Thermostat
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I was looking into buying the 160 degree thermostat for my 99 ls1. If I got it would I have to get my car tuned again or is it a plug and play type thing? The one thing I'm trying to avoid is having engine codes thrown and I've done great so far with all my other mods.
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you could go half way...and do a 180 stat
but my car runs good with the 160stat, temps consistently hover ~173deg when running/moving (even in hot fl weather).
you DON'T NEED to have anything tuned even with the stat. car will run the same as stock when going slow or sitting still (traffic/staging lanes), but once the car is moving you'll take advantage of the cooler stat.
i've run stats untuned in 3 different cars for almost 10yrs
but my car runs good with the 160stat, temps consistently hover ~173deg when running/moving (even in hot fl weather).
you DON'T NEED to have anything tuned even with the stat. car will run the same as stock when going slow or sitting still (traffic/staging lanes), but once the car is moving you'll take advantage of the cooler stat.
i've run stats untuned in 3 different cars for almost 10yrs
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my 99 z28 runs at 215 striaght up on gauage since i got it i thought that was normal do u think Thermostat is damaged or low coolant or something
what is the AVG temp for ls1's
what is the AVG temp for ls1's
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Your stock stat is a 186 unit so a 180 is pretty much a waste of money.
I don't like the 160 stats either. Too cold for NA application, IMO. LS1s seem to make their best power running in the 190-205 degree range in my experiance. Best way to achieve that is with a stock stat and reprogrammed fans.
I don't like the 160 stats either. Too cold for NA application, IMO. LS1s seem to make their best power running in the 190-205 degree range in my experiance. Best way to achieve that is with a stock stat and reprogrammed fans.
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one of the biggest reason ive put a lower stat in previous vehicles was for the life of the engine plus cooler air is denser which in turn means more power. i would rather have my engine warm up to 180 degrees 800 times then 195 800 times. its not a big difference but its a cheap mod
Last edited by lss1six; 02-01-2010 at 06:47 PM.
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one of the biggest reason ive put a lower stat in previous vehicles was for the life of the engine plus cooler air is denser which in turn means more power. i would rather have my engine warm up to 180 degrees 800 times then 195 800 times. its not a big difference but its a cheap mod
You'll actually get better engine life and better MPG with hotter coolant temps (to a point).
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LS1 intakes don't contain coolant passages, and being Nylon 66, are not as subject to heat soak from rising engine heat as aluminum intakes are.
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I was bored and reading a lot this weekend;
I learned (this isnt first hand knowledge, just info from the Internet) that the stock thermostat is 185
the gauge reads 210 when the engine is anywhere between 180 and 210
and something else too, but I forget
anyway, try looking through threads or googling, the 160 thermostat seems like a waste
I learned (this isnt first hand knowledge, just info from the Internet) that the stock thermostat is 185
the gauge reads 210 when the engine is anywhere between 180 and 210
and something else too, but I forget
anyway, try looking through threads or googling, the 160 thermostat seems like a waste
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The stock t-stat is stamped as an 86*C unit on the bottom of the stat (186*F), that is true.
The '98 engine temp gage will show more precise movement in coolant temp, as these use a different temp sender than the '99+. However it's still difficult to read an exact temp, as the gage has too few markings like most factory temp gages.
A '99+ will generally show just a hair under 210 for anything between 190 and 210, and just a hair over 210 for anything between 210 and 230. It's much less useful than the '98s.
The '98 engine temp gage will show more precise movement in coolant temp, as these use a different temp sender than the '99+. However it's still difficult to read an exact temp, as the gage has too few markings like most factory temp gages.
A '99+ will generally show just a hair under 210 for anything between 190 and 210, and just a hair over 210 for anything between 210 and 230. It's much less useful than the '98s.
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Agree on the dummy 99+ gauges. Thats 100% correct. They arent even remotely accurate. I have an aftermarket one on my car so I can see actual temp. 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.