How to check main thermostat // Where to buy an original Nissan Thermostat?

[siteunseen]

I'll leave it be, mine ran hot.

Sorry to contradict what you've said Bruce.  

[psdenno]

It's been so many years since I last changed my thermostat, I have no idea what the temperature rating is.  What temp range thermostat was installed in the factory?  Were there alternates depending on what part of world the Z would be shipped to?

Since the purpose of the thermostat is to make the engine run most efficiently and reduce wear on parts, is it bad to use a different temperature rating than what the engineers felt was best?  Enough questions for one day, but I look forward to any answers.

Dennis

 

[Zed Head]

There's a chart.  The 160 must be like the Death Valley special recommendation.  I assume that Standard came from the factory.  180 is pretty common across manufacturers, probably because they all burn the same fuel, I'd guess.  But fuel has changed since the 70's so maybe the original recommendations don't hold anymore.

[Captain Obvious]

10 hours ago, siteunseen said:

Sorry to contradict what you've said Bruce.  

No, no, no... Don't be sorry. We're all good. I'm not denying that it happened to you. I'm just saying that the REASON it happened is different.

 

Next time we get together, I'll draw some pictures on napkins and we'll talk some theory.  

[jalexquijano]

22 hours ago, Chickenman said:

So you currently have a Brand new Nissan 76.5 c ( 170F ) thermostat in the car. That should be good enough for 33C weather easily. I've run my Z in 38C temps in traffic with the AC on and with a 180F temp stat. Car never has cooling issues now,  but that is ONLY after I had the 3 core Rad boiled out and everything in tip top shape.

Is the rad stock? You may want to consider upgrading to a heavy duty aluminum core rad is your old rad is a stocker. MSA and other sell them at reasonable prices. Don't buy the cheapest one. Get something decent and not made in China. Not much point boiling out a stock Rad in your climate.  My situation was different, as rad had a custom triple core already installed. It just needed cleaning.

I tested the car yesterday. Race it for 15 mins, came back and open the lid! there is a small leak on the housing. I dont want to tighten the bolts anymore as i might break then. Should i open the housing and drop some high temp rtv silicone or could the gasket be defective. Its just a small wáter leak.

Another thing i am noticing is that since i removed the inline manifold thermostat and plugged the system as shown, the car takes more time to warm up. is this normal? any problema on leaving the choke on for more than 1 mins and driving with the choke open until it reaches 1/2 at the temp gauge?

Edited January 5, 2017 by jalexquijano

[psdenno]

Gaskets don't cost too much, invest in a new one and take the earlier advice about cleaning the housing surfaces.  Should not have to use RTV.

Dennis

Edited January 6, 2017 by psdenno

[jalexquijano]

I am having a leak after cleaning the thermostat cover and reinstalling the 170°F (76.5 C) tropical thermostat. I installed it as shown using a nissan gasket. I did notice rust on the bolts when i removed them and sprayed some WD40 on them. It is jusk leaking wáter and no coolant. Is this normal???? Will i need to open in once again and reinstall tightening the bolts even more? No rtv or high temp silicone. Just the gasket!

[jalexquijano]

On ‎01‎/‎04‎/‎2017 at 5:00 PM, Chickenman said:

So you currently have a Brand new Nissan 76.5 c ( 170F ) thermostat in the car. That should be good enough for 33C weather easily. I've run my Z in 38C temps in traffic with the AC on and with a 180F temp stat. Car never has cooling issues now,  but that is ONLY after I had the 3 core Rad boiled out and everything in tip top shape.

Is the rad stock? You may want to consider upgrading to a heavy duty aluminum core rad is your old rad is a stocker. MSA and other sell them at reasonable prices. Don't buy the cheapest one. Get something decent and not made in China. Not much point boiling out a stock Rad in your climate.  My situation was different, as rad had a custom triple core already installed. It just needed cleaning.

 My rad is a Champion 3 row radiator!!!! A year ago i took it to a rad shop and they say there was no leak. Rad in perfect shape.

[Dave WM]

what do you mean leaking water and no coolant? that does not make any sense. if you have a leak you need to check the mating surfaces, make sure  they are clean and in good condition, the torque it to spec with a new gasket. If there is still a leak, something else is leaking, like the hose or something else.

[Chickenman]

22 hours ago, jalexquijano said:

I am having a leak after cleaning the thermostat cover and reinstalling the 170°F (76.5 C) tropical thermostat. I installed it as shown using a nissan gasket. I did notice rust on the bolts when i removed them and sprayed some WD40 on them. It is jusk leaking wáter and no coolant. Is this normal???? Will i need to open in once again and reinstall tightening the bolts even more? No rtv or high temp silicone. Just the gasket!

1: First of all, make sure the bolts you are using are not too long and bottoming out.

2: Top thermostat housing could be warped. Check with a straight edge.  Take it off and get some sheets  of wet and dry emery paper in grits 100, 200 and 400. Get a flat steel plate or a flat sheet of glass. Use WD40 as a lubricant. Start off with the 100 grit and lap the stat housing. Lap housing in a figure 8 pattern. Any high spots should become readily apparent. Lap with 100 grit until housing is totally flat, then finish by polishing with 200 and 400 grit. You can also lap the bottom housing, although that one is less likely to warp.

Use new gaskets every time. I prefer to use Permatex Aviation Form a Gasket ( Brush on liquid ) as a sealant. Much tackier than RTV, although a bit more difficult to remove. Will never leak though!! GL.

[rcb280z]

Did something similar above to my water inlet and it worked great! Took a couple hours but worth the effort. I couldn't source a new one. NLA.

 

Edited January 8, 2017 by rcb280z

[jalexquijano]

On ‎01‎/‎06‎/‎2017 at 4:51 PM, Dave WM said:

what do you mean leaking water and no coolant? that does not make any sense. if you have a leak you need to check the mating surfaces, make sure  they are clean and in good condition, the torque it to spec with a new gasket. If there is still a leak, something else is leaking, like the hose or something else.

i mean that there is some wáter running out of the thermostat housing as per the picture attached. I will check the mating surfaces and sand them with grit paper and reistall the thermostat again. I really dont like the idea of using high temp rtv!! Please see the picture closely and the wáter leak.