im done with...

[dsmkidd20]

im done with trying to fix this overheating problem. i have a brand new water pump(it does not leak at all), fans do work, new engine coolant temp sensor, i flushed out the system also both the rad and the engine, i let the car run with the rad cap off for 30mins till there were no more bubbles coming out with the heat on all the way(that was with the mitsubishi thermostat), i have tried 4 thermostats(2 from autozone 1 from napa and 1 from mitsubishi) the napa one did work for like 10mins then stoped im pissed off! so now im just gonna run it with no thermostat, screw it summer is here anyways it was 83* out yesterday. so i need some help on how i should run the car without a t-stat. i was reading on here that i should gut out a old t-stat or use a washer from a hardware store and would the fans turn on with the thermostat being out?

 

[7itanium]

I would take your thermostat back out... make sure that you are getting it nice and wet when installing it... sometimes they can be hard to get to seal right... I replaced the one in my car like 4 times before discovering that it had a big air bubble behind the thermostat.. so it wasnt opening properly

might seem like an obvious though.. but it doesnt hurt to double check it. If there was an air bubble in that spot it would never bubble out the radiator on its own

 

[GRAVEDIGGER]

Not to tell you what to do, but I never liked the idea of running without a thermostat and I personally woudn't do it. There has to be a reasonable explaination to your problem, but I know how it is and you just want to try something else. The main thing is that you need some kind of a restriction similar to the thermostat in there to help slow down the flow of water or else you could have the same problems. I have heard that a good way is to just drill some holes in the thermostat to constantly let some flow through. I'm just not sure of how many holes you need or what size they should be.

 

[7itanium]

90% of the time.. a car will overheat when u run it without a thermostat anyway.

the reason for this is because the thermostat is there to "close" up when the car needs cooling in order for it to stay in the radiator long enough to be cooled, and then open up and let the cooler water into the block... this is even moreso true on a turbo car as they run much hotter.

You can try it... I have seen it work.. but id bet money that your in a worse situation tomorrow having tried it.

find the bubble man.. its there somewhere

 

[dsmkidd20]

i dont like running it without the thermostat but the damn things are not opening so i have to do it that way. i have tried everything.

90% of the time.. a car will overheat when u run it without a thermostat anyway.

the reason for this is because the thermostat is there to "close" up when the car needs cooling in order for it to stay in the radiator long enough to be cooled, and then open up and let the cooler water into the block... this is even moreso true on a turbo car as they run much hotter.

You can try it... I have seen it work.. but id bet money that your in a worse situation tomorrow having tried it.

find the bubble man.. its there somewhere

ok i guess it wouldnt hurt to try burpping it again

 

[7itanium]

the key spot here is to make sure there isnt a bubble UNDER the thermostat..... they get stuck under there and no matter how much u burp it and leave the cap off they wont budge

your best bet is to take the thermostat out and run it around the block once or twice to move the bubble... then put the tstat back in and if that was the problem it should go away

 

[BLINKY619]

ive run my cars without thermostat since my first car even my gst... never gave me a problem...! thats one on my little rules...! cause then tend to get stuck so yea... it all depends on what your comfortable with id say...!

 

[dsmkidd20]

ive run my cars without thermostat since my first car even my gst... never gave me a problem...! thats one on my little rules...! cause then tend to get stuck so yea... it all depends on what your comfortable with id say...!

do your fans still come on with out the thermostat being on?

 

[BLINKY619]

yea they still come on... and when they do you can see the needle go back down a bit...! or run it like my friend did... hook up you fans to your ignition switch and ill work perfect...!

 

[beniger]

i have a 160 thermostat it's as if it doesn't exist

 

[burkgonzo]

Did you replace the cap?

 

[jjrock5]

Do you have an OEM coolant sensor? I know somebody that just went through this and he had a Pepboys coolant sensor which was throwing off his gauge making him think that the car was overheating when in reality the non-OEM sensor was reading a false signal. This happened to him last week.

He had a 2g AWD with 6 bolt swap btw.

