fail-safe thermostat for 57 GH

[Swiss-Goldenhawk]

[StudeRich]

Good quality Brass Standard Stats have always worked for me, so I do not know where to find the "Fail to Open" type.

[PackardV8]

The temperature at which the thermostat opens has very little to do with the engine operating temperature on a hot day. I usually go with 180 degree.

Stant, Standard, Robert-Shaw, Balkamp, were all good back when, but unless you can see where they're being manufactured this week, it's difficult to recommend one.

jack vines

[swvalcon]

Jack. my guess would be China Or anywhere else it comes cheap.

[Cornbinder89]

The temperature at which the thermostat opens has very little to do with the engine operating temperature on a hot day. I usually go with 180 degree.jack vines

Better make that No effect! Thermostats only set the MINIMUM temp the engine will be operating at. With todays antifreeze/coolant the is NO reason to go below 180 deg, and 192 is fine. The warmer the minimum temp the more efficient and cleaner the engine will run, with less sludge to form in the crankcase (drives moisture out of the crankcase) If your engine overheats in hot weather, the cooling system (radiator) is at fault. if it can not transfer the heat to the air at full engine load, it is a matter of when and not if it will overheat, the thermostat has no effect (as long as it is opening properly).

[JoeHall]

Better make that No effect! Thermostats only set the MINIMUM temp the engine will be operating at. With todays antifreeze/coolant the is NO reason to go below 180 deg, and 192 is fine. The warmer the minimum temp the more efficient and cleaner the engine will run, with less sludge to form in the crankcase (drives moisture out of the crankcase) If your engine overheats in hot weather, the cooling system (radiator) is at fault. if it can not transfer the heat to the air at full engine load, it is a matter of when and not if it will overheat, the thermostat has no effect (as long as it is opening properly).

Thaaaannnnk You!
AT LAST, someone who understands what a thermostat does, and does not do. I ran 195s in most all Studes, year round, when living in the California desert, and still do here in Kentucky. In addition to the benefits you mentioned, the heater works better in winter. In the desert summer, with AC, the Studes usually ran 195-215, but here they seldom reach 195.

During summertime, if engine temp goes above the thermostat rating, it is NOT due to the thermostat. How far it goes over the stat rating is a combo of cooling system efficiency and ambient temp. Most folks just cannot understand that.

But I understand the idea behind 160 a stat, in trying to run as cool as possible in order to combat vapor lock.

[Cornbinder89]

most would be shocked to learn that at full load, there is only about a 10 deg drop across the radiator and that is all that is needed.
There are better ways to combat vapor lock then lowering the thermostat temp, and it will have little effect anyway, as the amount of heat the engine produces is the same, no matter what the thermostat (or even lack of one). the 'stat only effects how much of the heat you throw away. You burn fuel to make heat, then you throw away the same, makes little sense.
Air cooled engine have no problem running higher (Cyl head) temps, and survive just fine.

[altair]

I have a MOTORAD of america fail-safe thermostat distributed from Niagara Falls New York to all the standard parts stores in US and Canada. The stat is made in Isreal. The thermostat carries a lifetime warranty only if it fails in the closed position. If the thermostat is subject to extreme over heating it will fail in the full open position and is therefore spent and is required be replaced. I feel that a fail-safe thermostat should not normally be required to be used for normal driving conditions, perhaps for severe operating such as drag racing or pulling. If such a design thermostat is called upon to fail open something else is very wrong, usually the radiator. I only once experienced a complete thermostat failure where it failed closed. All of the coolant boiled out past the over flow and dislodged all the debris from the block and deposited it in the radiator. The repair consisted of a new radiator and new thermostat. The thermostat was tested in boiling water and it would not open except with a light tap to the side. Therefore if a fail-safe thermostat sticks closed the results are the same as a non fail-safe. Fail-Safe only means if it overheats it will lock open. FAIL-SAFE is only a registered trade mark it does not mean that it can not fail.

[Cornbinder89]

I've seen diagrams of that thermostat, it has a mechanical "lock" that if the 'stat opens all the way, it is locked in that position. I really don't see why you would want that? If the car is getting hot enough to hyper extend the thermostat you have a problem, but why you would want a 'stat that is not allowed to close after such an event has past is beyond me!
In a liquid cooled engine, overheat is when the liquid boils to a gas and can no longer absorb the heat in the block/head. With 50/50 glycol mix and a 15 psi cap, that point is close to 260 degs! There are non-water based coolants (Evans coolant. google it) that can run hotter. As long as the coolant doesn't boil against the cast iron, so heat transfer can occure, the exact temp of the coolant is immaterial! Or to put it another way, as long as the coolant is in a liquid state, it is not overheating.
Before Glycol coolants Alcohol was used as an antifreeze, and if the thermostat temp was higher then 160 or so, rapid loss of the alcohol by evaporation would happen and the freeze point would rise. Since no one is using alcohol based coolants anymore, 160 deg 'stats are (or should be) a thing of the past.

[Paul K.]

[QUOTE=Cornbinder89;895765]I've seen diagrams of that thermostat, it has a mechanical "lock" that if the 'stat opens all the way, it is locked in that position. I really don't see why you would want that? If the car is getting hot enough to hyper extend the thermostat you have a problem, but why you would want a 'stat that is not allowed to close after such an event has past is beyond me!
In a liquid cooled engine, overheat is when the liquid boils to a gas and can no longer absorb the heat in the block/head. With 50/50 glycol mix and a 15 psi cap, that point is close to 260 degs! There are non-water based coolants (Evans coolant. google it) that can run hotter. As long as the coolant doesn't boil against the cast iron, so heat transfer can occure, the exact temp of the coolant is immaterial! Or to put it another way, as long as the coolant is in a liquid state, it is not overheating.
Before Glycol coolants Alcohol was used as an antifreeze, and if the thermostat temp was higher then 160 or so, rapid loss of the alcohol by evaporation would happen and the freeze point would rise. Since no one is using alcohol based coolants anymore, 160 deg 'stats are (or should be) a thing of the past.[/QUOTE


Glad you mentioned the radiator cap in your last post. It gives virtually all of the anti-boil protection.

Water boils at 212 degrees f.
The radiator pressure cap raises the boiling point approximately 3 degrees per pound of pressurization. 15lb. = 45 degrees

212 + 45 = 257 degrees.

A 50/50 mix of anti-freeze and water with a 15 lb. cap = 265 degrees.

[Swiss-Goldenhawk]

Hello

Thank you for your answers. So I would be just fine, using a normal 180 degree thermostat. A very interesting discussion here. Learned a lot.

Rudy