okay to not use thermostat

[1Gina2G]

On a rebuild I'm doing soon, I have a brand new stock thermostat, but someone told me I shouldn't have bought it and I should just leave it out since it restricts the water flow.

Alright to keep it out?

 

[Jazz]

I would put it in. Your engine needs to get up to that normal operating temp and it's hard to do that without the tstat

 

[sparky1987]

I still have mine in but its gutted so it does allow for some restriction it just doesn't open or close. I've not had any issues with over heating. It does take a little bit longer to get to normal operating temperature but I drive my car in the summer only so it doesn't bother me at all and I just wait a few extra minutes before I beat on my car so its warmed up all the way.

 

[kccombs]

Put it in. Your engine wont beable to get to that temp with constent water flow. Could even lower your gas millage when its not running at the right temp. Exspecially on a fresh rebuild. You want it to be at the operating temps to set your rings correctly.

 

[Anubis_4_99]

On a rebuild I'm doing soon, I have a brand new stock thermostat, but someone told me I shouldn't have bought it and I should just leave it out since it restricts the water flow.

Alright to keep it out?

Like mentioned above, you can keep it out if you like wasting money on gas, and possibly harming your new engine rebuild due to improper running temps.

The thermostat is there for a reason, to regulate the coolant temperature and keep it at the proper temp. Without it it will be very difficult for the engine to reach full operating temp and stay there due to the coolant just running through the system continually.

 

[Jon91TSi]

On a rebuild I'm doing soon, I have a brand new stock thermostat, but someone told me I shouldn't have bought it and I should just leave it out since it restricts the water flow.

Alright to keep it out?

If someone told you to jump off a bridge, would you? Point being, don't listen to everything everyone tells you. Your thermostat is there for a reason, to control and regulate coolant temp. If you feel the coolant temps should be lower or higher, buy the appropriate thermostat. Usually people who run without a thermostat are only band-aiding a different problem. I guess you should go and port the coolant passages in the block and head since, by your friends definition, those would be a restriction as well..

 

[BogusSVO]

Do not leave it out, install the T-stat.

As said above, gas milage will decrease.

But the other down side is excessive block wear.

A cold cylinder bore will suffer from ring wear quicker than a block that is at op temp.

 

[bradselph]

Best to leave it in as the block will not warm up properly and may even over heat from the water flowing too fast at highway speeds.

 

[95talongirl]

Yup, agreed!

Engines are designed to run at a certain temperature. Keep one in there.

 

[russell3123]

Wouldnt running no thermostat keep the car from going into closed loop or take longer?

 

[LiquidX]

It would depend on temperatures the vehicle gets to. It will mist likely keep it from getting to 180* and entering learn mode. However, coolant system efficiency plays a factor as well in what temps you will get to.

The OEM valve is one if the better ones available at regulating water for consistency.

 

[Abe'sGST]

1) engine needs to run at a certain temperature
2) excessive block wear
3) heater will not heat properly
4) don't listen to anything your buddy tells you

 

[1gAWT]

Yeahhhhhhh, it's kind of one of those necessary things, you can get different tempature thermostats but that's about it, you also can eliminate your overflow, maybe that's what they meant.

 

[1Gina2G]

Thanks everyone! Didn't realize how important the thermostat was, glad to know i didn't waste my money after all.

 

[BogusSVO]

Yeahhhhhhh, it's kind of one of those necessary things, you can get different tempature thermostats but that's about it, you also can eliminate your overflow, maybe that's what they meant.

Why would you want to elimanate your overflow bottle? WTF

That is an important part of the cooling system.

If the overflow bottle is gone where will the coolant go when it expands from heat?

When the car is parked, where will the cooling system pull back the coolant from to refill?

 

[1gAWT]

Just like an older car it'll fall on the ground...it's done sometimes.

 

[bradselph]

The overflow is not really needed but recommended.
It just helps top the radiator off when it cools back down.

 

[Rob88]

put the thermostat in. for basically all the reasons listed above. slowing the flow down is good because it makes the coolant stay in the radiator and helps to cool it. even race cars use coolant flow restrictors to slow the water down and let the radiator actually do its job.

 

[russell3123]

I agree with bogus, you need some type of over flow tank theres a reason its called an overflow tank.It doesnt just top off the radiator when its low it collects the antifreeze when it backs up do to expansion.

 

[BogusSVO]

Just like an older car it'll fall on the ground...it's done sometimes.

Yes it was done..... back in the 50's


Anyone doing that now is just a fool

 

[arrowhead]

Thanks everyone! Didn't realize how important the thermostat was, glad to know i didn't waste my money after all.

A thermostat has 2 basic functions, to bring temps up as soon as possible and also control the flow of the coolant thru the system, if left out the coolant will take longer to get to normal temps and the motor may even run at higher temps due to having too much flow and the coolant not being exposed to the air in the radiator as long.
Depending on your ambient temps you can leave it out as long as you place a washer in the housing, they come in different sizes Morosso makes them, this will control your flow, you may have to experiment with different sizes you can gutt your present thermostat but it may not be the ideal size to control the flow after gutting it.

If you have a DD you will be safer having one in.

Most of the times in road racing we have to go to an even smaller washer opening
due to the constant high RPM and the flow being too much thru radiator, flow thru is what keeps you at normal temps after the thermal in thermostats open.

Hopes this helps

 

[1gAWT]

The overflow is not really needed but recommended.
It just helps top the radiator off when it cools back down.

This is all I was trying to say. Thanks for the correction though.

 

[mattasi]

I read somewere, that there was something bad about having the coolant always flowing with out a T-stat, something about it's not cooling the internal metal as good. So even though the guage stays in the proper range and says that you are not overheating, it will not be doing as well of a job cooling the metal inside the motor. What I mean is.. Coolant needs the pressure from the t-stat spring to get into small valleys/areas/tunnels/passages/cracks letting the coolant stay in the same area longer. Instead of just always flowing... If it is always flowing then how would it get enought pressure to push coolant into the small pits in the metal? That would be lots of small hot spots without running a t-stat.
Call me crazy, IDK just my .02

 

[LOLVTEC]

if you dont have it your going to have hard starts.

 

[Jon91TSi]

if you dont have it your going to have hard starts.

Wrong information. Please withhold posting if you are unsure if your information is correct. The ECU uses a lookup table based on coolant temp and adjusts the fuel injected on key-on to compensate for this. Ever shut your car off before it reached full operating temp and re-started it? I'm sure it started fine.