Hi all: I started my car this morning and discovered a cooling system problem. The "idiot" light (radiator light) now comes on. The fluid was a bit low, but it didn't appear to be leaking. The Fans are NOT coming on. I believe this to be the source of the problem, but I am definitely no mechanic. I looked for the obvious: a loose wire or connection to the fan but didn't see any - atleast not any that I knew where to look anyway.

I took it for a test drive into town and it ran hotter but didn't reach the halfway point on the temperature gauge. I feel I can take the chance to drive it to work tomorrow, but certainly don't want to maintain that level of stupidity and keep driving it.

Being a woman, it is a natural reaction for me to take it to the dealership, but as I have discovered in the past they like to convince you to spend a fortune on things you can take care of yourself. I would really appreciate some advice (I don't expect anyone's advice to be perfect) on a) what the possible problems are b) what I should expect for costs and c) what type of replacement parts should I consider?

Thanks in advance!