2002 Honda Civic LX 4D 1.7

First off I had thought I was replacing the radiator cooling fan. My A/C worked just fine and I could see the fan on the left when facing car was running with the AC. All the auto parts stores have my bad fan as the condensor fan assembly and not the cooling fan. Maybe they were switched at some point.

So I replace the assembly but when I was removing the old I was not careful and I pulled out three red wires that were connected to a 3 prong grey connector. I tried to put them back in but I do not think they are making contact. No A/C but the new fan assembly did kick on when the temp got high enough.

I decided to try and connect the three red wires directly to the plug and make sure the A/C works but I do not know the correct order. In one scenario the new fan on the right stays on all the time. The other scenarios do not seem to get the A/C to work.

So previously the fan on left which the parts stores has listed as radiator cooling fan worked and AC worked but car overheated at lights and traffic. Now after replacing fan on right which parts stores have listed as condensor fan I no longer overheat but now I don't have A/C and fan on left is no longer working.

Any ideas or advice in general or specifically related to reconnecting the three red wires properly?

Thanks

 

On a 2002, both fans should cycle together. They both cool the radiator and condenser. Either fan alone is sufficient to keep the engine from overheating, but again they will both always come on if the engine needs cooling or the A/C is on.

The one on the left side of the car, the driver's side in USA, is called the condenser fan because it is only installed in cars with A/C. (By convention when talking about which side of the car a part is on, it is ALWAYS from the perspective of standing behind the car looking forward.)

You probably need to replace the connector if the wires have been ripped out of it. Find a Civic in the junkyard and examine how it is wired, then cut the connector out and splice it into your car.