Thermostat
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My car came with a 160 stat. It still ran in summer 225 bc the stock fan setting dont start till 225+. 160 stat makes no difference. With a tune I got my fan settings dropped about 30 degrees across the board now the car runs about 195-200. Still same stat, only fan settings changed.
or when the car is on the road moving?
my 160 stat kept the temps in the mid 170s even on the hottest florida days.
although now with the EWP and the 160stat with the bypass holes...i'm running cooler in the cool weather. gonna be swapping to a 180 with holes i think.
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never had any trouble with it. and that temp is while driving on normal temp days.
always ran great for me, and gives good peace of mind when the hot florida sun has the road temps well into the triple digits.
always ran great for me, and gives good peace of mind when the hot florida sun has the road temps well into the triple digits.
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The thermostat has nothing to do with max temp.
Nothing at all. So forget it.
At least until you get a better radiator and fans
that push more air, and can hold 190F on a hot
day with the A/C on.
If you can't then the 'stat is a total waste of time,
effort and gas.
Nothing at all. So forget it.
At least until you get a better radiator and fans
that push more air, and can hold 190F on a hot
day with the A/C on.
If you can't then the 'stat is a total waste of time,
effort and gas.
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Yea the cooler and denser the air charge the more power. Some people think since nitrous is cold air, that they can put ice packs on their intake and the air going in will give it 50hp but thats not the case. Its been proven time and time again though that even on a 1st gen 350 that a 160 thermostat and high flow water pump can give you up to 30hp. With an LS1 the thermostat being lowered helps just the same actually better. LS1 can actually retain temps around 185 all day long without a fan kicking on at all with a 160 thermo installed. Also with cool engine, it cause %30 less stress on parts, and dont forget that the coolant runs through the throttle bofy and heads, so it does effect intake air temp enough to make a difference on a dyno. I seen my buddys SS that made 305rwhp with LT's and an air lid(270 stock). Then he took his MAF screen out, bypassed coolant in T/B, and put in 160 thermo and it then pulled almost 325rwhp. 35hp from full exhaust and lid. 20hp from just 2 pretty much free mods and a 160 thermo! The air fuel mixture was easier to tune, and 02 sensors were responding quicker along with injectors and numerous things. Just driving in 60 degree weather opposed to 90 degree is a 20hp difference in certain RPM's.
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I don't know of any conversion chart that shows coolant temp vs wear rates, nor is that something that can be easily averaged. Every setup has an ideal temp I'm sure, but what the range is (cold-to-midrange-to-hot) for significant variation in power or longevity can't be summed up in a single percentage like that.
and dont forget that the coolant runs through the throttle bofy and heads, so it does effect intake air temp enough to make a difference on a dyno. I seen my buddys SS that made 305rwhp with LT's and an air lid(270 stock). Then he took his MAF screen out, bypassed coolant in T/B, and put in 160 thermo and it then pulled almost 325rwhp. 35hp from full exhaust and lid. 20hp from just 2 pretty much free mods and a 160 thermo! The air fuel mixture was easier to tune, and 02 sensors were responding quicker along with injectors and numerous things. Just driving in 60 degree weather opposed to 90 degree is a 20hp difference in certain RPM's.
O2 sensors and injectors should be responding the same with a 160 stat or a stock 187 stat. If the car was on the dyno for a while with the stock fan settings, then it would be very easy for coolant temps to reach 230°. If the motor was running in the ~190° range on the next pass, this may account for the gains. But that temp could be achieved with even the stock t-stat.
Many people have found that their LS1s will run their best times when hot lapping. Many of us have also found that our best times are run in with coolant temps north of 190°F....sometimes even north of 200°F. There is no real data that supports a 160 stat showing any significant power gains, or that running coolant temps in the 17x-18x range will show improved performance or longevity over the 190-200 range on most applications (forced induction excluded).
Last edited by RPM WS6; 05-17-2010 at 10:35 PM.