Rannoch Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 Probably a daft question, but as my stat has fell apart I was wondering if it is actually worth replacing. I don't have a heater and the inlet manifold is blanked off to water, so it's only the engine and rad. Is it better that it all warms up equally or heats engine up until stat opens. apologies if covered before, or if completely ridiculous question. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyonspride Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 You need a stat, over-cooling is not a good thing at all. The stat is very easily available: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Thermostat-82deg-FORD-OHV-KENT-X-FLOW-LOTUS-TWIN-CAM-BDA-/181696420434?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2a4df35a52 Might want to search for cheaper though. The gasket is the same as on Ford Fiesta/KA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 It's not a ridiculous question at all; they're a deeply misunderstood item. Unfortunately, to answer properly needs a bit more detail than I can give from the garage! But very simply, yes you need one. It does more than just act as a stat. If for some reason you needed to run an engine without, but had made no other cooling system changes, then you'd need to replace the stat with a plate featuring the same size opening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyonspride Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 Oh and the one that "fell apart", you need to make sure nothing from that can get jammed anywhere in the system. With the new stat, drill a 3mm hole in the metal plate part, this makes refilling coolant 10x easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rannoch Posted April 15, 2015 Author Share Posted April 15, 2015 Oh and the one that "fell apart", you need to make sure nothing from that can get jammed anywhere in the system. With the new stat, drill a 3mm hole in the metal plate part, this makes refilling coolant 10x easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rannoch Posted April 15, 2015 Author Share Posted April 15, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SootySport Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 The engine was designed to run at a prescribed temperature and the stat controls that. No stat in the winter and it will take ages to reach the correct temperature, if at all. If the engine doesn't reach it's optimum temperature you'll suffer from lower than normal mpg, less power, more engine wear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dombanks Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 A well designed and implemented system shouldn't need any holes drilling in it either. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyonspride Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 A well designed and implemented system shouldn't need any holes drilling in it either. Unfortunately airlocks in the cooling system have always been a "feature" of the crossflow Westfield. I would estimate it's got something to do with the Westfield being an entirely different car to the original donor vehicle, as well as being a 60+ year old design. Although admittedly having the smaller Polo radiator does help A LOT with those old issues. What the drilling does is it allows air to escape from under the thermostat during filling, there is no other way to remove that airlock in the head, other than running the engine until the stat finally opens and as such exposing the head to excessive heat during that initial run. With the hole in place and the old/original radiator fitted, the only issue remaining is to then convincing air to defy physics and head downwards from the top of the rad to the expansion tank without getting caught up in the heater circuit (if fitted). I personally forgot to put a hole in mine (trial fitting turned into final fit) and had to instead force open the stat with a small screwdriver during filling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rannoch Posted April 16, 2015 Author Share Posted April 16, 2015 Having only just purchased the car and not knowing a great deal about it, the only way I could get coolant into the car was to use a screwdriver as Lyonspride said. Unfortunately the stat fell apart, hence original post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyonspride Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 Wait...... You were filling it from the thermostat housing? Surely it has a an expansion tank? Or at least a cap on top of the rad (or something). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawrie Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 A well designed and implemented system shouldn't need any holes drilling in it either. When I find one I'll let you know I'm sure that in the mathematics of it all, the hotter an engine runs the more efficient it is, (works for aircooled motorbikes but not VWs) so you run it just below boiling. The water heated manifold is another indicator. If it runs too cool, liquid petrol may collect in the manifold and it'll run lean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rannoch Posted April 16, 2015 Author Share Posted April 16, 2015 Yes I was filling from the stat housing which had a cap fitted to it. Have since found an expansion vessel in the box of parts that came with the car. The rad has 2 hoses but no fill point. Should both the caps be of the same pressure release or the expansion vessel one be slightly higher. Apologies if these are stupid or basic questions, but if I don't ask I won't know, and I want to learn all I can about my new old car :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s2rrr Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 Lawrie, Sort of but you must remain within the operating temperature for the mechanical components and also to stop the oil breaking down. Some engine self destruct over 100'C or thereabouts on the heads etc. Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyonspride Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 The cap on the stat housing should not have a pressure release, because if this opens it sprays water all over your spark plugs...... The normal/standard housing doesn't actually have a cap at all. The expansion tank should be on the bulk head so that the max line is level with the top of the stat housing and the top of the rad should be lower than that (not always possible with the big/heavy old school radiators). I can't believe somebody removed it, it must have something else in place, where is the 13mm hose from the top of the water pump plumbed into? This is normally the main hose into the expansion tank. With a heater, it would tee off near the tank, go off through the bulkhead and loop back out to the inlet manifold. And on the same lines, where is the 8mm hose outlet connected to from the stat housing? It sounds to me like this car has had the classic crossflow cooling issues and the last owner has been tinkering (perhaps a little blindly). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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