I was driving yesterday and stopped at a store to check on something with the family in the car and the engine idling. When I walked around the the car the motor bobbled like a stutter and then idled normal. I went into the store and came out to continue running errands. At the next store the wife called me and said it smelled like something burning. She turned the motor off until I got out to the car. It smelled like plastic burning or an electrical cable. The engine temp. was about 90 deg celsius. It started okay and I drove home to change cars. My wife went shopping and I went looking for the problem.

There was no check engine light, no blown fuses, oil level and coolant levels were fine, motor idled fine but it took awhile to cool off. The fan was working but didn't go into high speed like on my powerstrokes for cooling. I can only suspect a thermostat may have got stuck but why were did the burnt smell come from? There was no smoke and I don't have a bloodhound nose. I am perplexed. From what I have read in this forum I know there are some hands in here that have an answer that would work. Any help is greatly appreciated. It happened yesterday and haven't had the car out today. Other than the blower regulator this has been a trouble free car. Oh I do have it chipped with Upsolute but there was no smell from the boards.

Thanks in advance.

Does the turbo diesel have a fan clutch? If so that might explain the burnt smell. The fan blades were covered with soot. Does anybody know if the 98 turbo diesel has a 2 speed fan and how does it work?

I can't say whether yours had a fan clutch. Mine's a '96 NA 606, and does have a fan clutch. I think I need a new one, but it's not tried to overheat yet.

The electric fan is not two speed. Rather, it's infinitely variable. Hold the "REST" button on your climate-control computer until the display changes, then press the left "AUTO" button until you see "20" on the left side. The right then shows the electric fan control current. It seem to run 0-10 or so.

Thanks for your response. Do you know what the other numbers reference when scanning through after holding the REST button? It looks like benchmarks for temp. One seems to be a voltage meter. It would be very handy to know what they reference.

Thanks again.

The answer, and more is at:

http://www.continentalimports.com/ser_ic40142.html

This link is referenced within:
http://www.continentalimports.com/ser_ic40142a.html

Well After Much Head Scratching And Replacing The T-stat And Doing A Coolant Flush The Motor Was Still Running About 90 Celsius. The A/c Stopped Working As Well. It Turns Out That When The Motor Heated Up The A/c Valve Released Pressure And Oil Came Out. That Explains The Burnt Smell That Happened And Went Away. I Ordered A Fan Clutch For $110. Real Tight Space But Generous Use Of Explitives Helped. As Far As A Special Tool To Take Off The Fan Clutch I Just Put A Small Allen Wrench In The Hole On The Back Side Of The Water Pump And Scraped My Knuckles On The Radiator Loosening The 8mm Allen Bolt On The Fan Clutch. I Think The Only Special Required Is A Small Offering Of Your On Blood. Fan Clutch Should Be Here Tommorow And It's Off To The A/c Man.

Mine always runs above the 80 mark, and up to 90 if it's hot out. Nearing 100 in stop-and-go traffic in hot weather. 100 shouldn't be a problem at all, but I'm leery of blowing something that is about ready to go. My gauge does show a bit low compared to the reading on N22, but it's pretty close.

As for the AC stopping, does #7 in current-sensor mode (holding REST with the key in position 2) show less than 3? Insufficient airflow can cause very high pressures at the compressor, which can indeed blow off refridgerant. Assuming that you lost oil, the problem now is figuring out how much to add, whether you do it or take it to a professional.

As an aside, what happened to your shift key? It seems to be pressing itself just after the spacebar is pressed.

Weird with the shift key. I posted in all caps and the forum must have put it in lowercase. Makes me look like I ride the short bus to school. haa haa Let me wipe the drool from my mouth.