So I should get a new OEM 180 or should I get a 195?

Which brand is best?  Stant, Murray, Motorad?


1959 Edsel Ranger, 1916 Ford "speedster"
"I may not be a rich man, but I can give you a million dollars' worth of bad publicity."

The thermostat housing should be hotter than the sensor, not cooler.

The thermostat is opening.  The engine simply will not stay cool if it does not.  That's why it must be defective or not 195.


Lawrenceville, GA

Yes it is.  It's the second 195 I put in it.  But if the engine does not get to 170 will the 195 not open?

1959 Edsel Ranger, 1916 Ford "speedster"
"I may not be a rich man, but I can give you a million dollars' worth of bad publicity."

Is the goose neck the thermostat housing?

If it won't get over 170, then the thermostat is defective or it's not 195.


Lawrenceville, GA

So with a digital it's 168 average at the sensor.  The goose neck is 130.  water pump is 140.  Radiator is 119.

That is after driving for a long time.  So the gauge showing 170 is pretty accurate.

The engine is a rebuild with a few grand miles on it.  But the engine I just took out had the same thing.   


1959 Edsel Ranger, 1916 Ford "speedster"
"I may not be a rich man, but I can give you a million dollars' worth of bad publicity."

a lot of miles on your engine

The fact of the matter is, if the thermostat is working correctly, then your operating temperature is near or over 195 degrees.  The radiator being larger doesn't affect that since the thermostat must be open for coolant to pass through the radiator to be cooled.  The engine simply will not stay cool if that is not happening.


Lawrenceville, GA

My 1955 TBird has a 3 row Champion aluminum radiator and an electric fan that runs all the time.     My car also has a 170 degree wide gap thermostat.  It gets hot here in Florida.  My car shows about 170 degrees on my SW gauge.  In traffic, it will climb to 180 degrees. I am running a stock road draft tube with no PVC.  My car is garaged and drives at least 5-10 miles a week.  I have no condensation in my valve covers.

Will check with digital.

No road draft.  Switched to PCV.

It runs cooler on the highway.

Just thought that new radiator being some much bigger than the old stock one that maybe that's an issue.


1959 Edsel Ranger, 1916 Ford "speedster"
"I may not be a rich man, but I can give you a million dollars' worth of bad publicity."

Still running the road draft tube? That system requires some speed, typically over 25mph, to work. The condensation you describe is typical of what I’ve seen in cool weather and trips under 10 miles or so. Or even pretty warm weather if there’s no highway driving. If that fits your driving pattern, maybe think about a PVC system. Plenty of info on that here in the search function.

miker
55 bird, 32 cabrio F code
Kent, WA
Tucson, AZ