 

...............

 

Yes, u have a fan clutch/clutch fan and it's driven/turned/spun by a serpentine belt. If it came with factory a/c, it also has an electric rad fan that is turned on by the ECU at 218F coolant temp..