I was wondering if anyone here runs their mav without a thermostat? Mine always runs warm no matter how I fiddle with thermostats. Just wondering if anyone does this or has any other advice. Thanks in advance. Jeri
Jerilyn, why would you want to run you car without it's thermostat? I would advise against it, if you want it to run cooler you can put a cooler 160 thermostat in it. What most people don't realize is that the thermostat doesn't just close after the engine is cooled off and then open and stay open once it warms up. It is variable by design to open and close throughout the time the engine is being ran, because the coolant tempicture changes depending if you are in stop and go traffic etc. The thermostat is important, I would leave it in.
Jerilyn, I was thinking about this some more. If your car is running warm, how warm? When a lot people's car run hot, they are tempted to put a band aid on the problem by either removing the thermostat as you mentioned or put a cooler thermostat in as I recommened. The better fix is to find out why it is running so warm. You may have restriction in your radiator etc. I would have it flushed, and see if that helps first. How old is your raditator? What kind of condition is it in etc? Maybe some one else will have a suggestion, I am learning quite a bit as I go long, and I realize there is a lot more to learn. Good luck and keep us update!
I heard of this product called “Water Wetter” it might reduce the temperature. What would a normal operating temperature be?
Machines are designed a certain way and to operate at certain temperatures. Removing the thermostat for a short time so you can complete a road trip when one goes bad is one thing. I have to agree with the 'band-aid' statement. There is something else wrong if it is running hot. I'd advise a reverse flush to start. You can put in a flush solution to help clean out the gunk. Prestone makes a good one and is available everywhere. You can buy the kits cheaply and do it yourself with a garden hose or take it to a garage which has a machine and have them do it. If that doesn't work, then there is a definate obstruction somewhere. I also agree with the radiator being the most likely candidate. Since the flush didn't work at this point, you can opt to take out the rad and have it acid dipped at a radiator shop. This is guaranteed to remove any clogs and show if there are any leaks. The option is to replace the rad. The only thing left is clogs in the coolant ports in the block, but this is pretty unlikely. The water pump is always a thought, but if it isn't leaking it is unlikely also. The only thing worse than running without a thermostat on an older car is doing it on a more modern one. The more computerized they are, the more essential they run at the designated operating temperature.
jeri- how do you know it is running warm? temp guage? this may seem stupid... run the engine without the radiator cap. obviously best off doing this with a cool engine to start. let it warm up a lot. note the reading on your guage (assuming you have a guage instead of an idiot light) slide a meat thermometer into the radiator and hold it there for a while. just checking how accurate your guage is. (i was always freezing in my house this winter. thermostat was set at 72 and still freezing. got a thermometer and found that the new honeywell t-stat i just put in is off by about 7 degrees! yep... it was about 65 in my house) one more dumb question...do you have a shroud? just my .02 best of luck
To answer some of the questions: 1. The radiator is almost new, has only been running since July 2002. There are no leaks, new hoses, new cap, and it has been flushed twice since it was purchased, and yes I know how to do a flush properly. 2. Yes I do have a shroud, custom made by a fabricator friend of mine. 3. I have not tried the meat thermometer but I will. 4. I have a gauge that is working properly. 5. I only run warm in the summer months cause out here it's almost 100* by 10am. 6. Water wetter is a joke, I know lots of people swear by it but I didn't see much of a difference. 7. I think I'm gonna try testing the temp with the thermometer and maybe it's just the gauge. Thanks Jeri
1. How much Antifreeze are you running? 2. How much water wetter did you try? 3. Are you running a flex-fan?
I am running about 60/40 on the antifreeze (60% prestone), I followed the directions on the water wetter, and yes I have a flex fan.
charles Everything I have has run hot, one time or another, and I have had a multitude of lessons. I am gonna skip the chapters on electric fans, as I assume you are not there. 1. Tune up/timing can make a difference. 2. a lean fuel condition can make a difference. 3. I once installed the fan backwards. Did not notice it cuz when we started the car, and checked everything, it was cool, and the fan was not engaged. It was a 351W with a serpentine system, that came with a normal waterpump, and a Chevrolet mechanic. 4. The cap needs to be for the proper pressure. a 16 lb cap keeps the water from boiling a lot longer. 5. a water recovery bottle? proper radiator cap for same? 6. if you have been mtor swapping, maybe the fan is too fan into the shroud, or not enuf? 7. Does the fan clutch work properly? 8. You been parts mixing? or, is the motor stock?. I believe the timing chain covers are different for reverse rotation, and although everything bolts up, an improper match will cause overhearing, for some damn reason. Good luck, Charles
My Experience... ...you probably don't have a clutch fan so that shouldn't be an issue. I have also seen flex fans end up as the culprit. They just don't move as much air. If it is not a mechanical problem, I would look at adding an electric fan to push more air through the radiator along with reinstalling the factory style fan to pull air through. Are you running a factory style water pump or an aftermarket one? You asked about temps. I like 180 degrees. I would also pay attention to the previous post about lean mixtures and timing issues. Seth
1. That's way more antifreeze than you'll ever need down there. How cold does it get? 20? 30? The more antifreeze you run, the less efficient your cooling system is. Water is a much better coolant. You might experiment by draining and running only water, just to see what happens. Permanently though, I'd run at least 30% antifreeze for corrosion resistance. You'll see that water wetter is more effective with a lower antifreeze mixture too. Says so on the bottle. 2. Flex fans are terribly inefficient. They make more power at higher RPms than a regular fan because they flatten out and flow less air. Get a regular fan, or if you are worried about peformance there are good electric fans out there.
charles I second/third the dis on flex fans. Their purpose is not heavy cooling. It is my understanding that water is a better cooling agent than antifreeze, but it has no protection that coolant has. Thus, a lower mixture would be better. Further, It is my understanding that a decent anti-freeze has everything the wetter has. Call Griffin Radiator tech line for info. Does it overheat in town only, or at highway speeds. Does it slowly sneak up, or directly biol over? BTW, a low oil level will cause overheating.
I agree on the statement about timing/tuning making a significant difference with engine temp. A good example was one I witnessed myself. A young lady had a '71 Mustang, 302, 4bbl & headers, etc. Her carb was out of sync and the engine was running so warm that her headers glowed after a time at idle. I found out later that for sure the carb was the issue.
One of the 'facts of life' about these cars is that the engine bay is too tight for good air flow. This means the highest radiator capacity, fan shroud and fan is the best that can be done barring any other faults. The A/C flex fans move a gang of air and in some instances do the best job. The engine bay is tight to the point that only so much air can be taken in because it can't get out fast enough so the there becomes a point that airflow stalls or become limited . I have used both the stock A/C flex multibladed fan and a clutch fan. with little difference in cooling ability. Both will air lock the engine bay to the point of lifting the rear of the hood from the pressure buildup when getting on the throttle and at higher road speeds. This gets worse with headers that take up much of the space at the sides of the engine. I run my EFI motor with 190* thermostat and stays cool even in 95+ temps but will start to rise if beat on to long. IMO run at least a 160 and a 13 lb cap with a known good flowing radiator. and fan that moves a lot of air. An electric fan of simular airflow capacity would be not much better because the air still has to go through the rad and still get out the same. It's just a different way to move air that still takes power from the alternator that the engine still has to drive so it's not free power. Use a lower concentration of anitfreeze because the heat conduction of anti F. is much lower than water.
