1999PewterCorvette

Can someone give me some instructions on installing a new thermostat?? I would like to do it without draining the coolant if at all possible , since I just did a coolant change 2 months ago. Can it be done? Anybody have any good pointers?

Thanks guys
Rob

Chris@East Coast Supercharging

Cant really be done.. You would just make a bigger mess if you tried to do it without draining first..

wwashing

Just drain it into a bucket and put it back in when you are done.

Of course you could stand the car on it's tail, then you would not have to drain and refill.

leaftye

Convex tail on the C5 might make it a little tipsy, but should work better with the concave tail on the C6.

Dan_the_C5_Man

Just wait until "Evil Twin" chimes in!

SFVetteman

That's cheating

Evil-Twin

Chime !!!!!!!!
And Chris , Im ashamed of you...
I change my stat twice a year... I never change or drain the coolant... I lose less than a pint of coolant...
here goes..:
ready??????
have the new stat ready with some silicone grease to hold the O ring in place... I usualy put the housing on the battery...
also have some anti sieze thread compound handy.. also on top of the battery..
with a cold engine/// (the old stat will be closed...///
put a catch can under the car ....to catch the 1/2 pint or so.. spo the neigbors dog doesnt die..
slide the clamp up the radiator hose...
then pull the hose off the housing and tuck it under the heater hose holding it high and dry...
at this point you have lost no coolant because the stat in the hosing is closed... and the coolant is cold..
now remove one housing bolt... the housing will still be tight to the motor.. apply alittle anti sieze to this bolt..
here comes the trick...
Now with some applied pressure to the housing toward the engine block.. remove the other bolt pressing firmly on the housing...
place this bolt next to the one you already put anti seize on...
grab the new hosuing.. and with one smooth motion... remove the old state and place th new stat on...you will losse 1/2 to 1 pint of coolant.. you can hold the housing to the motor stopping any coolant loss... now with applied pressure put in the bolt with the anti seize... ... snug it up , and this bolt will hold the housing inplace the coolant is not under any pressure...
now put anti seize on the other bolt .. put it in.. torque to spec...
pull the radiaotr hose from under the heater hose and slide on the housing... slide down the clamp... and you almost done... fill the coolant tank... with 50/50 dexcool... should be less than a pint.. start engine and bring to temp...once above the stat temp/// shut it down... let it sit a while... 15 minutes or so.. refill the coolant tank.. and restart... check for leaks.. run it up to temp .. then shuit down and your done...
The actual stat transfere proceedure takes less than five minutes.. the passage of one stat for another should take less than 3 seconds.... and at this time you will lose alittle coolant.. the only other coolant you will lose it when you pull the radiator hose off..that about 4 oz. the coolant infront of the stat to the crease you put in the radiator hose when you tuck it under the heater hose...
I do this twice a year...without a problem... 160 stat from may until october... stock stat from october to may...

Ls1Rat

I was gonna say..........when I did mine it lost about a quart

CYA-Vett

I lost more than a quart, but then again its hard to measure when its all over the floor.
Some will drain out, but if you have a gallon on stand-by, don't bother to drain it. It will stop coming out after about 20 seconds, at least mine did.
Good luck, its not that bad....

DTV

I just did it this weekend.
I put two dish washing pans under the car next to each other.
I pulled the hose off first and then the T-Stat. Most of the old coolent went into the pans some did go on the floor but not much. Lost about a gallon.

Alex D

How about the new style thermostat on the 04's??

Evil-Twin

THE ONLY TIME YOU LOSE COOLANT IS WHEN YOU SWITCH HOUSINGS...that takes two seconds..you dont lose much in two seconds if you follow my procedure.
this is a tried a true procedure

Ls1Rat

I would never re-use the coolant that is lost :*****

1999PewterCorvette

Thanks evil-twin!!!!
I knew somebody on here would have some helpful directions.
I will go tackle the job now.

Rob

ragtopws6

I do the exact way Evil-Twin does it. It's not graceful but who cares.

jerryvsj68

evil twins ;is your vette lowered

Corvette_Ed

Holy Resurrection Batman!!

craig04c5

Anyone? I tried to do it in my 04 and lost quite a bit. The 04 is like the old style, housing and stat are separate.

$$$frumnuttin'

wow....an 8 year old thread! How does this happen?

saxtonfwd

Mine is lowered on stock bolts and I followed evil twin's instructions when I put my 160 stat in, and lost less then a pint. Pretty easy job and saved lot of hassle.