V6 Thermostat Replacement
 

Just had the thermostat replaced in my car and for information I can say there was no possibility of removing the stat or the curved pipe from the block in one piece. Each of them came away leaving a plastic ring with the O ring still in place in the block itself. The plastic was so brittle and eroded.

I think anyone hoping to cure a leak by replacing just the O rings should be prepared for this sort of thing to happen.

One of the reasons why i like my metal kaiser stat. Just a word of caution with the cleaning out of the bores, if not already done. The bores are very soft and can be damaged easily. The knee jerk tool to reach for is a screwdriver !! This is a no no. If the corner of the driver digs in you can end up with a severe deep cut in the bore wall, that cannot be removed easily , unless you emery it out to an egg shape !! ... not what you really need !! Patience and wood/plastic tooling , followed by wire wool should do the job without damage. With the kaiser stats over sized orings, an oval or damaged bore is no problem at all , and will seal pretty much and more if you care to go up a size . If you need to get a new stat/elbow plastic set, i have heard that the "legged" type stats are a better design , but for my part , im staying with my kaiser stat , which can have a new insert when they fail. ... :D Good luck !!

Hello Howard,

I'm pleased to say that it is possible, provided that the right technique is used. It's true that on my first attempt I did break the base of the curved pipe but since then I've successfully removed all three parts undamaged. :}

For anyone interested, the trick is controlled leverage underneath the mounting tangs of the curved pipe and thermostat housing, keeping both as upright as possible. Grabbing the curved pipe or inserting a screwdriver into its open end and rocking it is a sure way to cause fracture. This can easily happen when speed rather than care is the priority.

You say that you "had" the thermostat replaced which I take to mean that you're not writing from personal experience.

Simon

Hello Simon

I did use "borrowed" hands to do the job but they were my own eyes that saw the problem

Glad all is well now Howard as as you saw it was not a case of flattened o rings the thermostat had been leaking on the seam but job sorted and running at the correct temperature

[QUOTE=SD1too;2991131]Hello Howard,

I'm pleased to say that it is possible, provided that the right technique is used. It's true that on my first attempt I did break the base of the curved pipe but since then I've successfully removed all three parts undamaged. :}

For anyone interested, the trick is controlled leverage underneath the mounting tangs of the curved pipe and thermostat housing, keeping both as upright as possible. Grabbing the curved pipe or inserting a screwdriver into its open end and rocking it is a sure way to cause fracture. This can easily happen when speed rather than care is the priority.

You say that you "had" the thermostat replaced which I take to mean that you're not writing from personal experience.

Simon[/QUOTE

Simon

For the cost of the parts why not just replace them and know the job is done right first time?

To me it is quite Simple Simon these parts are now old and brittle why do the job twice?

Dave

Thanks Howard. This and the post which followed have put me in the picture.

Simon