Inline thermostat modification done

B

bguetter

Guest
Finished up installing an inline thermostat last night and got a chance to put about 50 miles on the setup this morning. I'm using a 180* thermostat and driving in 90*+ weather today my temps ranged from 177-185. 185 was only after sitting at idle for 5 minutes and then stop and go through construction zone.

Hardest part of the install was getting the old factory hose clamps off. I had to modify the fan shroud slightly to allow the thermostat housing to sit a little lower and not hit the hood.

parts needed-

Meizere inline thermostat housing
chevy v8 thermostat
lower radiator hose off a 2002 bmw 330
some type of bleeder valve in top hose, i used a 32mm from Glowshift
I went ahead and bought a new upper radiator hose and cut where needed to fit. I also replaced the brittle plastic tubes with 5/16th heater hose.


It gets up to temperature and out of closed loop fine. Fuel mileage was the same today according to scangauge. heater works fine too.

Thanks to everyone in the "Fan Clutch" thread for the ideas and parts list!!
 

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J

JohnB

Well-known member
Oct 18, 2007
2,295
12
Oregon
Looks great. Everytime someone does this it looks better than my install. Keep us posted.
 
jhk07

jhk07

Well-known member
Jul 26, 2006
619
0
Seymour Indiana
ok, I know only a day. But how much cooler is it running? what has the scangauge been saying most of the summer? I have been running bout 198 in the Indiana heat. Seen 202 under some conditions, but it came right back down.
 
toadermcgee

toadermcgee

Well-known member
Sep 26, 2007
689
4
Newburgh, IN
jhk07 said:
ok, I know only a day. But how much cooler is it running? what has the scangauge been saying most of the summer? I have been running bout 198 in the Indiana heat. Seen 202 under some conditions, but it came right back down.
Click to expand...

Is yours still stock? (I'm to lazy to re read the clutch fan thread).
 
B

bguetter

Guest
B

bguetter

Guest
Its my understanding this helps bleed air from the system. Some stock thermostats have a hole in them.
 
F

FB111

Well-known member
Jun 7, 2004
475
0
I did this to my D2 as well and an added benefit to it running cooler is where the thermostat is now located. With the inline thermostat your temp is being monitored and regulated BEFORE going thru the radiator. With the screwy bypass system the temperature is being regulated AFTER going thru the radiator. It only stands to reason that in this system water temp of coolant leaving the engine will be quite a bit warmer.
 
rovercanus

rovercanus

Well-known member
Apr 24, 2004
9,651
246
D Chapman said:
Doesn't the Rover need to run at a minimum of 190* in order for all the sensors to work properly? I.E. O2 sensors.....
Click to expand...
I've brought this point up on LRO before. The system is designed to run at a certain temperature. I wonder how this effects the ECU and control of the air/fuel mixture?
 
D Chapman

D Chapman

1
Jan 3, 2005
11,746
73
On Kennith's private island
rovercanus said:
I've brought this point up on LRO before. The system is designed to run at a certain temperature. I wonder how this effects the ECU and control of the air/fuel mixture?
Click to expand...

I don't really understand it because it's pretty complicated. But if what I do understand is correct, the O2 sensors are not metering anything until the coolant temp sensor asks the ECU to take into consideration that information. So basically your O2 sensors are doing nothing at all. In return your air/fuel mixture is "rich" causing, among other things, poor fuel mileage.

The Rover V8 is not a hard engine to cool, even while sitting in traffic. But you must keep coolant flowing. This mean your radiator has to been in good shape, your pump must be flowing, and the coolant must be within spec. Even if the VC on the fan is a bit wore, it should still keep your engine cool.

When I flush my coolant system, I use a bottle of Water Wetter and a bottle of water pump lubricant. I've never gotten anal about what brand antifreeze I use. I like to flush the system every 30,000 miles. Never had any sort of issues.
 
B

bguetter

Guest
One of the things i wondered about was the car running too cool and therefore rich and losing fuel mileage. I have put about 600 miles on the inline setup and fuel mileage thus far is identical to before according to instant readings from scangauge and miles per tank. No codes and it gets out of closed loop just fine.
 
adriatic04

adriatic04

Well-known member
Mar 22, 2007
2,506
2
cleveland, oh
I would love to lower my temps as much as the next person but everything I have read in the manual talks about temps being higher than what most talk about here. I know 210* has been mentioned as a hot temp but when reading how the ECU runs, it wont even signal the electric fan to run while the engine is on until 212*, it tells the fan to run when the engine is off when the coolant temps are 230* and above.

Obviously those are high and we all know there isnt much room for failure but I really wonder how low you want to go.

The VC needs the radiator to warm in order to allow the blades to spin, I don't know what temp that is though.

I run highway speeds almost always at 194*

normal driving in the street after engine is warm I go between 199-203*

sitting in traffic after having been warmed I go between 203-208 but it always seems to cool itself back to those lower limits when hitting higher end
 
D Chapman

D Chapman

1
Jan 3, 2005
11,746
73
On Kennith's private island
adriatic04 said:
I would love to lower my temps as much as the next person but everything I have read in the manual talks about temps being higher than what most talk about here. I know 210* has been mentioned as a hot temp but when reading how the ECU runs, it wont even signal the electric fan to run while the engine is on until 212*, it tells the fan to run when the engine is off when the coolant temps are 230* and above.

Obviously those are high and we all know there isnt much room for failure but I really wonder how low you want to go.

The VC needs the radiator to warm in order to allow the blades to spin, I don't know what temp that is though.

I run highway speeds almost always at 194*

normal driving in the street after engine is warm I go between 199-203*

sitting in traffic after having been warmed I go between 203-208 but it always seems to cool itself back to those lower limits when hitting higher end
Click to expand...


You're pretty much spot on.

When idling with the AC on, you might see 210*. But when the AC is turned off after idling, the temp will climb briefly before settling back down. 220* is not unheard of and I've seen it as high as 230* and the acc fans never come on. That leads me to believe if your acc fans are coming on when the A/C is not on, you've got issues.
 
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adriatic04

adriatic04

Well-known member
Mar 22, 2007
2,506
2
cleveland, oh
D Chapman said:
You're pretty much spot on.

When idling with the AC on, you might see 210*. But when the AC is turned off after idling, the temp will climb briefly before settling back down. 220* is not unheard of and I've seen it as high as 230* and the acc fans never come on. That leads me to believe if your acc fans are coming on, you've got issues.
Click to expand...

acc fan also runs well below those temps when running air conditioning with vehicle on. If under 50 MPH and ambient air temps above 82*

Yet again another reason a D2 owner in say Ohio cannot compare temps to someone in Arizona, or any other area with different climates. I run my AC sometimes and never have the fans kick on because we see mid 70's quite a bit.
 
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