'95 LT1 Auto Went crusing on Saturday and finally kept track of my coolant temp. Outside temp was 55*, speed was 55mph and the temp showed 195*. It fluctuated up when I was in slow traffic(207-209*) and then went back down to 195 when speed went back up. Does that look like 195 t-stat? I've read that stock was 195 and I've also seen 180 as being stock. What's correct? Any info appreciated

 

in this cool weather at highway speed. yep sounds just like a 195. I would leave it or go no lower than 180 especially in the winter. Good luck :thumbs:

 

Thanks. I thought so after seeing the numbers. Winter in Denver, I'll leave the 195 in and swap out 180 come spring. Thanks again

 

:iagree:

 

Isn't 180 the stock t-stat in LT1's?

 

That's kinda what I was trying to determine. My car never went below 195(never has) and I would think that if it was a 180 it would be lower especially on a cool day at hiway speed

 

My stock OP temperatures 195 - 230 in the summer heat.

 

That is normal coolant temp behaviour, for an LT1 w/ a stock 180 tstat. I just put in a new Stant 180 tstat and see the same temp ranges. Actually mine goes down to about 192 or 193 when rolling for a bit, but in slower traffic it will, hover around 197, and pass 200 when stopped & idling. I ran a Hypertech 160F tstat this summer and it would go to around 185 or 188 and hold while cruising, so given that both a stock 180 (the AC Delco stats are made by Stant) and a Hypertech 160 are wide open beyond 180 degrees coolant temp, the only explanation is the Hypertech stat must flow coolant better. or maybe it slows the coolant flow down some which allows a longer dwell time in the radiator. I don't know which, but I saw (without radiator fan programming) consistently lower temps while moving with the Hypertech than the stock stat.

I'm now thinking about trying a Hypertech 180F tstat for winter. Since it is same physical design as their 160 but just different wax pellet formula, it should perform identical to the 160 when wide open (beyond 180F coolant temp), which should translate to the perfect cold weather tstat: faster warmups, and operating coolant temps of not less than 180F but often less than 195F... :cheers:




[Modified by Lone Ranger, 8:16 PM 11/10/2003]

 

Correct. Same for LT4's, too.