How to tell if I have a 160 degree thermostat?
10-14-2014, 10:14 AM
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How to tell if I have a 160 degree thermostat? I'm not sure if the previous owner of my car installed a 160 degree thermostat or not, is there any way to figure it out?
10-14-2014, 11:14 AM
#2
If you start the vehicle cold and let it idle up to temp, It should be obvious when the stat opens. The rad hoses should go from warm to burn you hot pretty quickly once it opens. Also it's pretty easy to pop off the housing and put the stat in a pot of water on the stove. See what temp the water is when it opens up. Tests proper operation as well.
10-14-2014, 11:54 AM
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Rolling highway ECT is best, you eliminate the influence
of fan settings and so on. Leave the A/C off. A "160"
'stat will sit about 175-180F. A "180" or stock will sit
about 195F.
You have no use for a "160" thermostat, and you don't
(most likely) have the cooling airflow and radiator quality
to support one where you need it most. So all you get is
a wider coolant temp swing to tune against. Meaning
more work for no more performance or safety.
of fan settings and so on. Leave the A/C off. A "160"
'stat will sit about 175-180F. A "180" or stock will sit
about 195F.
You have no use for a "160" thermostat, and you don't
(most likely) have the cooling airflow and radiator quality
to support one where you need it most. So all you get is
a wider coolant temp swing to tune against. Meaning
more work for no more performance or safety.
10-15-2014, 11:22 PM
#5
Agree with the above. My M6 car must have one as it behaves exactly like a friend's which does. Meaning much slower to reach the usual spot where our dummy gauges indicate normal operating temp. VERY slow on really cold days compared to my A4 car with stock thermo, and thus a longer wait for the heater to work.
10-17-2014, 06:21 AM
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I have a 160 degree thermostat in my TrailBlazer SS and I haven't seen a change in the way my heat gets hot at all. I'm wondering if my Z28 has one because the previous owner had the PCM tuned for a 160 degree stat, but from the things I had to fix on the vehicle its not beyond the realm of imagination that he didn't install one.
10-18-2014, 10:30 AM
#7
Well you look to be technically from the south so that may have something to do with it. 160 stat in NJ probably isn't too much fun for a couple months of the year. I decided to go 160 here but I just won't drive it if it gets below freezing. I dislike the look of it with the hard top on anyway so cold weather isn't the best driving environment. 
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10-18-2014, 01:41 PM
#9
I have a 160 degree thermostat in my TrailBlazer SS and I haven't seen a change in the way my heat gets hot at all. I'm wondering if my Z28 has one because the previous owner had the PCM tuned for a 160 degree stat, but from the things I had to fix on the vehicle its not beyond the realm of imagination that he didn't install one.
10-20-2014, 01:27 PM
#10
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Well you look to be technically from the south so that may have something to do with it. 160 stat in NJ probably isn't too much fun for a couple months of the year. I decided to go 160 here but I just won't drive it if it gets below freezing. I dislike the look of it with the hard top on anyway so cold weather isn't the best driving environment.