Where's the thermostat?

Loz

Torque King
Points
252
Location
Wolverhampton, U.K.
Car
MX-5
where is it?

Rover K series 1.8 vvc engine.
The temp gauge is reading very low, normally the needle is half way on the gauge but now it won't go any further than a quarter. My first thought is the thermostat is open all the time but I'm not sure.
Is changing the thermostat an easy job on the K series engine or is best left to a garage in case of seized or broken bolts in the block, I don't have any thread extractors or a helicoil kit you see.

Any advice would be appreciated :D
Ta,
Loz.
 
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dont know mate but think the honda engines we similer. if it is, mines was on the left hand side of the block but cant remember exactly where but that was a 1.4 but think they haynes manual showed them all in the same place
 
Rover K series 1.8 vvc engine.
The temp gauge is reading very low, normally the needle is half way on the gauge but now it won't go any further than a quarter. My first thought is the thermostat is open all the time but I'm not sure.
Is changing the thermostat an easy job on the K series engine or is best left to a garage in case of seized or broken bolts in the block, I don't have any thread extractors or a helicoil kit you see.

Any advice would be appreciated :D
Ta,
Loz.
mate it mighten be your thermostat, ive had hondas before that do that
its to do with the cold weather, small honda engiens dont get that hot anyway, i was paranoid the first time it happened aswell
i think if it was the thermostat, youd hear the fan running all the time or else not cutting in, check that out, and if you have a fan working, its definatly the cold weather

ive never changed a stat before, but it is a small job, so it shouldnt cost much, its only a switch with wax in it that goes on the engiene and a scart lead plugged into it,

if it is the stat let me know and il look up how to change 1 for you
im sure i have a book on that honda saved to my computer
 
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You right I was being overly paranoid.
I went to work tonight which involves a sustained 20 min run on the motorway & the temp was back up :rolleyes:
I was confused when, just after running the car quite hard. The temp' was so low!
But thinking about it, large radiator + a large hole in the bonnet to release the heat from the manifold + a cold day= lots of heat loss!

Sorry for the false alarm guys, the car's only been built for a month so I'm still getting used to her :embarrest:

Thanks for your help :amuse:
 
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Keep an eye on it as it may be sticking a little. I know in my 220 the radiator was shut off if the engine temp dropped below so in winter whilst cruising the engine was ticking over at a regular temperature but the radiator was not in the circuit so as the temp gauge was located in the bottom of the radiator it did not register very much heat at all.

BEWARE OF SUDDEN DROPS and HIGH TEMPERATURES though! These are the killers.
 
Thanks :D, it's all sorted now, a new 80ish degree thermostat was fitted when the car was built. The system is just a little too efficient in winter, now Summer's here it just about keeps the car cool in traffic.
I've got a MGF Haynes manual now so hopefully I won't get lost round the engine now. :embarrest::bigsmile:
 
LOL! Not yet no, but I figure if I glue the MGF manual onto the back of my R100 manual & slap a picture of my car on the front. It'd be the same wouldn't it? :amuse:
 
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