rick Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 I have to say I think the "lower stat = better" argument is more a folklore band-aid than good practice, as said above the greater the temperature difference between the rad & the air, the more heat will get dumped. Modern engines (and every RV8 since about 1980-something) has left the factory with an 88deg or 92deg stat, modern oils are designed to work better when warm (you can run too cool for the oil to work properly). In another lifetime I assembled some engines for a Formula Ford engine builder here and we did a fair bit of dyno testing. Prior to this I'd raced, built my own engines and engine dyno tested them too. I always ran a 88* t/stat and aimed for around 90-95* running temp. It made most power there. The bloke I later worked for had found the same thing, and IIRC we were the only stupid idiots out here to run t/sats and our engines were known to be very strong. Didn't seem to have the overheating problems other seemed to have too. We also used Redline Water Wetter or Neo's equivalent, but can't say, hand on heart it made a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bowie69 Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 If you find the viscous is suspect, you can drill and stick a self-tapper through it to lock it off, then re-test, if you wanted Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 Some "Water wetter" arrived today, will bung that in and see if it is snake oil N Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 Rick - you'll never get anywhere using science on an internet forum! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 Aye, never let facts get in the way of an internet armchair warrior Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 I know, I know. I read it on an internet forum, everyone agreed to it and the resident forum guru confirmed it, so it must be true ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve b Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 ...too many sheep I reckon good stuff Rick , its good to be reminded of how to look at things cheers Steveb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon White Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 Nige, A couple of points here...... 1. Exactly what temps is the gauge showing that you are getting. What is the "normal" operating temperature, and what is the max it has displayed? 2. Have you checked the gauge is actually acurate with a pan of water and a thermometer (i dont care what make it is - have you checked it?) 3. Where in the system is your fan switch? Top or bottom tank or rad hose? 4. What pressure cap are you running? Or are you using the stock plastic header tank? 5. What you have posted about the thermostat controlling the temperature is wrong! A thermostat is designed to maintain a minimum coolant temperature, not a maximum! The temperature rating is the minimum coolant temp. 6.Your normal temperature should be somewhere in the vicinity of 80-90 degrees. Since the system is pressurised it'll quite happily run up to about 110C without actually overheating. 7. Your fan switch temp is temp is too low You need something like a 92-87. Jon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 Also, as I said previously, you could post an MS data-log screenshot showing coolant temp changes & driving conditions... you have digital data recording available to you and you're poking about um'ing and ah'ing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
streaky Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 Some "Water wetter" arrived today, will bung that in and see if it is snake oil N Water wetter really does work. We see a lot of European rally cars coming to the UAE for races but they aren't always prepared for the extra few degrees of ambient heat that we have here. A quick easy fix is usually to drop a bottle in the header tank and hey-presto the needle drops down again. I wouldn't call it a long term solution though since I believe it's simply disguising an over heating issue that needs to be addressed in more detail. Great thread though...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Challo Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 Howdo Have you considered ceramic coating on exhaust manifold? Just had a browse on Zircotec website and it states that exhaust temps are reduced by 30%. Got a feeling it ain't cheap though as no prices are listed. If you have to ask . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 Ceramic coating & water wetter & all the other usual suspects (exhaust wrap, speed holes, etc.) are not a fix for an inadequately performing cooling system. If any of those makes the difference between overheating & not overheating, your system is way too marginal to begin with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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