At 01:42 AM 9/23/02 EDT, Jeffrey R wrote:
>It seems that the normal thermostat, which I think in the 85 degree, should
>allow the engine to run at the "normal" temp. And if it doesn't something
>somewhere is wrong.
>This unless the bus is run in extreme desert climate or up hill all the time.
>I'm curious, and I would hate to see the original postee fix the symptom and
>end up with a more expensive problem down the road--made worse by prolonging
>the situation with the cooler thermostat.
****************************
Having run an 80c thermostat for the past 3 1/2 years a very loaded 84
Westy with a trailer in tow, I've yet to have a problem both this area Jef
describes and what George in a later post describes (ie: pressure leak,
hose leak, etc.).  When I assembled and installed my 2.1 into my beast in
1997, I made it a primary goal to circumvent any and all possible leaks by
checking the hose connections.  Installed a new radiator, water pump (a
matter of course with a new engine) and a new pressure cap (in fact I
recently replaced the pressure cap on the principle that it was 5 years old
and due - it's good cheep insurance).

I continually run with the needle just to the left of the LED.  When
getting off the highway or after a good run up a grade like the Grapevine
outside LA I usually don't have the temps go up when I hit the rest stop at
the top of the 'Vine.  Going up the grade I see the needle creep up, but
it's normal.  When traveling around the USA in 99 fully loaded with the
trailer I never once had an overheating problem.

With that said, I do agree with Jeff & George that in "some" cases constant
overheating and the quick fix of a cooler thermostat can mask the problem.
In addition, I only recommend the use of an 80c thermostat in Westy models
usually because of the weight they have to pull.  With 7 passenger and
pickup models all things being in good shape, the 85c thermostat is an
excellent choice and there shouldn't be any reason to run the 80c thermostat.

On Diesels however, I strongly recommend running the standard thermostat
temp range it originally came with because diesels run more efficient at
normal operating temps.  Never run a colder thermostat in a diesel (my
experience with a 81 Diesel Rabbit PU will attest to that.

JIm
84 Westy 2.1
"Ole Putt"
68 Beetle
"Xavier"
73 Ghia Coupe
"The Last Project"
jimt@oldvolkshome.com
jim96003@c-zone.net
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