Well, I got the fan system working normally again after tweaking the thermostat mechanism. Exactly how this works is a bit of a mystery to me, but it seems that the small magnet in the black plastic shell attracting the thermostat bimetallic clockspring has something to do with proper operation. The electrical contact at the top of the clockspring seems to be free floating away from the spring, and making a tilted contact from sliding the temperature selector arm being moved to the right. Somehow this tilted contact seemed to start the fan opening process correctly.
Anyways, it works again.