could this be a free mod????

[Die Ford V8]

ok thanks man. I think I will do like you said and just keep the intake cool and push my car through the staging lines. then lit em up and let her rip. will having your key on and runing the heater cool your engine off a little bit or ?

[BadAzzRS]

cooling the block = bad very bad dont do it, the normal operating temp is 220 for a reason. GM has that 210 degree thermo in stock f-body's for a reason.

i regret buying a 160 thermo because the engine takes hella long to heat up, i should of went with a 180 if any.

here are some reasons a cold engine is bad to run even if you get more power as it may seem you do.

1.) cold oil = useless for lubrication (too hot is bad too)

2.) thermostat has a purpose, its to regulate coolant, if you were to remove your thermostat coolant at first your engine would take a long time to heat up, but then would never have time to set and cool down after it got hot and it would continue to heat up and the engine would overheat itself. people learned this in the 40's 50's 60's when they just used water alone as source of cooling the engine.

3.) reving an engine thats cold can cause some nice damage to rod bearings in particular, and some good wear on the valvetrain.

I cant tell you guys how many brand new engines iv seen with wrecked rod bearings from people reving there cars in 0 degree weather from a cold start. then they try and say the car they bought was american and just crappy LOL, but it happens with any engine domestic or import.

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okay Guys, here is a test for you, start your car, let it warm up, open your hood, move the throttle and rev your car up to about 3 grand then quickly let off the throttle.

If you hear sound not too loud, but slight noticeable rat tat tat tat tat tat as the RPMs drop, guess what? say hello to your worn connecting rod bearings. [img]smile.gif[/img]
---

So depending on your engine's manufacturer specified normal operating temperature range, consider to respect there default setting on your car and DO Not Touch!

As someone else stated cold air is what makes more power. A cold block and cold oil just wear your engine alot faster than it should.

Also take in note, the manufacturer's recommendation for oil is not always correct.

(Note: See mercedes law suit, recommendation for oil change every 15k miles )

Depending on where you live, and what you do with your car should determine the type of oil you are using.

Hot climates, racing, hard driving = higher vicosity
Cold climates and granny driving = low vicosity

Synthetic oil tends to be thinner than natural.

Also depending on your engine and how it was manufactured, synthetic oil may cause a false oil leak, dont freak out. its just because syntho is so slick and thin it may leak through certain areas that natural oil wont. usually this happens on a engine with higher miles, since certain areas tend to gain more clearance (we are talking hundreds of thousands) due to wear. it happens on all engines.

please dont mess with your engine cooling system unless you know how it effects your whole car.

[javifp]

I live in texas and since I put the 160 thermostadt my bird never heat up I barely get any heat in the winter months.
But to not have a thermostadt woud be bad. I used to have a pontiac sunbird 3.8l and I took the thermodstadt off and it would overheat. I guess the coolant was not in the radiator long enough to cool it self. but I put it back on because of it did not run any cooler.

[Die Ford V8]

so I should I still stick with 10w 30 or would 40 weight be better or what,

i use castrol thats the best right

[BadAzzRS]

Well die ford, what i suggest you do is try the 180 thermostat, get yourself a manual fan switch, and if you live in a hotter stat like texas or arizona, florida, get some thicker oil yes. but even in warm weather you should let your car idle for atleast 15-20 seconds before driving a little hard, just to make sure that oil is flowing. in cold weather, i let my car sit for atleast 5 minutes in cold weather, it all depends man, it all depends how fast your car warms up and what type of oil are you using, if you have some thick oil in cold weather and your car warms up slow, its goign to take a while lol. but its always safe to let your car warmup. oil is very important.

[BadAzzRS]

Removing the thermostat will cause over heating, at first the car will take forever to warm up, then when it gets warm it will continue to get hotter until the coolant turns into a GEL like thick flowing crap. then the engine will burn up.

Please everyone do not touch your cooling system, its set at 210 degree stock for a reason, the fact is N/A the 3800 v6 just isnt a power house, all engines loose a little power when they get hot face it, a cam, maybe some head work, intake work, is about as good as it gets for your v6 unless you want some crazy custom work done. instead of worrying about cold air and cold temperatures making more power, concentrate on your drivetrain and weight issues, get a good cam, port the heads, the car will be quick

IMO the 3800 has poopy top end power, if your concerned about ET's your going to have to get all your strength off the line and through the 1/8 mile. never the less, if you make a 13 N/A F-body, from a 40 mph roll N/A v6 VS a LS1 you are still going to get your butt handed to you. its all about horsepower and torque.

for instance i once raced a GTP, i took him off the line, took him up to 50 mph, then he slowly gained on me and passed me, then we raced from a 50 mph roll, he rolled passed me so fast you would think i didnt even open the throttle.

But anyways, change your thermostat if you want, but thats it, dont get any other ideas, because its all BS.

[firebird1]

everything else BS?

Why drill holes in your thermostat ? maybe you should read this jack@$$

[ March 21, 2004, 02:12 AM: Message edited by: firebird1 ]

[BadAzzRS]

yea firebird1, and i hear all types of crap like that, and moving your sensors around creates more horsepower... LOL, and putting resistors on your sensor wires tricks the computer to send more fuel to your cylinders, because more fuel = better, cold engine = better, and more exhaust = better.

im being sarcastic, i guess what i should say is... its not safe, doing things like this will make your car run ****ty, trust me. its no better than putting a 8 inch fart can on your car, these free mods do little if anything.

but dont get me wrong man, there are free mods that do help, but dang, learn how your whole engine works and how everything else in the car is effected before messing with any sensors or parts criticle to your engine's mechanical performance.

also that link is pointless, considering you can buy a 160 degree thermostat that opens the thermo almost immediately. this is why they recommend a manual fan switch, to blow cold air on the radiator which cools down the coolant within minutes. i know this because i have a home made setup and a 160 degree, drops from 220 degree to 180 within 5 min or less.

[ March 21, 2004, 03:46 AM: Message edited by: BadAzzRS ]

[firebird1]

i hate to argue with people i dont know, so i wont. i have a 160 thermo and a fan switch, works great for me, winter, 100 degree day, track; constant 180 on the temp gauge. i assume thats reasonably accurate(i know how gm gauges tend to be), so for a $12 thermo and $3 invested in radio shack, the car seems to like the setup. Am i hurting the engine? after 2 years/winters of running this setup has there been any repercusions from this? no.
will i move up to a 180 thermo when i cam/head swap this winter......probably.


you have one and you say its not a good mod?<------not arguing [img]graemlins/stickpoke.gif[/img]

[BadAzzRS]

I never stated once that it wasnt a good mod to get the 160 thermo, i said that you can cause damage easier if you dont let your car warm up, and removing the thermostat completely, or drilling holes are not a good mods.

But cooling the block too much is not good, that is why im switching to a 180, the only time i use my fan switch really is when im sitting in idle in front of 10000 cars on the express way on a busy hot night.

[firebird1]

then, i guess we agree on the situation?