Thermostats don't prevent overheating, they make sure the engine reaches a certain operating temperature. And at 90C, a 80C thermostat is just as open as a 87C thermostat! In other words, a lower temp thermostat doesn't solve an overheating problem because your engine is way beyond either thermostat's range when it's overheating. But that doesn't keep misinformed people from trying and I see the practice over & over again. My 77 Vette had a 140F thermostat installed when I bought it and the car would overheat at long idle. It would actually spit-up coolant at long traffic lights. I chased the issue down to a leaky radiator cap that would not keep the cooling system pressurized. I replaced the cap & installed the correct 152F thermostat and it hasn't overheated yet! Most causes I've seen for overheating have been a slow leak, a leaky head gasket, engine timing and a plugged radiator - it's surprising how few radiator cores need to be plugged before you have an issue. Also the only thermostats I've seen fail have failed open, not closed. Tom www.kegkits.com
-----Original Message----- From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM] On Behalf Of Scott Chapman Sent: Wednesday, April 14, 2010 8:13 PM To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM Subject: 80c or 87c thermostat? I see that there's lower temp thermostats avaialble for the Westy. What's the use of a lower temp thermostat? Stock is 87 and these are 80 IIRC. |
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