How far does a thermostat open?

rlmeskimen

Registered User
This is kind or a shallow question but I just replaced my thermostat with a 180. Driving on the hwy at 70-80 it hovers around the M in the NORM. Anyway, as many thermostats as I have changed over the years I have never tested one. I put the 197 thermostat in a pot of boiling water for about 20 minutes...it only opened up about 1/8 of an inch. I would have thought it would have opened more. Anybody have any thoughts? Could this have been my problem? There is a little buildup in the radiator and I plan on replacing it in the spring (the car is going back to Nashville in a month, cool weather).
 
same

i got the same thign happening to me. on my 95 auto as well.. just replaced my t stat with a 180, and on the highway, it loves to climb to the "M", sometimes itll stay a little lower but once u boost it once or twice on the highway... it's too hard to cool and stays up there... i wonder what it is, going highway speeds youd think airflow would be enough to cool it. not sure how far they are supposed to open though... just leeting ya know im in the same boat :D
-Damon
 
Thanks for the response. You are describing exactly what I am having. I haven't had the chance to test it since the 180 but I imagine that I will need a new radiator if I want to bring it to a constant temp.
 
changing the t-stat alone won't help. what you need to do is rewire your cooling fan. Mine w/ a 160 and the fan mod sits shallow of the N on the highway. Every now and then it goes up to the O. Thats on my 5-speed.

My auto w/ the same setup barely goes over the cold line. Its also got fresh head gaskets so there is no leakage.
 
Thanks Scott. I figure if I really want to cure my cooling woes I need a new rad. Looking from the top I could definitely see slots that were partially closed due to calcium buildup.

Ryan
 
Hey Ryan,

I've got a fairly new radiator on mine, 180* thermostat, a tranny cooler and larger chin spoiler to force more air into the radiator. On the long climb up through the pass to Victorville, in 100+ temps, I still have to turn off the a/c to keep it from going past the "M" on the gauge.

Mike38SC is working on custom radiators which should alleviate the problem. See:

http://www.sccoa.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=31082&perpage=15&pagenumber=1

Lee
 
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Thanks for the info Lee. I have been watching his progress on the rads. Hope he works something out before the spring.
 
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