Will I have any negative issues installing a 172 stat on a 2004 base LS1?

 

Increased cylinder wall wear.

 

The heater won't blow as hot in cold weather. It will still run the same temp as always in warm weather. Without changing the fan on/off temps, I don't see any advantage. If you do change the fan on/off temps, I still don't see any advantage.

 

I run a lower temp thermostat, but the car is in storage for the winter. That being said, the running temp is around 183-185 and the oil is 209 when I do run the car in the warmer weather. If you are up north, then it is a bad idea to run one year round. Best to do some searching for the term "sweet spot" and read the posts by Evil-Twin. That will provide the information you need to make an informed decision.

 

I've accomplished a few mods, nothing serious.
1. By-Pass Throttle Body
2. K&N CAI
3.TI Exhaust
4. Upgraded suspension
The last two things I wanted to get done are:
1. Install lower stat 172
2. Send PCM off to get tuned
With that said I could really tell a big difference in HP .... Probably 30 to 40 Horses increase. So with the last two mods maybe another 12 to 15 HP.
I did fine the information about the weather very helpful, because I am up north (kinda) and I like to drive year round ... Thx everyone for the info.

 

You're dreaming....
throttle bypass= 0 hp gain
K&N= 5 to 8 hp max
Ti exhaust only unsprung weight improvement= 5 hp.
upgraded suspension = 0
Total= 13 HP max.
---------------------------------------------
Lower stat does noting without modifications to the fan settings and only used to give slightly more advance when you tune the car.
HP gain = 0

 

Not to bust your bubble but what you have done is make the Corvette louder. The TB bypass adds 0 hp despite the hype. The K&N will still bring hot air into the engine the same as a stock air cleaner unless you follow their instructions of cutting the radiator shroud. That alone will add some cooler air into the engine (cooler air is more dense and can make better use of additional fuel), better still is to enclose and seal the opening around the shroud with the filter getting ambient air into the system. That alone will not make the max hp for your until you get a good tune to optimize these improvement.

Years ago when all these add-on's were being introduced, many of my friends would buy the products believed they could go faster. Several trips to the drag strip proved they were not faster but in some cases slower. We even had one who went to the strip one day stock and made a few passes, added a k&N and went slower.

By putting in the 172 T-stat you will get water flowing as it opens but your fans will still not turn on until you reach the 220ish temp they are programmed to. Also, the stock T-stat is set for around 186-189F. I have lowered my fan setting and I run about 205 all day while going down the road and about 225 when autocrossing. HTH

 

Understand, he (Evil-Twin) was an engineer on the engine design team.

 

That temperature thermostat really won't make much of a difference. I'd bet that you'll only drop the low end operating temperatures from the low 190's into the low to mid 180's. The upper end of the operating temperature range is set by the fan turn-on temperature, which can be adjusted with the tune you're getting.

You can easily find testing that shows aftermarket catback (or over axle) exhausts gaining 8-12RWHP over the factory base system. I doubt the Ti system gains that much though, so there is likely a few HP there. The other modifications add very minimal HP levels.

People will tell you that you need to regularly get the bulk oil temperature (the pan temperature or the temperature displayed by the gauge) over 212* to maintain the health and expected life of the oil. I suggest you look up the GM Oil Life Monitor patents because the OLM quits degrading the oil life at 176*.

 

When I had my 2001 coupe dyno tuned we left the stock thermostats in place and adjusted the fan setting to try an maintain a 200 degree coolant temp. 200 degrees is the optimal temperature to Let the engine run most efficient and make the best power.

 

Great info fellars .... So Evil, why in hell does 13 horses feels like 30 at the rear wheels, I'm losing da rear in second gear always if I get on her and third is a little scary .... What other budget conscience mods for horse power would you suggest? Hell.... Hitting a tree at 180 vs 190 the results are probably the same (death) just get to heaven a couple of fractions of a second sooner.

 

Did the car get louder? Thats worth about 20 hp on the butt dyno.


How old are your tires?

 

Mine are 185* because my (GM @ ASE Master Certified Technician) mechanic keeps it there. just saying

 

It can feel like anything you want it to feel like. I have similar mods on my 01 coupe, with exception to the Throttle bypass. K&N filter and zip tie mod and B&B cat back exhaust. With a dyno tune I gained 11 hp. And 9 on torque. the tune in my opinion was the biggest bang for the buck. This also configured the A4 trans for better operation. And yes the butt dyno feels like I gained a lot more. But unfortunately the numbers don't lie. Oh forgot that I painted the fuel rail covers to match the exterior that feels like another 5 hp. Not bustin your chops but what it feels like and what the dyno numbers say are quite different.

 

I don't like to get too heavily into my explanations. for reason only tenured members of this forum understand.. but Ill give you the answer if you promise to leave it alone...

Its called psychosomatic sensation. ( a sensation that your mind tells your body )....

here is an example... tenured members might remember this:

The fatal " WOW " factor post.
You never want to say " WOW " after spending the money and time putting on a mod, unless you fully vet it out...

Granatelli Throttle Body: members bought this and claimed 20 HP gain.
members posted " Wow " seems like more than 20 HP.. etc. etc.
other members bought into this hype.. many were sold, then people started to dyno the difference and soon everyone realized that this expensive mod took 15 hp off the base line... soon others did the same thing and all found the Granatelli throttle body was a bad idea.. yet lots of member initially posted " Wow "..... to further this story.. Granatelli manufacturing ( a supporting vendor at the time )came into that thread and said their was a fault in the original design.. offered a trade in, money back, or trade up. etc... this was 7 or 8 years ago... My point here is that all the member who bought the defective part, initially .. said " WOW ".. what an improvement.. the reason ???? psychosomatic sensation ( they believed, in their head , that because they spent the money, that it would be an improvement because it was advertised to be a 20 HP gain...seat of the pants dyno is a poor judge of actual advantage.
The End
Bill aka ET
Just like the throttle body bypass.. another useless waste of time and money.. be it the 5 dollar version or the 15 dollar version... vendors will sell you anything they can make a buck on...Corvette owners are , for the most part very gullible customers. Vendors have to put their kids through college too and their justification is.. they didn't put a gun to anyone's head to buy it.

ET's thought for the day...

 

Nice information ET ..... Sounds like your Corvette years was a burden .... I appricate the sound advice and knowledge. Hell I'm gonna just drive my Mustang

 

Many think LOUDER=FASTER, in general it does NOT. How anyone could even feel 20HP gain is beyond me anyway. This is how snake oil has been sold for years, by BUTT DYNO.

 

Not exactly sure what you mean by " Sounds like your Corvette years was a burden "... My First Corvette was a 58, and I've been involved with Corvette for 50 years. As a retired GM Corvette design engineer, my dealings with Corvettes have been nothing but rewarding. Its the reason I came here after retiring from GM. T o " give Back " to a community that supported my Career for so many years...

Unless you think I bought into any hype here.. I've never done that... I always tell people to be careful about hype and who they listen too... I have not made one mistake, because I do enough research before I get involved with anything. If I say " Wow" about anything its because.. it was a worth while modification. BTW I've never said Wow about anything... although I have installed a lot of worth while modification.. Not one single day of trouble or burden over any Corvette I've owned. Normal maintenance and repairs are not a burden, everyone has things to fix or repair. I've been fortunate that I've had nothing but typical low level repairs.. Anything that need maintenance Ive been able to do that for 50 years, I don't have to depend on anyone to do anything.