boonie

i understand iam kicken a dead horse "but i wasn't around when this horse was alive" but i need to know before i actually change over to the 160 thermostat in my 94: what advantages are there with the 160 thermostat vs. the 180? i've already had my computer tailored to cut on at 195 by Brain at PCM and he tells me that he can reconfigure it for the 160 thermostat " which he personally recommends" and here in California we don't see any super cold days, so then forum members from your experiences what are there advantages "if any" in replacing my 180 thermostat with a 160 thermostat?
thanks boonie

Orr89rocz

For me my motor ran much cooler. Thats a good benefit. I went with a 170 over stock 190-200 or w/e it was. Good investment

jimg's'93

Do a search on this. There are probably dozens of threads discussing the pros and cons.

runner140*

The Forum must be slipping.....We used to get over 50 posts and some really good fights on this subject.

cumbercr

If you check GrumpyVette's forum, there's a post that says the 195 thermostat is needed to get the oil hot enough to burn off the acids. I'm in CA as well and I thought the lower temp would be good. I'm running a 180 with a Dewitts radiator. The thermostat has three holes drilled in it. On the highway, the temp has trouble reaching 180 which means my oil runs under 195. I'm seriously considering going back to the stock thermostat.

89onlyZ51

You could run your engine in your boat with raw-water cooling.

pologreen1

heat destroys things, and dries things out, in a a performance case the cooler the better.

c4cruiser

Yes, there have been many thread about a 'stat that opens at a lower temp.

Even though the thermostat is a 160 degree unit, that only designates at what temperature the 'stat begins to open. Once it's fully open coolant flows like any other depending on the diameter of the hole in the 'stat. If the weather gets really hot or there is enough stuff blocking the radiator, the coolant temps will climb anyway.

If you drive the car on a cool or cold day, the 160 degree 'stat may prevent the ECM from going into closed loop and gas mileage will suffer and emissions will remain higher than necessary. And the LTx motors do run at a higher temps so that emissions are reduced.

IMHO, this is one of those deals where the engineers know best. A cooler motor will generate more HP and drag racers have known this for a long time. It's common to see cars at drag strips with all sorts of ice on top of the motor between runs. But for general street duty, the design temp is completely suitable for the best combination of pwer, economy and emissions.

And in CA, you will most likely fail an emissions test. From what I have read, the state also has "sniffers" along roads and if you happen to go by one when they are testing, you may have to go in for a test. CARB may not be happy with you.

BADDUCK

No advantage to a 160* thermostat on a driver. Stay with 180*.

DougSilver

I have had the 160 stat in for years now, along with Hypertech programming to turn the fans on appropriately, and have NEVER come close to failing an emissions check.

Doug

rodj

But that is to take the heat out of the intake and cool the incoming air charge.
They ain't putting ice in the radiator

STL94LT1

The stock thermostat in his 94 LT1 is a 180*.

STL94LT1

His 94 LT1 goes into closed loop at ~140*. So this won't be an issue.

jfb

Partial Quote from C4cruiser:
A cooler motor will generate more HP ...
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++

That is not the truth, in fact IC engines generate more horsepower with increasing temperature. It is HEAT that makes HP and the more heat you take out of the cylinder, the more HP you take out of the engine output shaft. Continental Motors took identical engines and ran them at a string of increasing temperatures and measured HP, fuel economy, and engine wear. HP increased with increasing temperature, fuel economy increased with increasing temperature, and engine wear (cylinder wall wear) decreased with increasing temperature.
Those who do not understand how IC engines work, think that the coolant temperature is controlled solely by the thermostat, and they are dead wrong. That can only happen when you have a radiator with many times higher heat transfer ratings than you find in automobiles. Your car engine yawns at coolant temps up to 260 F, but it is the owner that freaks and undeservedly because they don't understand automobile engines.
The thermostat attempts to maintain constant engine temperature and when it is fully open, it loses control of the temperature and the engine temperature is determined by the ability of the radiator to get rid of heat. If you install a 160 stat, it will be fully open all the time and your engine temp will vary depending on engine load. If this was good for engines, GM engineers would have installed 160 stats at the factory. No car ever made had a 160 stat installed.

You asked what advantage a 160 stat has. It has NO advantage!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GREGGPENN

Consider too, most people talk about the importance of getting a cool charge of air into the motor. When that cool charge hits the hot motor, it expands and creates more power. A cooler motor doesn't transfer as much energy to the incoming air.

Also, hotter engines do burn off more pollutants/contaminants. That is why they raised thermostat temps. Not only will the exhaust be cleaner -- so too with be the motor.

It's that POS EGR that I don't like! (Don't want to leave without starting some kind of rukas! )

bjankuski

You need to check your history, the SBC was designed in the 1950's and when it was designed all of there engines were equiped with 160 degree t-stats. The 160 degree t-stat was not changed to a 195 t-stat until the early seventies when compression dropped due to poor gas (87 octane and unleaded) and emission became a concern. With the drop in compression GM decided they needed higher temperatures to attempt to reduce emisions and regain some efficiency that was lost.

The bottom line is the 160 t-stat will not cause a reduction in engine life, it may increase power and definately will reduce heat soak when sitting in the staging lines at the track. If your engine is modified with higher compression then the lower t-stat temperature can be used to acheive more power be allowing more aggressive timing before detonation rears it ugly head.

Closed loop operation occurs around 130 degrees so you will not see a gas mileage reduction.

jfb

I know my history, it is YOU that needs to check history. The small block V8 chevy engine came out in 1955 and it used a 180 F thermostat. No U.S. auto manufacturer EVER used a 160 F thermostat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !

larry00

Take into concideration two other things .
One is your computer on the later model LTx are tuned using a specific temperature and going lower defeats the tune.

Also it's a myth that lower thermostat settings reduce engine temps.
A restrictive thermostat allows coolant to stay in the radiator longer which allows more cooling not less.

My Accel Gen 7 computer in the Hot Rod requires a 160 degree Thermostat and thats figured into the computers fuel and spark management program.
I would negate the programing if I went to a different Thermostat.

jfb

Partial quote from GREGGPENN:
Consider too, most people talk about the importance of getting a cool charge of air into the motor.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +++++++++++++++++++++++

It is true that a higher temperature intake manifold increases the inlet air/fuel temp into the cylinders which reduces the charge density and causes a reduction in HP, but much more effect is caused by the heat lost from the cylinders to the coolant. The net effect of a lower temperature coolant is lower engine shaft HP output!

rodj

Thermodynamics 101
As the temperature of a given mass of air increases, its volume expands and the air gets less dense as a result—same mass, but larger volume, means less dense. As the temperature of a given mass of air decreases, its volume contracts and the air gets more dense.
More dense= more O2 in a given volume therefore able to burn more fuel = more Hp

GP ;you like heavy tech stuff , read this
http://bankspower.com/techarticles/s...r-Equals-Power
Also
http://bankspower.com/techarticles/s...o-Making-Power