Engine Thermostat

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crashpulse

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Joined
Nov 14, 2013
Posts
15
I test drove a 1990 ford eco camper van, besides the minus 2 degrees outside the engine temp gauge stayed mostly near the c, the heater did blow warm air. I asked the seller about it and he said the van is from florida and the thermostat was taken out to prevent any overheating, he never installed one when he brought it to PA because he only used the van from spring to fall and then had it stored. The thermostat story makes sense to me but is it true?
 
Could be true, but foolish.  Proper engine temperature is important for optimum efficiency.  Put the proper thermostat back in.
 
No thermostat means a rich running engine. The computer looks at the engine temp and keeps it in open loop when it see cold. There could be other problems that will not show up in open loop such as bad O2 sensors etc......
 
His story could make sense but not positive until it gets warm enough for the engine to get hot enough to prove that it doesn't overheat. The t-stat would not have been removed it the engine was cooling properly. In other words, removing the thermostat is not considered preventative maintenance.

Engineers would gladly leave out a thermostat if it would improve cooling, economy, or performance. Truth is that it is necessary. That goes for the correct radiator cap also. The function of these go far beyond just keeping the water in and making the heater work.
 
A lot of shade tree mechanics pull the thermostat.    Easy check and cheep fix. If its missing I would flush the cooling system whial you got it open.  Theirs a reason the thermo state was pulled
 
Also check for gas bubbles in the coolant.  Sometimes a thermostat is pulled to try and prevent overheating caused by a blown head gasket or a cracked head sending exhaust gasses into the coolant.
 
I have seen it done many times here in the South.
Also many people at one time replaced them with a "cooler" one
so it opens quicker in the summer, which really does little.

Like others have said. Open the cap and start the motor.
Wit the thermostat out you should see the coolant running and
no bubbles.
 
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