thermostat ?

7upstang · Oct 8, 2004

Thermostat

Running a 160 degree thermostat will be too cold. when the car is running that cold it is also running extremely rich. This can equate to more horsepower, but it will also cause cylinder washing and fouled plugs. Even if gas mileage is not an issue to you, the health of your engine should be. At the very least, if you are going to run with a 160 thermostat, change your oil more frequently and be prepared for faster piston ring wear. Also, by running too rich, you can actually lose horsepower and carbon up your heads .

Just my two cents

raph130 · Oct 12, 2004

5spd GT · Oct 12, 2004

raph130 said:
unless you've done it yourself. shut up. it drove awesome every day and idled perfectly. i have seen lots of people here talk about the same thing. i got real good gas mileage with it. i had just rebuilt the engine it was completely fresh.

nows a good time to pose a question. does ANY car in existance run like crap when its cold? no. its more powerful. and its in what we call open loop. the o2's are ignored until a certain temperature. and since i run my 302s with 160 stats or no stat all year round with awesome heat, they never reach that temperature anyway.

Um....Rick 91GT is just a bit (being sarcastic - more like lightyears ahead of you in knowledge) more knowledgable than you...might aught to listen to his suggestions...

Blk91stang · Oct 12, 2004

Wow this never ends!! I recommend anyone who is concerned on this topic to give Stewart Water Pumps a call because thats what I did and they will tell you the truth about running with a thermo, no thermo, restrictor, and what Rick91GT said about the water not being able to cool fast enough which by the way is FALSE!

JFYI- I am one of the thousands running a 160 degree thermostat in a 5.0 and I have 4 holes drilled next to it for even more flow and cooling (recommended by LaRocca's Performance). My car makes GREAT hp and the a/f ratio is perfect. Everyone has an opinion but I have yet to read anyone having an engine failure or problem because of using a thermostat too low. I can see if you want a little more heat in the winter? thats about it...

raph130 · Oct 15, 2004

5spd GT · Oct 15, 2004

raph130 said:
for an idea of what its like...start your engine in the morning when its dead cold. let it idle for 10 secs. take it out and floor it. dont tell me it doesn't feel more powerful. thats what i want ALL the time. not just for a few mins and then the engine gets to 180+ and that power is gone.

My car doesn't want to rev when it is cold (in neutral)...but I think mine is a totally different issue...the timing is to much for the "coldness"...

Rick 91GT · Oct 15, 2004

Blk91stang said:
and what Rick91GT said about the water not being able to cool fast enough which by the way is FALSE!

What I said is since the thermo is always open the water will not cool "remove heat" to it's full potential since it is going through the radiator to fast, not allowing the cool air passing through the rad to do as good of a job. This is simple science.....

I've talked with Stewart and ran one of their pumps for years, they also do not believe in water wetter or water wetting agents, but you know what a lot of guys have good success with it....

I think Micheal added to my comments and maybe used the proper terms to re-state exactly what I was trying to say...

"Remember, the radiator becomes less efficient at removing heat the cooler the t'stat is. That's because efficiency is a function of the difference in temperature between the air moving across the rad, and the coolant temp in the rad. The lower the coolant temp for a given ambient temp, the less heat the rad can reject. Said another way, it takes even more radiator capacity to reject the same amount of heat the lower the t'stat temp is.

Originally Posted by raph130
unless you've done it yourself. shut up. it drove awesome every day and idled perfectly. i have seen lots of people here talk about the same thing. i got real good gas mileage with it. i had just rebuilt the engine it was completely fresh.

I have done it, with many datalogs on a DFI, is that good enough? If you had a programmable managament system like an EPEC or DFI you can run with-out O2's successfully but it takes readings 100% different then the stock EEC.

Michael Yount · Oct 15, 2004

I would add - that my comment quoted by Rick above was not intended to support the notion that a lower temp thermostat would always be open. It will be open more if the radiator doesn't have the capacity to reject enough heat to let it close. If the radiator does have enough capacity to reject the heat, and 160F t'stat will cycle open and closed just like any other t'stat does.

Rick 91GT · Oct 15, 2004

Michael Yount said:
I would add - that my comment quoted by Rick above was not intended to support the notion that a lower temp thermostat would always be open. It will be open more if the radiator doesn't have the capacity to reject enough heat to let it close. If the radiator does have enough capacity to reject the heat, and 160F t'stat will cycle open and closed just like any other t'stat does.

Correct....

HISSIN50 · Oct 16, 2004

raph130 said:
start your engine in the morning when its dead cold. let it idle for 10 secs. take it out and floor it.

i would NOT endorse doing this.

raph130 · Nov 20, 2004

Ray@VSK · Nov 20, 2004

Hey guys I got a technical question, I just installed a Kenne Bell & as there instructions I installed a 160 thermostat & ever since my car slow but surely starts to act like it's about to overheat "Rising to the 3/4 mark" the water pump is new & I know I set the thermostat correctly & also noticed it appears to be filling up the reserve, any advise I've burped the system & tapped it 3 or 4 times now ?

Rick 91GT · Nov 20, 2004

Ray jack up the front end high, pull the rad cap off and start the car and try to get more air out, sounds like you may still have a little air in the system. Sometimes it is hard to get all of it out when it gets trapped in the manifold.

Michael Yount · Nov 20, 2004

Ray - it also helps if your t'stat has the little air bleed valve in it - that little 'jiggly' thing. Some of the less expensive models don't have that; when they don't I simply drill a small hole and place it at 12 o'clock. That way, even when the system is cold and the t'stat is closed, it helps allow air to pass through to the radiator where it can escape through the open cap when you're burping the system.

5literttop · Nov 20, 2004

I put a 180 in mine. Did it for $20 canadian and took 30min. Easy!

raph130 · Nov 20, 2004

Michael Yount · Nov 20, 2004

raph said "there is no way in hell that with a 160* t-stat or any temperature t-stat or even without a t-stat should you get overheating or erratic temperature if done the correct way. this is a complete myth. "

Your statement over-reaches to say the least. There are LOTS of reasons a system can overheat even if the t'stat is done correctly, and the system is burped properly. Old, clogged radiators, not enough radiator for the HP level, an inoperative electric fan, bad mechanical fan clutch, missing lower air dam....the list goes on and on.

So, what exactly is it that's a myth?

raph130 · Nov 20, 2004

Michael Yount · Nov 20, 2004

raph - you're entertaining, I'll give you that - every time you post it gets funnier and funnier. There's only one bit in here that's worth responding to.

"an air dam doesn't affect cooling. that ugly little thing mounted under the bumper that everyone removes? its crap."

That little air dam is there ONLY to help high speed air flow across the radiator for the stock car. It creates a low pressure area behind and below the radiator which allows air to pass through the radiator and out the bottom of the engine compartment much more efficiently at speed. There have been plenty of posts by folks battling highway-speed overheating problems that solved them by putting the air dam back on.

But I wouldn't have expected you to know, or understand the physics of what's going on there.

Come on back and entertain us with another post.....we're all waiting.

Ray@VSK · Nov 20, 2004

For real,

I figured it may be an air pocket "again" as this happened to me once before of wich I might add Michael Yount was one who helped me resolve it.

You try to claim an insinuation of being disrespected & then childishly call him a smart ass, of wich you got all from a text message, can you really think you know what he was thinking by just what he typed

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