467-Ratman

I am thinking about changing my 160 stat for a 180 unit, my question is that my spal fans turn on at 195 and go off at 175, if I use a 180 stat won't it close before the motor gets to 175, thus keeping the fans on all of the time? The reason for the change is on the road I stay right at 160 which I have heard is too cool.... :cool:

CWUin82

Just read an article in Corvette magazine that said "cylinder bore and piston-ring wear at 160 is double the wear rate at 180". Good article on cooling in the Sept. issue.

Smokehouse69

I've got the same problem with my Spal's. They run all the time with a 180 degree thermostat. The car never overheats, but it can't get to the turn off point because of the thermostat. I looked all over town for an 170 degree thermostat, but had no luck. Plenty of 180's and 160's but apparently none of the big chains sell 170's. Hell I don't even know if anyone makes them.
Ideally I'd like to find a 205-185 thermoswitch or a 210-190. I think that would solve my problems better than a cooler thermostat.

71coupe

I don't think you will see much of a difference. Just because you put in a 160 deg thermo dosen't mean it will run at 160. The engine will stabilize at a given temp regardless of the thermostat. FYI, marine engines run way cooler than street cars with minimal wear issues.

BSeery

can't the spals be adjusted to turn off at 180?

Personally it would not bother me to have them running all the time. In Phoenix they would have to anyway except maybe on the interstate in winter.

SteveG75

I had the same problem till I switched to a Robert Shaw High Flow thermostat (180). I believe that I got it ay Auto-Zone for a mighty $10. Now the fans work like they are supposed to around town or even sitting in the driveway at idle.

OHSIXX

I went thought this a few weeks ago. I put in a 180 and the car ran at 155. Replaced it with a 195 and it runs at 180-190. Sorta a puzzle! :rolleyes:

467-Ratman

Just driving around town with stop and go driving it heats up to 195 then the fans come on and after a short time there off, then back on again. It seems to be running in the 175 to 195 range with no problem, its on the highway that it cools down to the Robert Shaw stat at 160 and stays there. I read the article in the Corvette mag too about engine wear as well....

killain

160 is too cold. you stand to build up wax at that temperture.

Robd

You may have seen this, but it not here a link to a recent article on cooling maybe it will shed some light.

http://www.dewitts.com/download/Corvette%20cooling.pdf

BeaterShark

Perhaps, the fan controller can be tricked by adding resistor.

Check the resistance of you temp sending wire when you are at 175*. Also, check the resistance at 195* when it turns on the fans.

If the resistance is more at 195*, you can add a small resister (to equal the 185* temp) to trick the fan controller, but your "on" temp will be increased as well.

If the resistance is less at 195*, it can still be modified, but it's a little harder to explain. So, if your interested, get the values above and I'll advise on how to change it.

desi

I had this problem all of last season. The car came with 160 stat...way too cold for this engine. I switched to 195 (yes 195---that's the operating temp for this engine). I have had that in there since May, absolutely no issues. Car runs and stays at 195.....all the time.

When I flushed the rad and block, it was full of "wax" type stuff (sign of cold temps.)

IMHO, flush your system (I just used water), install the 195 stat, and see how it works. You have nothing to loose. I noticed a big difference in perf. The car is just doggish when cold.

BTW, my fans are on 100% of the time. It is suppose to have clutch fan, but the previous owner took the clutch out and replaced with a spacer.

Good luck.