Radiator Thermosat

[barossi73]

yes,a critical lesson and its never initially instinctive to do.feet tend to start paddling in the air all by themselves,then ass shaped dents appear in dirt!
Not to be forgotten.ever.

[Neil E.]

Automotive engines used 160* thermostats for many years. It was common to install a 180* thermostat in the winter to increase heat output from the heater.

Using increased engine temperature became important only for pollution control issues. Higher temperatures altered the formation of oxides and other harmful substances and helped the pollution control system perform better.

As long as an engine is warm enough that the oil viscosity allows proper oil flow, the engine will be fine. A 2T can operate successfully at lower temperatures than a 4T.

[2stroke]

I'm still missing something. I have a clean carb (I just did it last weekend, and I am thorough), I have fresh gas, no ethanol, yet my bike will not run correctly until about 140. Of hundreds of engines of all kinds I've come across in my life, they all act in a similar matter

I don't think oil plays much a part of cars engine temperature. You can always use thinner oil. Back in the day of 160 thermostats, leaded gas, and carburetors, cars were lucky to make it 100 thousand miles, and required constant maintenance. Plus you had 10w oil, 20w oil, etc. With a 5w-30, you can cover a much larger temperature range. Now with 195 thermostats, and fuel injection, I have yet to see an engine honestly wear out. People blow them up, sure, but its always by abuse.

I'm not sure why this turned into a thread about how 2 strokes run ice cold. The fact is engineers designed the engine to run at a certain temperature, and I guarantee it isn't 120F. It has little to do with oil, and everything to do with tolerances, especially the piston and cylinder. I will lay money you do more damage running an engine hard at 120F than at 240F.

So with that, I will no longer respond to this thread unless its about thermostat housings. I'm simply too boneheaded to listen to more.

[Moto7man]

I have a 2011 EC 300 with the original factory thermostat. I have a trail tech with the red temp warning light set for 200 degrees F. My bike seems to run in the 160 to 180 range. It only gets to 200 degrees if I'm stuck in some dense tight grown over single track at a crawling speed, but it never has boiled over.

I have some buddies that ride pumpkins and they boil over constantly. Maybe the heavier sandcast engine cases of the GG act as a heat sink?

[2stroke]

Originally Posted by Moto7man

I have a 2011 EC 300 with the original factory thermostat. I have a trail tech with the red temp warning light set for 200 degrees F. My bike seems to run in the 160 to 180 range. It only gets to 200 degrees if I'm stuck in some dense tight grown over single track at a crawling speed, but it never has boiled over.

I have some buddies that ride pumpkins and they boil over constantly. Maybe the heavier sandcast engine cases of the GG act as a heat sink?

So the 2011 I saw with a thermostat was a factory add on, I just figured someone stole it from a KTM. Not sure why KTM would be more prone to overheating. Maybe you are mistaking boiling for simply spitting coolant? Good coolant shouldn't boil to 260+ depending on the radiator cap.

[(F5)]

Well clearly you'd decided to fit one before this thread started so go ahead, fit the hottest one you can find.

[swazi_matt]

Originally Posted by 2stroke

So the 2011 I saw with a thermostat was a factory add on, I just figured someone stole it from a KTM. Not sure why KTM would be more prone to overheating. Maybe you are mistaking boiling for simply spitting coolant? Good coolant shouldn't boil to 260+ depending on the radiator cap.

I am convinced the ktm boiling issues are a result of their frame configuration. Their fuel tank just about blocks off the radiators whereas the GG frame means that the fuel tank sits between the radiators allowing much better air flow through the radiators.

Since i fitted a fan the bike will boil much quicker than without the fan purely from the restriction caused by the fan and the cowling (obviously this is if i forget to turn the fan on - with the fan on it never boils ... generally stalls on the next downhill because i forgot to turn it off!!)

[2stroke]

Originally Posted by (F5)

Well clearly you'd decided to fit one before this thread started so go ahead, fit the hottest one you can find.

Yes I did, I was asking what the best method was. A thermo-bob has a bypass to keep coolant re-circulating while the thermostat was closed, where the stock gasgas thermostat simply blocks one line until its open.

[Neil E.]

Originally Posted by (F5)

Well clearly you'd decided to fit one before this thread started so go ahead, fit the hottest one you can find.

Best post ever .....

[shang]

Here's my thoughts. The thermostat is just one more thing to go wrong. I think it came from a Euro emissions requirement (maybe not) and my gasser is the first bike I've ever owned to have one. I believe that when I melted down my engine, the thermostat was possibly at fault. I removed it and didn't notice any difference in how the bike ran. (After the repair obviously) In fact, it boiled over on me in exactly the same spot on the same trail, both before and after the t-stat. If the bike runs cooler without it, then great. I happy for the extra overhead.