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duderanchero
Samba Member
Joined: October 25, 2008
Posts: 166
Location: el paso, tx
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 Posted: Tue Jun 28, 2011 3:50 am Post subject: i recommend testing that new thermostat out of the box |
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i just tested two thermostats (both behr)--the stock one that was in my van when i bought it and the 80-degree one i got from van cafe. both failed to open.
this explains a lot.
do they not test these coming off the line? |
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duderanchero
Samba Member
Joined: October 25, 2008
Posts: 166
Location: el paso, tx
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| Posted: Tue Jun 28, 2011 4:10 am Post subject: |
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correct that: the 80-celsius t-stat opened, but only after a minute or so at a sustained boil. the stock one opened ever so slightly, about a nickel's width.
i live above 4000 feet, so water does boil at a lower temperature here. still, i expected the 80C model to open well below boiling.
on a positive note, i finally got my dash lights working! it was a faulty dimmer switch, which i bypassed with a little bit of copper wire. 58b to 58. so nice to know how fast i'm not going.
**i edited the pin numbers on the headlight switch to read correctly. i should not post at the end of these nocturnal wrenching sessions.
Last edited by duderanchero on Tue Jun 28, 2011 2:56 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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BillM
Samba Member
Joined: June 18, 2004
Posts: 1381
Location: Stonington,CT
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| Posted: Tue Jun 28, 2011 6:02 am Post subject: |
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You should test the thermostat just to be sure. I found thermostats and the sendors for the temp guage to vary widely from manufactures and part to part. Plus its a lot easier to test a part before you go through bleeding your entire coolant system to only find out something is wrong.
Bill |
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kamzcab86
Samba Moderator
Joined: July 26, 2008
Posts: 7923
Location: Arizona
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| Posted: Tue Jun 28, 2011 9:04 am Post subject: |
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| duderanchero wrote: |
correct that: the 80-celsius t-stat opened, but only after a minute or so at a sustained boil. the stock one opened ever so slightly, about a nickel's width.
i live above 4000 feet, so water does boil at a lower temperature here. still, i expected the 80C model to open well below boiling. |
A thermostat will begin opening at its rated temperature and is not fully open for another 7 to 14 degrees. 
_________________
~Kamz 
1986 Cabriolet: www.Cabby-Info.com
 1990 Vanagon Westfalia: Old Blue's Blog
2016 Golf GTI S
"Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance." - 孔子 |
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duderanchero
Samba Member
Joined: October 25, 2008
Posts: 166
Location: el paso, tx
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| Posted: Tue Jun 28, 2011 2:53 pm Post subject: |
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| i know it's not an automatic, bam-now-it's-open kind of thing, but i had to keep that sucker at a boil for a while before it began opening at all (and it's supposed to start at 176F). the unpressurized system i'm about to run will be a fun way to really test it out. |
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levi
Samba Member
Joined: February 11, 2005
Posts: 5522
Location: Las Vegas
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duderanchero
Samba Member
Joined: October 25, 2008
Posts: 166
Location: el paso, tx
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| Posted: Tue Jun 28, 2011 8:55 pm Post subject: |
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thank you for the info, levi. tencent's posts, while sometimes over my head, have been very elucidating. i understand that pressurization raises the boiling point. but i've had hellacious times with air bubbles, and the last overheating (after ~7 minutes of driving) left coolant spewing from the head gasket. i need to replace it, but i need a short-term solution, and keeping the pressure down/glycol up seems like a good one. morymob's been running with no pressure since '92, and claims no problems.
if it doesn't work out, i've got a spare, hole-free pressure cap. the 105-degree heat here in el paso should let me know pretty soon whether it works or not in the short run. as far as the long run goes, i plan to find a duffel bag full of cash and hash, and these and other problems will be easily addressed.
james |
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