HOW TO: Thermostat Install [Archive]

PontiacGT2K

06-02-2003, 01:33 AM

Remove battery (helps in next step, gives you more space to work with)
Remove Air Box (whole thing)
Remove MAF sensor
Remove grommet connecting MAF and throttle body
remove surge tank line from coolant outlet(thermostat housing)
Remove the coolant outlet(thermostat housing) to the inlet manifold attaching bolts
pull back coolant outlet, give enough space for for thermostat to pass in/out
replace thermostat

reverse process for re-install

PontiacGT2K

06-02-2003, 10:52 AM

On a side note...this thing is almost impossible to do without taking off the exhaust manifold. I didn't take it off, but this whole thing took me like 3 hours. I bet it woulda been a lot quicker had I taken it off. (in the pictures, it's that silver square pipe that is right next to the the thermostat housing, about 4" wide)

The thermostat housing in pictures=the coolant outlet in instructions.

http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/attachment.php?s=&postid=171948

PontiacGT2K

06-02-2003, 10:55 AM

In this pic you can see the top bolt holding on the coolant outlet. The bottom one is a little below and to the right of that one. Unless you take off the exhaust manifold, you'll need to use an open ended wrench for that.

http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/attachment.php?s=&postid=171950

PontiacGT2K

06-02-2003, 10:57 AM

Again, top bolt can be seen, bottom one can't. Top bolt's fairly easy to take off too...just make sure you have it on there good and don't round off the bolt like I did. I had to tap the socketwrench on with a hammer to keep it from rounding off the bolts.

http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/attachment.php?s=&postid=171951

PontiacGT2K

06-02-2003, 10:59 AM

PontiacGT2K

06-02-2003, 11:02 AM

In the end I think this made a huge difference. My car likes to get hot, usually 220 degrees, and it'll drive like **** at that temperature. Now it's like always driving in cold weather. Much better throttle response. Really nice mod, quite the bitch to put in there. The heater still puts out heat, so obviously 180 degrees isn't too cold.

kregersgt

06-24-2003, 10:21 PM

I found that if you take the throttle body off,it's like three 13mm bolts. It helps give a little bit more room and visability, The tb gasket stays intact also, so you don't have to replace it.

Pacman

06-25-2003, 01:07 AM

can this be done to the 2.4L's as well? if so, where is it located on a 2.4?

PontiacGT2K

08-11-2003, 11:04 AM

bump

Molson

08-11-2003, 11:22 AM

a bump is not required in here. If people are looking for specific HOW-TO, they will scan the pages.

Marksman

08-20-2003, 07:22 PM

I assume you drain the coolant here? I'm gonna be doing this tomorrow...
-Marksman

ViperGTSR

08-20-2003, 07:28 PM

yea drain it, or ull have a mess on ur hands

Marksman

08-21-2003, 02:10 PM

...No longer relevant...

-Marksman

ViperGTSR

08-21-2003, 02:23 PM

well while the coolant is alredy drained take the black hardline out and that should help some

Marksman

08-21-2003, 02:38 PM

Hmm, I can't get the hardline out, too many bolts, and it goes way down on the backside of the engine... I was able to slip a 1/4 extension between the black line and the exhaust manifold but now I cannot get the bolt loose. I think they used an air rachet to get that thing on! I'll keep working...
-Marksman

ViperGTSR

08-21-2003, 02:40 PM

you can get the hardline out, and then move it to the side, u dont need to completely remove it

EDIT: omfg dude, how many 17 yr olds are on this board now???

Marksman

08-21-2003, 03:09 PM

Ok well I was able to get the bolt loose but I'm out of time. I found the second bolt and there is no way in hell I can get to it without taking out the throttle body at least. I don't have a second car so I can't go any further. I'll just have to wait until I get more time.
Viper: Thanks a lot for your help! I appreciate it!
-Marksman

Kdawg207

08-21-2003, 03:29 PM

wtf

thats why i sold mine before i ever installed it..Soo much work for a little mod

I got my 15 bux back :thumbs:

No patience here

Kdawg207

08-21-2003, 03:30 PM

Originally posted by ViperGTSR_500hp

EDIT: omfg dude, how many 17 yr olds are on this board now???

too many lol

just playing with ya

PontiacGT2K

08-21-2003, 09:27 PM

Aww...woosie it's not that hard......

just playin, i hated it too. But when I start something, I'm like "FCUK NO I'M NOT STOPPING 'TIL IT'S DONE"

Marksman

08-21-2003, 09:48 PM

Okay, you're gonna love this!
So I got it all put back together and started adding coolant... Okay, started the engine but I watched the coolant level slowly rise.... until it started flowing over, even with the cap on! :huh: Keep in mind I'm by my self. I'm not happy because I just want everything to work again. My dad and I(when he got home) determined that the thermostat was indeed bad. The thermostat sticking was the cause of an overheat earlier in the week. So one way or another, a new thermostat had to go in. ::(:I decided just to do it myself. So my dad helped and we were able to do it in a couple hours all said and done, and it appears that the thermostat was the problem. We went as far as to remove the throttle body, black coolant line, and we loosened the exhaust heat shield. I just have to add some coolant in the morning. It helped TONS having a second person there, more or less to agree with your next step(I've never done it before and engines are fairly new to me).
SO, that was the short version... I'll have a couple pics up tomorrow. That, my friends, was a PITA. It will rule though having a 180* thermostat!
Ask away if you have questions
-Marksman

