192 degree thermostat too much?

jaidedeye · Dec 30, 2004

i have a FMS 3 core radiator, 160 degree thermostat and an 18 in flex fan.......because the temps are so cold lately my car will not warm up at all thus, my gas mileage sux.....so, if i was to change to a 192 degree t-stat during the winter will it help? im even thinking about running a 180 during the summer. even during the summer the car would not get above 170....

yeah yeah i know my flex fan might make it run too cool too

what you guys think?

ECU5.0 · Dec 30, 2004

that should be a fine temp....you could also do it the redneck way and block off some of the front of your radiator with cardboard.

jaidedeye · Dec 30, 2004

lol
hey ecu, do you have yahoo messenger?

HISSIN50 · Dec 30, 2004

ECU5.0 said:
that should be a fine temp....you could also do it the redneck way and block off some of the front of your radiator with cardboard.

LOL, ECU, you are shadetree, arent you? (I'm kidding - i do the same things).

Jaided, if you run about 10* warmer than the stat rating, a 180 should be just great in the summer, no? 170 is actually a bit cool if you are running EEC-IV.

some folks do swap stats for the seasons, but i think a 180 on a V8 is a good middle ground.

good luck.

ECU5.0 · Dec 30, 2004

jaidedeye said:
lol
hey ecu, do you have yahoo messenger?

nah, ive got AIM my sn is ecrugr

jaidedeye · Dec 30, 2004

so a 192 is ok for winter?
180 for summer?
i heard our cars actually like to run a little hot..true?

ECU5.0 · Dec 30, 2004

hot....not likely....but they like to run warm. 180 is still a little low, but you usually dont run at 180 its usually like hissin said and about 10 degrees hotter

1Quik85GT · Dec 30, 2004

I have a 331 with alum. heads and my head starts out warm then blows mild air. I have a 160 thermostat in my car, and I am wanting to try the 192 to get me some warm,hot air, so I will not freeze..lol... I also have 2 fans on my radiator to help keep the car cool during the summer...What do you guys think

Didnt mean to hike your thread?

jaidedeye · Dec 30, 2004

1Quik85GT said:
I have a 331 with alum. heads and my head starts out warm then blows mild air. I have a 160 thermostat in my car, and I am wanting to try the 192 to get me some warm,hot air, so I will not freeze..lol... I also have 2 fans on my radiator to help keep the car cool during the summer...What do you guys think

Didnt mean to hike your thread?

well i think you are in the same boat as me...........my heat only gets "kinda" warm

ECU5.0 · Dec 30, 2004

try a 180 first since you definetly dont want to run too hot and possibly overheat those aluminum heads. i dont think you will but i wouldnt want to take the chance

86bluecobra · Dec 30, 2004

ECU5.0 said:
try a 180 first since you definetly dont want to run too hot and possibly overheat those aluminum heads. i dont think you will but i wouldnt want to take the chance

i dont think a 192 degree thermostat is going to have any adverse effects on aluminum heads. without pressure water boils at 212 degree i believe ( im canadian so im used to celcius water boils at 100 degrees) i run a 180 thermo with my 351 in my stang never had any adverse problems with my aluminium heads.( by the way the weather here where i live in canada is much the same as seattle)

ECU5.0 · Dec 30, 2004

86bluecobra said:
i dont think a 192 degree thermostat is going to have any adverse effects on aluminum heads. without pressure water boils at 212 degree i believe ( im canadian so im used to celcius water boils at 100 degrees) i run a 180 thermo with my 351 in my stang never had any adverse problems with my aluminium heads.( by the way the weather here where i live in canada is much the same as seattle)

yeah, youre probably right. it would have to really heat up to do anything. but 180 would probably be the best bet

86bluecobra · Dec 30, 2004

as far as the u probably run 10 degree hotter idea in my case i run at about 175 degrees with a 180 thermo. i have mechanical ford racing gauges in my stang so i tend to believe em since they are built by autometer. kinda wierd to think that a 180 degree thermostat would run cooler then the rating on it though now that i think about it

HISSIN50 · Dec 30, 2004

86bluecobra said:
as far as the u probably run 10 degree hotter idea in my case i run at about 175 degrees with a 180 thermo. i have mechanical ford racing gauges in my stang so i tend to believe em since they are built by autometer. kinda wierd to think that a 180 degree thermostat would run cooler then the rating on it though now that i think about it

i chalk it up to the locations of the readings. quality stats should be within a couple degrees of their rating. the coolant at the gauge sender might be 175, while your stat is actually at 180+.

as for what stat to run, it depends on each motor/set up. i like to look at a person's running temps (like i tried to do with Jaided - he said that in summer, he runs around 10* hotter than his stat rating). one cant be sure, but can get sorta close with such deductions (that he might run around 190 with a 180, etc).

now someone else might have a 160 stat and run at 205 in the summer - our recommendations on stats and parts to swap would be different. that is why i like to look at actual temps run, not blanket statements like we often see (e.g. ' a 180* stat is perfect for everyone').

i would probably opt for a 180 stat with alum heads. iron can withstand a lot more heat before warping. 180 is a safe, good all purpose rating, IMHO (and that is all that it is - MHO). if something happens and one runs hot (failure of some sort, hot weather and traffic, pressure loss in the cooling system, etc), i like to have a little fudge margin - another reason i would run a 180.

86bluecobra · Dec 30, 2004

makes good sense to me. i say listen to hiss

jaidedeye · Dec 30, 2004

to give you guys an idea how cool my car runs...here ya go.....i drove my car around town runnin errands for well over an hour....the temp is about 54 degrees....well when i got home i popped the hood and touched the radiator and top hose...they were barely warm...........WTF......

i need to change that thermostat

92notch50 · Dec 30, 2004

Some one mentioned that you get worse gas milage when you run colder? anyone want to explain? I just put a 160 degree and a 4 core to cool my car down..

jaidedeye · Dec 30, 2004

RYC CUKR · Dec 30, 2004

92notch50 said:
Some one mentioned that you get worse gas milage when you run colder? anyone want to explain? I just put a 160 degree and a 4 core to cool my car down..

This is how I understand it. Engines are designed to run around a specific temp for max efficiency. The temp helps promote combustion. If you run too cold then you aren't burning all the a/f mixture. You end up with a rich condition. Also the ECU doesn't see the car at operating temp and I believe that it will add fuel to try to bring it up to temp.

I could be out in left field so if I am someone let me know.

Also what is the stock t stat rating ?

HISSIN50 · Dec 30, 2004

stock stat is 192/195, as i recall.

on the cold temp stuff. couple things. when the motor is under its 'warm threshold' the fuel trim is rich, as the puter thinks the car warming up (not knowing it cant warm up further due to a stat). the O2's will allow trimming of the a/f a bit, but since the ECT is not up to temp, the trim is a bit rich (actually, once almost hot, it will lean out to further and quickly bring temps up [lean= hot]).
then there are issues with cylinder washing, etc. from the richness, bad economy, etc.

Notch, what temps are you running at, with your new 160 stat and radiator? you mention that you just did that to cool the car down. i would re-read the second and third paragraph in post 14. post some info about the temps you are running at (and what ambient temps are), etc. i think most would agree that dynamically diagnosing each car is better than diagnosing parts individually.

good luck.

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