mmaynard

I'm changing the coolant in my '01 vert for the first time and I cannot locate the radiator drain plug. I'm looking at the lower right of the radiator from underneath the car. Do I have to remove a panel to get to it?

Also, how can I tell when the thermostat opens? I'm used to cars with the cap directly on top of the radiator.
Thanks

JagTech

It's there, its the yellow/white plug on the lower right of the radiator. It looks kind of funny but it will twist out with a flat head screwdriver that is the right size.

zeevette

The valve faces the rear of the car, on the bottom pass. side of the radiator. It drains out the bottom of the rad., and if you just use a 1/4" socket driver, it only takes a quarter turn, and is pretty fragile, so don't over twist it.

cenzo

Replacement type on left, original on right. Compliments of YO-EL.

Vette Boy TN

I just changed my coolant and my drain plug didn't look anything like those shown. Black and plastic it was thinner than a pencil and about halfway down there were 6 threads that screw in and out with a rubber like washer around the head to make a seal at the opening. It is located at the bottom passenger side facing backward inside an access hole. Worked OK but why plastic???

65GGvert

Don't twist it out, just turn it 1/4 turn ccw.

RedZMonte

When i did my WP/T-stat, on fill up i did fill the engine block via the top radiator hose, as well as the radiator. I did not have any problems bleeding the air out doing this. another guy i work with just filled the radiator when he did his and took a long time to get the air out. Just a helpfull tip. idle with the resivoir cap off and let car heat up and keep res filled.

If you Feel the radiator hose you will feel it get hot, that should help determine when the T-stat opens.
S

3boystoys

1/4" drive ratchet is all that's needed on a OEM vette. 1/4 turn and wiggle it out, turn it more and YOU WILL BREAK IT. Temp is usually stamped on the T-stat itself, you'll have to pull it to know 100% for sure what it is.

CaliforniaJack

just a point of reference- after warm-up, my cars temperature reads a steady 187 degrees on the digital readout which agrees with the target for the thermostat. I would guess that after driving your car for a half hour in light traffic, you could read your temperature on the digital screen and it should be very close to your thermostat's target.

ZeeOSix

Any city driving will probably show coolant temps higher than the thermostat spec temp. A mellow drive on the highway at speed limit should make the digital coolant temp readout on the DIC read within a few degrees of the thermostat's spec temp.

LoneStarFRC

C4 Raditor Drain Plug

Not quite sure why you would expect a C4 drain plug to be the same or look like a C5 drain plug.

I agree with the others, why not plastic? You did say "it worked OK", right?

JBird11002

SKF engineer

I concur on the drain plug location and it's clear it's plastic.

Regarding why is it plastic, it is related to cost and it's also lightweight. For those that say it works I say, "yes, it works for a time" and as noted it's fragile. My comment is based on the fact that all of my cars that are over 10 years old have had a failure of the plastic side tank or the seal between the plastic side tank and the radiator core. It's something I've accepted and I believe that plastics do have a place in our cars but over time heat and vibration can be a source of concerns with plastic and our radiators are no exception.