[cpgoose]

wow, thanks...that's good to know before I start.

By the way...when you take the fluid out of the engine
using the drain bolt...did you hook it up to something
to catch the fluid....or do you just let it all pour
out?

 

[dwolsten]

When I changed my thermostat, I just drained a gallon of coolant, which I reused afterwards. I don't recommend this unless you just changed your coolant; I had replaced my radiator a week or so before, and changed my coolant then, so I didn't see the need to throw out almost brand-new coolant, but if yours is old you should change it. To get as much of the old stuff out as possible, you should remove that drain bolt on the block. You can put a wide drain pan underneath to minimize the mess, but it won't be perfect. The fluid basically flows down the side of the block and splatters everywhere. It's not that much fluid though, if you've already drained the radiator. Have plenty of paper towels ready. The same thing will happen when you open the thermostat housing; there's a bunch of fluid behind the thermostat which the closed thermostat keeps from draining out when you drain the radiator.

 

[cpgoose]

new question

When you replace the thermostat, do you have to use
any kind of sealant...or can you just put the new one
in?

Thanks.

 

[dwolsten]

There's no sealant. There's a rubber gasket that the thermostat fits into. You can reuse the existing one if it's in good shape, although the service manual says to replace it. Of course, the service manual always says to replace stuff like that, which I think in many cases isn't completely necessary.

 

[cpgoose]

yea, the new thermostat I bought came with a gasket...
so that's no problem. I've just read in some places
that when you replace it, some people put sealer around
the gasket. Good, though, I don't have any and didn't
feel like making another trip to buy some.

 

[cpgoose]

finished....one problem though....

Hey guys...I finally did it last night. Ay caramba
that was hard to change the thermo...those bolts were
impossible to get to! But I finally did it.

I did the following:
1. Emptied and flushed the radiator, and gave it new fluid.
2. I changed the upper hose (not the lower, I couldn't
see how I would ever get to the end that's connected to
the radiator, so I left it)
3. Changed the thermostat.

In the process (of course) I unplugged and moved stuff
around to give me more room. I put everything back the
way it goes. After I put the new fluid in, I left off
the radiator cap like it says, and then I was going to run the
car to get the bubbles out. I put the key in and noticed
that the check engine light didn't come on and i didn't
hear the fuel pump going.I tried to start it anyway,
but it just cranked and cranked, and then S3 gear on the dash would
blink twice. I tried a few more times, but same thing.
I double and triple checked everything under the hood,
but couldn't find anything that maybe I forgot.

Any ideas what I could have messed up that would cause
the car to do this? Should I reset the ECU?

 

[Saint]

When I changed my thermostat I missed and knocked the plugs off the distrubutor it stays on but it wassnt locked in check that

 

[cpgoose]

Thanks for the idea, but I found the problem.
(Sorry, I forgot to post back saying I did).

I turns out I undid a bolt that had wires going to
it to help me get to the thermo housing. When I
screwed it back in, I didn't tighten it all the way
until I was finished....but I forgot to go back to it
and tighten it. I found it, tightened it, and the
teg started right up. Sweeeet.