i made a solid attempt at buttoning everything back up from the wp install last night. started filling the cooling system (with only water of course since i have no faith and VW coolant is $15/gal), and what do i see but a steady stream running out under the car.

"dammit i missed a hose clamp". nope, it was pouring from around the cover for the turbo tstat.

"dammit why did i reuse my 2 week old seal when they gave me a new one with the water pump." pulled the cover, swapped seals, was putting everythign back together when i realized why it had been leaking--the tstat didn't quite go all the way in, and it kept the little "lid" piece from closing all the way to the water pump. well i tried finnageling it around for quite a while (it was about 2am by this point) and finally realized it wasn't going to fit. i got out my old water pump just to confirm that it dropped in perfectly with no adjustment, which it did. then i put everything back together with no stat.

my assumption is that the thermostat serves two purposes: keep coolant in the engine when it is cold so that it gets up to operating temp faster, and restrict the flow through that passage.

now i don't give a damn if my emissions are worse for the first 8 minutes instead of 5, so i don't think issue number 1 is important, but do you guys think that too much coolant will flow through the turbo and not the radiator now?


oh yeah, and the water pump was a rebuilt one from gpr. they put some crappy silvery coating on the whole thing (comes off with acetone) and my guess is maybe they put too much on and now that little tstat won't go all the way into its hole? i don't know... has anyone else had problems with this?

just one more reason to never buy a used water pump.

 

hmmm... nobody else ever had this problem or tried running without that little tiny thermostat?

 

C'mon guys, I need some info on the this too. I'm changing the water pump and flushing the coolant system. IS it ok to run the turbo without the thermostat?

 

Hmmm... well... I've run my car without the turbo t-stat for about a year and it seemed to be OK.

 

I too ran mine without one for quite a while. I found it ran a touch cooler. Not sure what effect it had on the turbo.

Are you sure you put it in the right way? I am not too sure why it would not fit since all the pumps are the same. Not knocking you, but I have personally done stranger things.

If it will not fit at all, run it, and keep tabs on temp.

 

I think this is still on topic, how hard is it to install a aftermarket water temp gauge? That way I would be able to follow the temps a lot better.

 

[quote]Originally posted by Perry 951:
<strong>Are you sure you put it in the right way? I am not too sure why it would not fit since all the pumps are the same</strong><hr></blockquote>

well, silver, 2 of the most respected guys on this board have spoken, so i think we are ok.

i will post my results after i actually drive.

it isn't even remotely possible to put that little stat in backwards. and it almost fits... it's flange is less than a millimeter from the surface of the pump. but this is enough to keep the "lid" peice from sealing completely. i even tried it in my old water pump just as a sanity check and it dropped right in and fit fine.

i think that gpr messed up that pump somehow.

whatever, i've got WAY bigger things to worry about on this car now anyway.

thanks for the re-assurance, guys.

Ben.

 

I Have been running all my 951's without,the small thermostat,never used them, but I live in south florida, Where our winter is about 3 weeks at max and it never goes under 50( The car loves it though ), Im not sure how cold it gets where you are but basically the way I see it, Up north at real cold temps. its needed,but down south you can do without it.Ive never had a problem with any of my 951's without the small Thermostat.
Jurg'

 

I have been running my 951 for a few months now without the turbo tstat (forgot it when buttoning everything back up) ... everything has been fine. I have noticed that it seems to take longer than normal to warm up, but I have seen no other side effects. As a side note, I do plan on putting it in this month ... I have a bit of a leak around my oil pump that needs to be addressed.

 

With the T-stat in upside down, the cover will not fit, as you know. You say it is off a MM or so? Perhaps they decked that surface when it was rebuilt and they took too much off? Can you tell if the T-stat is bottoming out, or is it not going in all the way because the bore is too small?

Anyway, a lot of questions for the same simple answer. Run it without.

 

Well, when I pulled my waterpump after running the car four yearsand the little thermostat was missing. All during the four years I did not have a problem. I agree with the rest on the board and run without it. Of course my car now runs a tad hotter than before.

 

I had the same exact problem with my turbo thermostat, it was simply put in backwards.

 

The turbo thermostat is a seperate thermostat right? What about running the car without the other thermostat? Will there be any problems? Thanks

 

the primary tstat closes a recirculation passage when it opens... if you run without it, then the water pump will pump a lot of coolant round and round the engine without ever going through the radiator and you will get very hot... or at least the engine will.

 

Oh wow, I'll remember that when I fix the overheating problem on my car.