• Help Support Hardline Crawlers :

Thermostat or Water Restrictor/Washer...4.3L/5.3L

bbtank45

Under Construction
Joined
Apr 12, 2012
Messages
354
Location
Cincinnat, OH
Trying to fix some issues I've dealt with on my buggy for a while.

Are any of you running a flow restrictor in place of a thermostat?

I run a dual spal fan Griffin radiator (31x19?) setup, fans run all the time and the coolant temps stay around 190-200....and get there pretty quickly.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
I have a rear mount and I drilled two small holes in my thermostat.
It seems to be much easier to get air out of system now.
 
I would agree it functions the way it should. On long obstacles it occasionally gets to 205....do your fans run all the time? Once the engine gets to full operating temp (usually 15 minutes), the fans stay on till i shut it off.
 
Flow restrictors are not a bad thing if you are running a rear mounted radiator. The water has a long way to go, usually 16 linear feet of hosing to and from the radiator and the flow can be adjusted using different size restrictors. I've used them before and they have worked fine for me. Just my .02




ADMINISTRATOR
 
I am running a rear mounted radiator, 50/50 mix....OEM water pump.

-Are they generally used in race type applications or trail rigs (long run times)?

-Run it instead of a thermostat?



Ive always expected with my little motor, generally large radiator.....and a ton of extra fluid that it should run cooler than factory. I expected (hoped) the engine and cooling system would operate around 180-190 and only hit 200 during beatdowns. Thanks for the help.
 
I believe minds much smarter than me on here have said that the LS motors actually like running a little warmer?

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk
 
bbtank45 said:
I would agree it functions the way it should. On long obstacles it occasionally gets to 205....do your fans run all the time? Once the engine gets to full operating temp (usually 15 minutes), the fans stay on till i shut it off.

205 still isnt bad? It sounds to me like your system is working fine, these motors run around 210 usually and can spike up even higher...but come back down pretty quick.

If you want it to run a little cooler, just put a lower thermostat in it and rock out. I wouldn't put a flow restrictor in there for anything other than a quick bandaid fix like mentioned before...but thats just my $0.02, I know plenty of guys do run them
 
Redneckengineered had a good thread on LS thermostats you could search for. I can't find it with tapatalk at the moment.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk
 
I run a restrictor (flat washer) no thermostat in mine as well been this way for 6 years. Runs 205 easy on long hard pulls and my fans are completely manual. Usually in my experience it is much harder to get air out of these motors but once you do, they control fine with a thermostat or not. I am with everyone else those temps sound good to me.
 
onepieceatatime said:
Redneckengineered had a good thread on LS thermostats you could search for. I can't find it with tapatalk at the moment.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

hes running a 160* in his and it is pretty noticeably cooler running than the others. Some engine tuners will tell you not to, but I think that starts to fall into Engineer vs Real Life discussion pretty quickly.
 
Not apples to apples I know, but

My 05 1500 Chevy 5.3 has factory electric fans, when I crank it the fans don't come on, it heats up to 210, then the fans runs continuous. They are loud as hell when you are parked idling. It's the first truck I've had with factory electric fans and it's kinda irritating to be honest. But the front of the engine is very accessible if any work ever needed to be done on the front of the motor
 
96205902782ce5aff6e18c6c76054e59.jpg


Have yall tried running a heater bypass hose instead of just blocking the heater ports off. If youre running a thermostat you really dont need to have the heater ports completely blocked because that causes there to be zero coolant flow through the engine block which makes it develop steam pockets in the heads. With no coolant flow, the water around the combustion chambers gets overheated while the coolant around the thermostat is still well below operating temperature.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Then we're would I put my $20 mechanical temp gauge? :dunno:

https://m.facebook.com/notes/agearhead4life/dont-plug-the-heater-ports-on-a-lsx-water-pump-heres-why/704643956255902/
 
I have a thermostat in one of my buggies, thermostat with the guts cut out in the other. Both run the same temperature on the trail and heat up in about the same time. Run what you want, I can't tell any difference.
 
Can someone explain the heat bypass bc I have blocked all mine and never had a issue with over heating but I do keep the steam port to the top of radiator
 
Mines blocked. When I took the thermostat out it didn't look like it made a difference.
But I did drill two holes in the stat
 

Latest posts

Top