stupid thermostat housing...

Pablo94SC

Registered User
So today I back-flushed the cooling system and surprise, surprise... the thermostat housing gasket was leaking. :mad: :rolleyes: I swear that is the biggest piece of crap. It's just too damn flimsy to not get bent out of shape when torquing it down.

I don't have time to do it now with the Shootout coming up, but I'm going to have a machine shop make a plate and weld it to the back of the housing to stiffen it up and make/keep it true. Hopefully that will stop the never ending cycle of leaking/changing thermostat gaskets.

PS: At least this gives me the opportunity to test the thermostat on the stove and see if it's actually opening around 180 like it's supposed to.

PPS: A chunk of debris (looked like sandstone) about 1/2" square and 1/8" thick came out of the system when I flushed it. Where that came from I have no idea, but I sure am glad it's not in the system.
 
Last edited:
I just had a plate welded to a spare housing that I had.The shop machined a recess for the T-stat and welded it to the spare.I put it on,and it worked really well.I did develop a leak,after about a weeks time,through the bolt holes.The shop failed to weld up the area inside where the t-stat sits and the coolant would wick itself under pressure out of the holes.Got it welded up and its perfect now........I also had a bung welded to the upper hose tube for a mechanical gauge adapter.......If I could post pics I would but my computer is acting strange,wont load pics
 
With my old 93 I tried everything, and the damn thing would keep on leaking, finally I set some sandpaper on a glass table, and started sanding the housing until all of the face was nice and shiny (no raised areas) then I used an OEM t-stat that kind of screws into place and two OEM gaskets.. worked like a charm.
 
take the gasket and put a bead of silicone around it on one side, then put it on the housing. Then put another bead on the other side of the gasket, install.....
VOILA!


no more leaks!
 
Sanding it flat does help but making sure both surfaces are clean and flat is the most important. When I did mine it leaked. Once I pulled it off again and made sure everything was clean and flat, I glued it together with gasket cement and let it set up for 2 days before I started the car. I haven't had a leak in over two years.
 
I've come to the conclusion that sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. This time I added extra RTV around the outside edge of the housing and gasket and let it tack up for a few extra minutes before installing it. I have a small bead of RTV all around the edge of the housing now, but no leaks on my shake down drive.
 
Back
Top