Low Temp Thermostat for 2.5 Sport

[Cat129]

I've been having some problems with my thermostat, I have been told that I have a sticky thermostat, and if I am going to change it I would be better off getting a low temp thermostat. I was wondering if anyone had done this or had an advice on what to do?

I don't know if this is related but I am loosing a lot of coolant and having to top it up every few days. The rad in the car atm was replaced in Dec so I don't think it could be a radiator leak but who knows with the garage I took her to.

[alan]

i would check yr rad cap first,it may be a leaker,look around the hoses etc for any tell tale signs such as brown stains where coolant may have sprayed out

[Cat129]

From what I can see it all looks fine but I am no mechanic. When I took it to the garage last week he said that the hose that connects to the top of the radiator had to much pressure in it indicating I had a sticky thermostat, I was getting a funny smell from the engine when it was getting hot as well. He then went on to say I wanted a low temp thermostat. I am completely lost tbh. I have a got a pic of the engine that I took last night if that would help at all.

[alan]

personally i would say if yr engine hasnt had any mods i would just use a bog standard original replacement, might be worth checking yr oil cap for any white gunk,also yr rad cap for the same just to make sure it hasnt caused any other damage.other than that a std thermostat will be fine, after all thats what was designed to go in there in the first place.as for the fto saying garages, avoid them like the plague in future, they obviously dont know what they are talking about

[Cat129]

Thanks for the advice. I will get the original one. Just glad to find people who actually know what there talking about.

[alan]

you mentioned in yr other post a funny noise from the gearbox, auto or manual ? what sort of noise ?

[Cat129]

As im going to buy the thermostat from japarts, I also need to change the rocker cover gaskets as they are leaking, do you think it would be worth getting new oil and fuel filters (They haven't been changed since I have had her and I don't think the last person did either) at the same time, we were thinking about doing a complete oil change. So might as well do it all at once.

[Wodjno]

You will certainly find plenty of those here
As Alan says, a standard Thermostat will be spot on. Can i ask what coluor the water is in the rad ?

[Cat129]

Manual gearbox, makes a rattaly/clicky noise when there is no load on the engine and the noise doesnt increase or decrease in speed depending on the speed of the car, I can make the noise stop by pressing the accelerator or clutch. Only does it when the engine is warm. Took it to a gearbox specialist and they think it could be the slave gears (I might be saying the wrong thing because I didn't really understand what he was telling me). He is going to have the car for about 3 days to take the gearbox out, check that the problem is what he thinks it is and put it all back together. Luckily the car is still under warranty so I wont be paying for it.

[Cat129]

Can i ask what coluor the water is in the rad ?

Give me a min and I will run out and check. I only filled it up again recently

[alan]

in a word .... yes. if you dont know when the fluids were last changed then for peace of mind let alone the health of yr engine it would be best to change them,make sure you get the right oils though as specified in the manuals,dont be tempted to get cheap stuff,it wont last and may cause problems, particularly the oil in the auto box if thats what you have

[Cat129]

The colour in the bottle bit you fill up is orange/pink, what I put in it yesterday. Took the rad cap off and its a dark yellowy brown colour. Bit like watery mud. That could be because the garage topped it up and I dont know what they put in it and it might have been a diff colour to the stuff I put in.

Any ideas why the top rad hose would be 'too' pressurized? Or is that just a stupid mechanic trying to get money out of me?

[alan]

yr filling up the overflow bottle cat !, when the engine gets hot it should fill, if yr filling it up it will simply spit out what you have put in.drain the system properly ,there is a drain plug on the bottom of the rad, sounds like it needs new fluid and a flush too

[Cat129]

Lol, Im not overfilling it. I only fill it when it get low. Is there any fluid in particular you would recommend?

[jayp]

The Brown mud sounds like a reaction between two incompatible coolant, orange/ pink coolant is organic acid, blue/ green is generally glycol based. When mixed they form a brown sludge which gangs up the coolant ways, the cooling system will need a good flush with an additive. That could also explain the 'sticky' thermostat.

Does it take a long time for the engine to warm up? This would indicate the thermostat has failed in the open position.

Or

Does the engine over heat easily?
This indicates a thermostat failed in the closed position. Or your radiator is blocked with Brown sludge from mixing coolant.

Just to add, if the garage that topped it up put the wrong coolant in, I wouldn't go back again apart from to get them to rectify the mistake.

Sent from my HTC Desire S using Tapatalk 2

[Wodjno]

You should be filling it through the Radiator cap, not the expansion bottle. Fill rad to the top, then if expasion bottle is empty, then fill to lower level.
the reason i asked about the colour of the water, has been answered above. 2 x incompatible coolants. They can destroy the cooling system, pipes, seals, rads, thermostats. When you take it to the garage, get them to do a complete cooling system flush, and then get it filled with an ethylene glycol coolant. replace the stat with a new 1.

[Cat129]

Okay then, I will flush the system out, any particular rad fluid you would put in. It heats up very quickly and then the thermostat doesn't say it is overheating but you can smell the engine when the ac is on.

[alan]

the one that glen said (above ) sounds like yr cooling system is well and truly clogged, it would explain a lot.yr top hose is seeing coolant that is far too hot,and may indicate that you have so much poo in there that its restricting the flow, so thats a thermo and all the fluids, glad to see the box is a warranty job

[Cat129]

I wouldn't have survived without the warranty. I've had to replace, drive shaft, radiator, countless bearings and now the gearbox. They wont do the thermostat or the gaskets as that's wear and tear but from reading the manual they don't seem all that hard to replace. Ive got a mate who used to me mechanic but his back gave out on him so he is going to 'oversee' what were doing lol

[wintertidenz]

If the garage put the wrong coolant in and blocked it all up, it's their fault and they should be responsible and fix it for no charge. At least that's how it usually works here in NZ.