 

[CrankWalkerX99]

the reason for this is because the thermostat is there to "close" up when the car needs cooling in order for it to stay in the radiator long enough to be cooled, and then open up and let the cooler water into the block... this is even more so true on a turbo car as they run much hotter

+1

OP, Where are you getting the temp reading from? The cluster? Maybe something is wrong with that by chance?

Did you replace the cap yet? What about the radiator?

 

[Rocketman1000R]

This plagued me too for years. I kept getting air in the coolant system. Once the head was off it passed every test and we knew there was something wrong so the machine shop built a jig and pressurized the coolant portion of the head where they found a tight, small crack that would only open up under pressure in intake runner number three. Hope this helps.

 

[dsmkidd20]

i got the sensor from autozone...i will put the old temp senor back i try another thermostat from napa(they gave me another one because they can give me my money back.

 

[nuclearr]

I once mistakenly put my thermostat in upside down. This was on my old 1g I have never changed one on any of the 2gs I have had so I do not know if it is even possible. Also some thermostats come with a little brass valve of a small hole drilled in them to help in the burping process so the air bubble can get past the t-stat. you may want to drill a small hole in one 1/16 inch or so. also have you tried the boiling test to make sure they are good?

 

[7itanium]

I once mistakenly put my thermostat in upside down. This was on my old 1g I have never changed one on any of the 2gs I have had so I do not know if it is even possible. Also some thermostats come with a little brass valve of a small hole drilled in them to help in the burping process so the air bubble can get past the t-stat. you may want to drill a small hole in one 1/16 inch or so. also have you tried the boiling test to make sure they are good?

I really doubt all 4 of the tstats he has attempted to use are stuck shut

I still have my money on a hidden air bubble as it has happened to me way to many times

 

[KevinBoosted]

did you take any plastic out of the front bumper or fender lining, or have you installed a fmic lately? Ive been chasing an overheating problem for over 1 1/2 years now. I dont have a lot of time to play with the car much lately, but i have a 30r that sits 1/2" away from my fans. Ive melted 3 slim fans already. Ive tried no t-stat, t-stat, 170* t-stat...water wetter/distilled water...new cap..1.3 bar cap..evo cap. When did you start to notice the problem? and what did you do to the car prior to this problem? do you hear any boiling sounds coming from anywhere? Believe it or not, but check your radiator line clamps, they might be a hair loose...or there could be a hairline crack in you head. do you notice any coolant coming out of the exhaust at all? believe me this is a problem thought that many people get once modifying the 2g. very very very common, just trying to figure out what it is, is the problem. hope i helped, good luck and keep faith...its gonna be a long journey of headaches and flatbeds

 

[#40Fan]

The easiest way for anyone to fill the coolant system completely without having an air pocket when replacing the T-Stat is to do this.

Before placing the thermostat in the housing, get an Asprin! You can lightly press down on the center of the thermostat and place the asprin between the housing and flap. Fill the system up and when it fills it will let all of the air out and dissolve the asprin. Leaving you air free.

 

[DSM1G90]

ive run my cars without thermostat since my first car even my gst

Quite surprised then that you haven't busted the block by now. T-stats are needed to "throttle"-slow down- the coolant so it will pull the heat off the block more effectively.

Without the T-stat, the coolant is rushing past the wall of the block so fast that it can't pull the heat off the block too well, causing the block to overheat and will crack.

Also, you need that T-stat in there for the simple case that the ECU needs to see a certain temperature reading so your system is running properly, for I bet that your car is running pig rich all the time since the ECU is thinking that the system is not up to operating temps and is telling the injectors to fire in more fuel to get the temp up to the reading that the ECU needs to see.

Simple trick to aid in "burping" a cooling system: Drill a .050 hole in the T-stat flange. This will aid in ridding the system of any air pockets, and make sure that the spring sits downward, or facing the block. Some users, that don't know how to do things, puts the T-stat upside down with the spring facing upwards..

Overheating .. wonder if the OP popped a HG.

Good luck-DSM