ok so i did a search and i get conflicting views (https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=738077) of what effects the thermostat has on the way a cooling system works...does anyone have any real experience with different types of thermostats and how they effected the motor/cooling process...like does it make your motor run hotter (hotter exhaust gases included)?

i also was wondering if running at a higher temp will improve NO emissions (higher temps mean hotter cat=somewhat better emissions? i dunno)...i need to get ref'ed soon...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by CLICC916 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ok so i did a search and i get conflicting views (https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=738077) of what effects the thermostat has on the way a cooling system works...does anyone have any real experience with different types of thermostats and how they effected the motor/cooling process...like does it make your motor run hotter (hotter exhaust gases included)?

i also was wondering if running at a higher temp will improve NO emissions (higher temps mean hotter cat=somewhat better emissions? i dunno)...i need to get ref'ed soon...</TD></TR></TABLE>

thermostat is a device that is used to regulate the amount of coolant that is allowed to flow from the engine into the radiator. When the Themostat is closed, then no coolant in the engine flows through the radiator, its like a giant plug is there. When it heats up, the thermostat opens up. Combined with the Thermo fan switch, you can do an effective job of regulating the engines temp. For instance, if the thermostat is all the way open and the radiator cant cool the air down enough, then the thermo fan switch gets flipped and the fan turns on pulling more air over the radiator.

So what happens when you run without a thermostat? Your car is constently cold, which means thats just bad for your engine, your engine runs at a designed tempature. Because as metals expand as the get hotter, its important to find one operating tempature and keep it there so your engine is running close tolerances. Improves gas milage, performance, life of engine, etc.

So what happens when you put an aftermarket thermostat in? Well the car will run colder, which in turn can lower combustion temps, which wont really help your cat but will help if you have super high NOx. Super high NOx are a byproduct of SUPER high exhaust temps. By the time they reach your cat, they arnt even close to as hot. I forget the exact temp ranges, but 1500F is when NOx starts going through the roof, and only 350F about for your cat to be working if I remember correctly, dont quote me on that tho.

So whats my opinion, run your car at 190 degrees like honda wants it to, or run a spoon/mugen one if you want to lower it a few degrees.

Not worth it in my opinion, OEM is fine.

 

yea, i figured oem was fine too for daily driving...just wondering if its ok to run no thermo for smog purposes...if i ever found a spoon/mugen on ebay for less than 50 i'd consider it, but as for now its oem for daily drivin

 

running without a thermo may also overheat the engine. how u may ask? without a thermo the coolant is basically just flowing without any restrictions, just though the radiator then back into the engine. you actually need a little restriction to slow down the flow in the radiator because the coolant needs to stay in there for a set time for it to cool effectively. even though the thermo is wide open when the engine is hot the thermo still adds the needed restriction to slow flow down.

 

More like the restriction increases the waters pressure in the block and hence its boiling point. bubbles in the water jacket would suck big time

 

The reason the engine will run hotter without the thermostat is pretty close to what was stated eariler .... the water needs to be slowed down once it reaches the radiator so that the radiator has time to absorb the heat from the water... if there is no thermostat... the water is flowing to quickly through the radiater for the heat to be taken out of the water by the radiator.

Hence... you run the risk of high water temps thus creating higher engine temps..

 

my engine temps haven't been getting to normal lately, and i'm thinking what it could be. I thought i had a radiator leak at one point and still can't figure out if i do, but i am losing coolant somewhere. I'm thinking maybe my coolant got too low and my thermo got stuck near closed. That would mean most of the coolant would stay in the radiator, or most could stay in the engine? thanks.

 

ALL stock ECU's and most chips need to see 170* F water temp to get out of cold ilde circuit.

Autozone 170* F stat for $7, water temp stays at 175-180 while cruising, unless I tuck behind a SUV or 18 wheeler.

ALSO, last weekend........I had problems!!!!!!

It was -4* F and the coolant went to slush. If not for watching the aftermarket water temp gauge and knowing what was going on, my little SOHC Z6 would have over heated.

It was the ONE ond only time the factory water tempo gauge got above 3/8's mark.

I saw 235* F on the Autometer gauge for about 2 minutes, motor still fine.

All from antifreeze slush.

 

is there any difference from the LS, GSR, SI, and Type R theremostats and thermoswitch? sorrie to bring a old post back up but i can find any details?