[gsfent]

I reported in an earlier thread that the beast experienced overheating and that I got a "check coolant" message. Turns out that the whole thing was caused by a bad thermostat. The car probably wasn't actually overheating, as the coolant had not boiled out the escape valve in the radiator cap even though the temperature guage rapidly climbed into the red. It was merely a false reading. However, fixing this took flying in the parts (thermostat and O rings), a wait of a week to ten days, and $500. These thoroughbred cars can be temperamental and expensive machines, but I guess we knew that when we bought them.

If it was a false reading, then why would you change the tstat? If it was a bad tstat, then the reading was accurate. Seems it can be one or the other, but not both.
In any event, glad the beast is back on the road!
Regards,
Jerry

 

[gsfent]

Jerry,
I guess what I'm trying to say is that the coolant was circulating properly through the engine and was not at dangerously elevated temperature, even though the thermostat said that it was. Therefore, the mechanic determined the thermostat was bad and replaced it. Now the guage reads normal operating temp and the car runs well. The guy had a ***** of a time with pinched and leaking O rings, though, and had to take the air box off twice.

OK, but for clarification, the thermostat doesn't measure temperature, it simply regulates water flow. The temp sensor tells the thermostat when to open and close.

Not sure which one was actually bad, perhaps the mechanic simply replaced both while he had everything apart. But as long as it is fixed, it is worth the $$ for the repair!!!:thumbsup:
Regards,
Jerry