Is it bather to use 160 degrees thermostat or 180 or the original?

[chicagosbird]

I have a 1999 firebird with the V6 3800 I in the process of making some mods to get the best performance.

I now that I cooler engine is fester engine but, if the coolant is gone pas to quic from the radiator then it will not cool down and there fore it will be wormer when going beck to the engine.

Let me now what you think about that.

And sorry if this question was already ask I read some other post but still didn’t get the definite answer

[hockeyman]

I went with a 180 Thermo because I wanted to keep the engine 'somewhat' cool in the summer, but still get heat for the winter. I think it works best for area's in colder climates.

As for people down south, I'd recommend the 160.

[chicagosbird]

i live in chiacago

[BobbyZ72]

i live in texas, the other day it was 38 all day, this is super cold to me. My 160 was blowing more heat then i could handle. Personaly, i dont think you would have a problem there either one. My two cents, original is too hot. Cooler engine will last longer. Again, this is all my 2 cents.

[SilverBirdSeven]

I'm in Chicago too. If I were you I would just go with the 180. The 160 can cause other problems anyway.

[zymose]

I didn't get to test mine out much, but I put a 180 stat in my car last week, and can't imagine the 160. It was below freezing here in Kansas for a couple nights finally and my car was blowing warm air, not hot, just warm. It seemed to take the chill out of the air, but it never got really warm in the cab. Like I said though, it was below or atleast close to freezing for a couple of those nights. Plus, I only had one week to play with it though.

I also heard a rumor that the engine might stay too cold and stay in choke? I haven't heard that from any kind of reliable source so I didn't pay much mind to it though. I personally would like to hear if there is any truth to that or not.

Good luck!

[KBeezy]

http://www.camarov6.com/ubb/ultimate...c;f=1;t=016679


Scroll to my last two posts on there.

[slow6]

if your car stays below 68F, then it will stay in OPEN loop mode.

[grayman]

recommend tracking your mpg for a while before swapping out thermos. keep track of the mpg with the new thermo and compare.

cylnder heat is a good thing for daily driving. some cold thermo settings do not allow for maximum MPG efficiency but they may aid in HP.

[terminaldegree]

For a daily driven car that you plan on keeping, I would stick with either OEM or 180. Your plugs will likely last longer and you'll get better mileage.

I can't really speak to whether there is a noticeable gain in performance with the colder one cause I haven't tried it.

Welcome to the site.

[BobbyZ72]

i cant beleve some of you guys cant get hot air with lower t stats, mine blows planty hot.... makes me even more happy to live in south texas.

[KBeezy]

BobbyZ72... Theres a difference between texas cold air and us with our cold yankee air... To you, cold is ~30 degrees. To us, cold is -15* to 10*....

[chicagosbird]

Thank you for all the response I was taking to a friend that has a 8 sec. Elcamino

He sad that I should stay with the one I have (OEM), and that the newer engines ware design to run in hotter temperature, and they have more power gain in this tem.

My car only goes up to abut 200 a little to the left from the middle but that was the stack thermostat say LOL

[CDNFB]

For Me:

Outside air temp:-30°C (-24°F)
Thermostat: 180°F
Engine Temp (reading gauge in instrument cluster): looks like it’s in the 160°F area.

To keep the interior comfortable the heat control is dialed in at full hot and never leaves this position.

Car has lots of power and yes the gas mileage is lower but not by much(approximately 24 MPG compared to 27 MPG average)

I’m going to stick with the 180°F thermo.

DZ

[BobbyZ72]

Originally posted by KBeezy:
BobbyZ72... Theres a difference between texas cold air and us with our cold yankee air... To you, cold is ~30 degrees. To us, cold is -15* to 10*....

-15 my blood would slug up and quit flowing...lol... to me 40 is freezing, i dont even go out side if i can help it. I guess you guy are right, im just living in my own little world here in texas. [img]graemlins/banana.gif[/img] but i love it.