Water temperature
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 1,593
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From: Mobile AL
St. Jude Donor '05
Water temperature
I'm going to open a new can of worms. What should the optimum water temperature be for the small-block chevy engine for daily driving, no dragstrip running? I had a '79 Vette that I had rebuilt and had it running at 190 degrees, up to 205 with the AC running. I sold it and bought a '96 and have changed out the thermostat to a 160 degree. Seems to run good at around 180-200 degrees, even when the outside temperature has been up above 90 degrees. I understand that the fan control needs to be changed using a computer, but that's another story line. I would just like to know what an optimum temperature should be, then work towards that. Comments?
Racer
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 293
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From: Newnan Ga
Re: Water temperature (gvajgrt)
This is an old can of worms actually, I run a 180 in the summer and a 195 in the winter. I won't run a 160 because of the risk of sludge buildup. I also disagree with the theory of a 160 making you engine run cooler.
Racer
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 293
Likes: 0
From: Newnan Ga
Re: Water temperature (gvajgrt)
By the way, I have observed that a 160 stat will run at about the same temp as a 180 stat. The warmup is just slower, allowing sludge building moisture to remain in your crankcase longer.
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 1,593
Likes: 0
From: Mobile AL
St. Jude Donor '05
Re: Water temperature (gvajgrt)
OK. This looks like the end of the thread. Bottom line: keep the oil above 180 degrees and it should be OK. We only get about 90 days of temps below 70 here, and few of those days are below 40. I don't want to change the thermostat again (I just replaced the distributor!!), so will ensure that when I drive, it gets up to proper temperature. Thanks for all the comments. 
