Thermostat question?

[Roadking]

Hi all,

I think I may have the symptoms of a stuck thermostat?

The original reason I started looking at the thermostat was because it sounded like I had air in the heater core lines when I start the vehicle. It makes a gurgling sound for about ten seconds and then goes away. I thought I would try to burp the system. I idled the truck for an hour in the driveway with the radiator cap off and bottom radiator hose never got hot or even warm? There was plenty of heat in the truck. It seems like the thermostat is stuck shut and isn’t allowing the coolant to circulate, but the temp gauge is always is in the lower normal range.

Couple questions regarding thermostat and anti-freeze:

Do I buy the housing with thermostat attached or just the thermostat? I see it comes both ways.
Refill with the Toyota Pink 50/50 or get the Valvoline Asian anti-freeze?

At 120k with the original anti-freeze and thermostat, I think it might be well overdue a flush and fill.

Thanks for any advice.

 

[MikeInNH]

Do I buy the housing with thermostat attached or just the thermostat? I see it comes both ways.

Really - that's weird. The housing usually never needs replacing. It's just cast metal.

I'm not too keen on the idea of keeping anti-freeze in there for 5 years (although it's rated that long). It's cheap insurance to replace sooner. Same with tranny fluid.

 

[Bob J]

Hi all,

I think I may have the symptoms of a stuck thermostat?

The original reason I started looking at the thermostat was because it sounded like I had air in the heater core lines when I start the vehicle. It makes a gurgling sound for about ten seconds and then goes away. I thought I would try to burp the system. I idled the truck for an hour in the driveway with the radiator cap off and bottom radiator hose never got hot or even warm? There was plenty of heat in the truck. It seems like the thermostat is stuck shut and isn’t allowing the coolant to circulate, but the temp gauge is always is in the lower normal range.

Couple questions regarding thermostat and anti-freeze:

Do I buy the housing with thermostat attached or just the thermostat? I see it comes both ways.
Refill with the Toyota Pink 50/50 or get the Valvoline Asian anti-freeze?

At 120k with the original anti-freeze and thermostat, I think it might be well overdue a flush and fill.

Thanks for any advice.

Sounds like air in the line but don't see how the thermostat would be the cause.... If you still want to replace it I would go with just the thermostat.... As has already been mentioned the housing is a cast part and should not wear out... If you go OEM be sure to order the gasket as well as it wasn't in the thermostat box when I did mine.....

At 120K flush and fill is a good idea.... I would recommend that you use the Toyota pink WS anti-freeze.... It's specially formulated for you engine/cooling system and will give you the best long term protection....

 

[RunnerAK]

Refill with the Toyota Pink 50/50 or get the Valvoline Asian anti-freeze?

I'll be replacing the radiator in our V6 this weekend and I'll be refilling it with the Valvoline (Zerex Asian). It is much more reasonably priced than the Toyota brand, and after doing a bunch of research (with confirmation by BlackWorksInc who's actually talked to the Valvoline techs), it is essentially the same formula as Toyota pink and shouldn't cause any problems.

 

[Roadking]

I never paid attention to temperature of the lower radiator hose before but I drove home from work today, 20 miles of freeway, and checked the temperature of the lower radiator hose when I got home and it was cold (relatively speaking). Is this normal or does this sound like a thermostat issue?
Thanks for the help.

 

[earthrealm]

you resolved the problem?