Marksman

08-21-2003, 09:50 PM

Originally posted by PontiacGT2K
But when I start something, I'm like "FCUK NO I'M NOT STOPPING 'TIL IT'S DONE"
Yeah, I'm the same way except this time I was thinking: 'I have to have this done by X time!' So I was not 100% thinking of the task at hand. I kept worrying that I was not going to get it done it time so I decided to stop where I was. It helped majorly though with my Dad helping.
-Marksman

PontiacGT2K

08-22-2003, 01:59 PM

I was the same way with installing headers. I said "i have to have it done within the next 4 hours" and got it done in 3. God damn, when the coating went bad and I had to take them off, i was like "i have to get these off in 2 hours so i can take it to the ceramic coating place" and got em off. ****ers....I hate por-20 paint.

Marksman

08-27-2003, 10:35 AM

Here's a couple pics I took...

Marksman

08-27-2003, 10:37 AM

...

SwtGrndAmGT01

09-02-2003, 09:00 AM

I just installed my thermostat this weekend myself. I didn't bother taking the whole throttle body off, just moved it out of the way. I didn't want to deal with taking everything off. I still had a little trouble with gettint the everything back in after I install the new thermostat. The two bolts wouldn't go in, but they finally did and everything it back to workign fine.

PontiacGT2K

11-11-2003, 02:05 PM

Added pictures.

GTspeed

03-03-2004, 07:27 PM

so about how much for a shop to do this:D

PontiacGT2K

03-03-2004, 09:12 PM

Eh.....thermostat installs are usually cheap. But...this isn't your average thermostat install.

Marksman

03-04-2004, 06:33 AM

I would guess it to be about $100? Maybe less? Maybe more? That's allowing two hours.
Really, it's a bitch, but after prepping for a LIM gasket install, the thermostat is nothing :D
However, if you don't have the right tools or a garage to do it in, then you should pay someone.

CelticSkyhawk

05-09-2004, 11:31 PM

I'm going to be taking this on in the upcoming weekend and I'm pretty confident that I can handle it. I only have one question and its probably the easiest and most incredibly stupid question you'll hear...

How do I drain the coolant? How much (approximate) will drain out? I haven't been able to get under the car to see if there is a drain plug for coolant like there is for oil, so I thought I'd check and save myself some extra work figuring this out.

jazzman

05-10-2004, 07:32 AM

there is a plug that turns to allow coolant out, start slowly or you'll have a mess on your hands, when looking at the motor the plug should be in the lower left corner of the radiator below the big hose that goes to the tstat housing. Good luck, I did this during the past weekend, in city driving still gets hot, but on the freeway its deffinetely cooler.

Derek

Marksman

05-10-2004, 02:37 PM

Yup, plug on lower part of radiator. It drains quite slowly so I wouldn't worry about making a big mess unless your bucket overflows. You can just twist the plug back in when that happens to switch buckets.
Shouldn't be too bad with this How To!

jazzman

05-10-2004, 08:57 PM

hey marksman, how did the tstat affect your temps?

Derek

Marksman

05-10-2004, 09:02 PM

jazzman

05-10-2004, 09:11 PM

yeah, thats how mine is too, hwy is deffinately cooler, which is really important

Derek

CelticSkyhawk

05-13-2004, 10:21 AM

Well, the 180, of course, lowered the temps about 15* but sometimes on a warm day in town or in stop and go traffic the temp rises to the stock 195. On the highway it's much cooler. Overall I'm satisfied. Can't do much more without programing the computer to cool to 180.

That's the problem with mine... it's getting up to about 230 before it starts to cool again. I appreciate the tips on how to get the coolant out, that will make this much easier!

CelticSkyhawk

05-30-2004, 06:48 PM

Got a problem... I just finished this install, started the car up and found that the two hoses that connect to the black hard line and the bottom of the TB housing are leaking. I tried to tighten them up and they didn't appear to be leaking anymore, so I went on a test drive. My temps were getting a little over 200 so I headed back and pulled into the driveway. I noticed a touch of smoke coming up, opened my hood and found one of those two hoses is leaking again, but now I can't tell which. I removed them from the hard line when I took off the throttle body. One in particular was d*mn near impossible to take off the hard line, but both went back on pretty snugly and the clamp is working pretty well. Should I let it cool down then try to snug those hoses, or do you think the hoses might have been damaged? I'm really freaking out here, I have to be at work tomorrow and no place is open. I'm going to let them sit for a while and then try to resnug I guess, but if this doesn't work, what next? Any other ideas?

Marksman

05-30-2004, 08:13 PM

I would just go out and buy a new chunk of hose, a couple clamps, and bypass the throttle body all together. That's the best thing to do anyway but as for a quick solution, just snug them up good and don't drive the car hard until you can get it repaired.

