Too bad there wasn't any antifreeze in the motor.

 

Lance, A good deal of research there and excellent information. The downside is that I think it raises as many questions as it answers. I'd like to know from you guys what coolant you are currently running, especially those of you with aluminum radiators.

The similarities to what I found are too close. I think you did have a thermostat at some point and it suffered the same fate as mine. What type of coolant was in your car?

I need to clarify the conditions that both of my thermostats were in. The first one was installed in the car when it ran at initial start up, and the car was full of coolant at the time. Prestone, I believe, is the coolant that was used (it was green) and the car had the original radiator in it. A few months after the car was run, I pulled the thermostat housing. I drained coolant out of the car at that time so I could pull the housing without dousing the front of the car, but did not drain it completely. That's when I found the first thermostat eaten away by whatever caused it. I replaced the thermostat and put the housing back on, with radiator hoses reconnected, but did not add coolant to bring it back to full and did not run the car. That was about two years ago. Last week is when I pulled the thermostat housing again and found the second thermostat also dissolved. So the second thermostat had never been exposed to coolant flow because the car did not have full coolant and the pump had never spun, but there was still coolant present in the closed system.

 

agreed...I am running ethylene glycol green stuff because that's what it got when new and has had ever since. Thermostats do fine. I have replaced the big neck tail piece over it when I first got it as the metal was starting to crumble, same for the outlet for the hose to the heater core off the engine. Probably both original equipment and 35 years old.

My suv takes the Dex Cool, runs a 200 degree thermostat and even though I have a 180 degree new tstat in mine when running it at 70 on the Interstate last evening at 97 degrees F. out I may go ahead and put the 165 in for the summer then switch back to the 180 for the winter.

Lance

 

I had the green stuff in it. I got the car in Oct '09 and stored it for almost a year until 'Jul 10. I drove it over the fall/winter and haven't driven it since Feb '11. I drained it as I'm going to get the engine rebuilt. I'm not sure what's going on.

 

Eventually you're going to remember that there was no thermostat in there. Stainless steel and brass do not corrode like that.

 

Has it been confirmed the stats were stainless and brass or are we maybe seeing some more overseas crap ?

 

In the last 35 years, I've never seen one that was made of anything other than stainless and brass.

 

And there's no liquid or vapour that would eat a thermostat and leave an intake untouched.

 

False. Go do your research on why some stainless is magnetic and why some is not.

This thread is so full of hocus-pocus magic and bad science it's past any sort of credibility.

 

Mike,

You are the expert on metallurgy given your extensive background. But I can say that the ferritic (magnetic) 409 SS muffler on my 2007 Impala rusted through in three years short a month (so warranty applied, just). If it were the more expensive 304 SS (non-magnetic) that would probably not have happened. GM went on the cheap with muffler-grade SS. I guess my ill-informed opinion is that there are multiple grades of SS at a host of costs.

But whatever the composition of the thermostats under discussion I cannot see one just disintegrating!

 

Seems strange that any OEM muffler would die at only three years but.....???

You're right that SS costs are all over the map but not directly related in all cases to 'quality' or magnetic properties. The right material for the right job as they say

I realized that I knew virtually nothing about metallurgy after I met a member of our local chapter who owns an an exclusively SS fabrication and welding business. He knocked the wind out of just about preconceived notion any of us in attendance had about SS. Very interesting guy.

 

Mods, please put this thread out of its misery. I'm out.

I presented a very strange problem that has me baffled and hoped to get some help. Now, some forum members choose to infer I'm too ignorant to remember whether or not I installed a thermostat to begin with. Other members choose to infer I'm childish enough to be pulling a prank. And now members are sniping at each other. There's really no point in continuing.

 

Since this seems to be an ongoing problem, take a pic of the new tstat you put in, document the brand and part # etc and lets see how long it lasts.
The labs like Blackstone, that does oil analysis will also test coolant usually to prevent cooling problems. Common in the trucking industry for preventative maintenance. You may get some scientific answers that way.

BTW any stainless steel is not rust proof, but rust resistant to varying degrees and there are well over 100 fairly available types, not just the 3 and 400 series.

As far as antifreeze, the glycol never wears out. Just as important as the freeze protection is the role of the SCA's. These additives do diminish over time and it's wise to replace the coolant often. I do every 2 years even with the claimed 5 year stuff. When coolant degrades it turns acidic and to what speed and degree is usually detemined to a large degree by the type of water mixed with it.
It's wise to use a least distilled water to mix. The premixed antifreeze has deionized water in it.

 

an interesting problem by forum members. What's your version of what happened?

 

There's your answer!

 

Careful, be fair! That is not what he said. You have taken his words in your quote too selectively.

Yes, I am a sceptic but he has been forthcoming in his thread.

 

Why would he lie and claim that this happened. I have no idea if there was a thermostat in mine before so I have no baseline to go off of. I'm curious to find out logical answers to this.

 

What is in yours looks to me like it might have been a restrictor rather than a thermostat.

 

Some of us do find this interesting, there are two people here that have encounterd the same thing. It makes me wonder how many cars may be running with no thermostat unknowingly. i would be interested to see what causes this. I dont pay attention to those that mock. it would be intesting if someone had a high alkaline solution and place a thermostat in it and see how it makes out?

 

...oil...?