Coolant flush for LS1???
06-30-2009, 08:14 PM
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Coolant flush for LS1??? I am putting in a Low Temp 160 thermostat. Being that my radiator cap says I have a sealed coolant system and I should check the coolant level at the resevior...What is the specfic way I should flush the coolant from an LS1 and do I have to purge the system after refill???
06-30-2009, 08:23 PM
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drain the radiator and there is also a hex head plug on the passenger side of the block above where the starter is... i took my starter out then removed that plug to drain as much coolant out of the block as possible... it won't be all of it but most... once everything is drained, plug it all back up and fill the radiator with a 50/50 mix of dexcool/distilled water and start the car and basically let it run until the fans cycle a couple of times... then i would turn the heater on full blast and let the fans cycle once more to get any air pockets out of the heater core... it might bubble out of the radiator and make a mess while you do this process, so i would invest in a spill free funnell, makes the job sooo much easier... well once your done with all that, top the radiator off, put the cap on and make sure the overflow bottle is full... you should be set by now, just drive it around and make sure everything is working properly... i drove mine around for a month then drained and refilled the radiator to try to clean out anything that was left inside the block from the first flush... hope that helps you out!
06-30-2009, 10:11 PM
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if you don't have the heat on, no coolant will flow through the heater core and you could get a small air pocket in there... doesn't have anything to do with the blower motor itself, but it should be on
Last edited by neutron82; 06-30-2009 at 10:29 PM.
06-30-2009, 11:00 PM
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Only advice i can give you is when you are filling your radiator remove one of the coolants lines on the tb or coolant crossover pipe on the front of the engine. As soon as you see a steady flow of coolant from one of these lines then hook it back up. This will help remove most the air while filling your radiator.
07-02-2009, 07:25 AM
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there is no [B]valve[B] that moves coolant though the heater core. It is a blend door but that only controls air moving across your heater core. by having the blower motor on high while filing, it acts like a mini radiator and cooling fan and is just going to take long to heat up and for the thermostat to open. there is coolant always going to your heater core!!!
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07-02-2009, 05:26 PM
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Just curious as to why you want to run a 160 degree thermostat? I understand that a cooler engine developes more horsepower but I was under the impression that the LS1's were supposed to run on the hot side. My 02 Z always hovers around 208 (210 being middle of the gauge) I thought about changing the stat but was told that it may cause immisions issues.
07-02-2009, 06:03 PM
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Just curious as to why you want to run a 160 degree thermostat? I understand that a cooler engine developes more horsepower but I was under the impression that the LS1's were supposed to run on the hot side. My 02 Z always hovers around 208 (210 being middle of the gauge) I thought about changing the stat but was told that it may cause immisions issues.
Either way, a colder thermostat will allow you to run some more timing and gain some horsepower. It shouldn't affect your emissions, the car won't actually run at 160 degrees. Your fans more or less control the temperature the engine runs at, so if those aren't tuned to turn on sooner, a 160 T Stat won't do much of anything.
