8n Thermostat--Is it needed?

With the 8N having higher compression, I would imagine you probably want a thermostat installed.

As far as the thermostat, there is a good deal of info in the archives - you can do a search from the message board page.

Someone please correct me if I am wrong.

The presence of a thermostat would not prevent the anti-freeze from boiling over. Once the temperature got hot enough, then the thermostat would open up letting as much circulation through as possible. Thus....same as not having one.

Picture if you will the game we played as kids when we would pass our fingers through a candle flame. It doesn't hurt if you do it quick since the skin cools off between passes. Keep passing your finger though that flame and after a while you skin will burn.

Now, if the coolant is always flowing though the engine and not given time to cool off in the radiator, it will get hotter and hotter and hotter. With a thermostat in place, fluid is allowed to cool in the radiator, then cyled out into the engine once the engine fluid is hot.

Q=1.08 x gpm x (Tcoolant in -Tcoolant out)

Therefore, whether you continuosly cycle the radiator fluid without a thermostat....or vary the rate of flow with the thermostat installed, the heat rejection into the radiator will remain constant.

The only difference is that the themostat maintains the lower limit of the radiator fluid (Tcoolant out) at the recommended temperature for efficient operation of the engine.

good lord, I sound like a geek.

Jet