CelticSkyhawk

05-31-2004, 10:53 AM

Not sure I would bypass it as I don't know its purpose. I went back out to drain my coolant after the engine had cooled for a while. I took another look and found one of the hoses has a hole in it. The second had a very hard time going back on so I think it may have been damaged as well. I have some spare hose, I'm going to give that a shot when I get home (if its the right sized hose). From the looks of it, this will be easier if I take off the throttle body again.

PontiacGT2K

06-01-2004, 11:20 AM

This has been discussed NUMEROUS times in the past. Bypassing the throttle body just means your intake charge will be cooler....

The only reason it's there is to stop ice from forming on the TB, and it hasn't affected folk up north, so I think you're in the clear.

Bypass the throttle body...do a search on how to.

eric99gt

06-12-2004, 03:47 PM

can anyone get a picture of the drain plug. I think i've found it, but I have no way to turn the damn thing. Unless I'm lookin at something else. It's like a tube with a valve at the top that you could grab ahold of and turn if you had some realllyyyyy skinny needle nose pliers. I'll get a pick of what i'm lookin at.

eric99gt

06-12-2004, 04:06 PM

well I can't figure out how to resize a pic on my new comp. so hopefully someone has a pic of it.

Carlitoboy

12-10-2005, 12:11 PM

coolant outlet, or thermostat housing is taken off here. Only half of the thermostat is actually housed in the coolant outlet, rest is in the manifold on the motor. In the picture I believe the thermostat was still sitting in the motor...

http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/attachment.php?s=&postid=171952

Sup!

Newbie Do It Yourselfer here.

Couple of questions...

How the heck did you get your tools in to take that thermostat housing off???
That Black hardline, what is it??? for Fuel?

slick_willy182

04-29-2006, 05:14 PM

Anyone have a picture of where the plug is? I can't seem to find it.

SE'sarecool2

05-07-2006, 09:17 AM

You guys are doing this the hard way. Don't worry about the valve at the bottom of the radiator. Just remove the upper hose from the radiator. Put a pan under the car just behind the radiator to catch the coolant that comes out. You don't need to drain any more than what comes out of that hose. You also don't need to remove the TB.

chosen_one

09-13-2006, 11:28 AM

well then how do you get that second bottom bolt out? i can't seem to find a way without taking off the TB...

zhd1000

01-13-2007, 10:52 AM

how much coolant do i need to drain? and is it better/easier to use the drain plug or the lower hose?

SE'sarecool2

02-06-2007, 07:57 AM

Sorry its been a while, but I'll try to answer all your questions.
1. No need to actually remove the bottom t-stat housing bolt. If you look closely(or feel with your hand) you'll find that the bottom of the housing is slotted instead of a hole; all you have to do is loosen the lower bolt and slide the housing out.
2. IMO its easier to remove the upper hose. As I stated before you don't have to drain any more coolant than what comes out of that hose. A little bit will drip down the tranny case when you loosen the t-stat housing but that's OK. The less you have to drain, the less you have to refill. Makes the job go quicker.
3. Loosening the lower t-stat housing bolt can be tricky. If you have small hands like me you can reach UNDER the exhaust crossover(or down between the housing and the crossover) with a 13mm wrench and break it loose. Then turn it by hand. Once you have the lower bolt loose and the upper bolt removed(and also disconnected from the hard line that runs across the front valve cover) the housing & t-stat come out pretty easily.

grandam01

09-29-2007, 07:16 PM

I just finished the install, not too bad, Removing the Throttle body, was easy. After I figured out that the lower TB bolt is threaded two ways lower bolt then it is threaded into the upper intake manifold, kinda hard to explain.

With my skills on this car and some Father-Son-Bonding, a few choice words and well some pictures I ran out of time and had to put the car back together in 30 mins after I got the T-Stat in.
All in All not that hard, Haynes manuals are a definite great investment.

nate2023

09-29-2007, 11:33 PM

What about taking off the heat sheild? has that worked better for anyone?

grandam01

10-02-2007, 09:41 PM

did not really make a difference once I being the really "smart", and by smart i mean completely retarded, individual i am realized that i was tightening the bolt and not loosening it it was a snap. I reccomend using and open or cloed 13mm crescent wrench. worked just fine for me.

I believe it's 13mm.

1/2dolla

02-13-2009, 06:09 PM

tenspeed

02-13-2009, 06:20 PM

, and the bottom bolt holding the inlet pipe on can be loosened with a 13mm ratchet wrench like this .

I have a 15mm ratcheting combination wrench like that for the oil pan drain bolt.

rocketfast123

02-13-2009, 06:42 PM

just did this, can confirm you dont need to remove the TB , and the bottom bolt holding the inlet pipe on can be loosened with a 13mm ratchet wrench like this .

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00942643000P?vName=Tools&cName=HandTools,GeneralPurpose&sName=Wrenches&psid=FROOGLE01&sid=IDx20070921x00003a

I replace a 3400 t-stat with just plain old hand tools, I took off the metal line that run to the top of the water pump. Pretty much i remove everything that was blocking it in, but except the exhaust manifold. Real fun because at the time i was up for 30+ hours. ;crap