a word about  :

You could
have also removed the thermostat "

on an older style car with a 'single door' thermostat on top of the engine ..yes, you can remove the t-stat.
( and when a typical chevy V-8 is used in racing ...they just use a restricter washer there..full flow through the thermostat housing is not right ...usually it's about a one inch diameter hole or slightly bigger, but not the full size of where the t-stat fits. )

that's for single door themostats.
Waterboxer vanagons and all inline four VW engines have a 'two door' thermostat..
Many cars use this clever feature.
when the t-stat is closed..( for the main radiator circuit )
it also opens a bypass circuit ..this keeps coolant circulating around and around in the engine for more even and faster warm-up.
as the engine warms up, the bypass circuit closes off and the main circuit opens.

if you take that kind of t-stat out ..
you are making flow in both circuits, which you do not want.

if one just had to run an engine with a two door t-stat...the right way would be to block or clamp off the bypass circuit hose.

the best thing in my experience is a new german made thermostat..
in either 80 or 87 C .

On 5/24/2012 5:36 PM, pickle vanagon wrote:
> You could
> have also removed the thermostat