Thermostat: Drilling hole/jiggle valve, ideal size for bit and how many holes?

[Indolent]

Nismo thermo installed correct
Lower rad hose cold, upper rad hose hot
Bled properly LOTS of times

Going to take out the jiggle valve out and drill hole(s)
What's the ideal size to drill out the jiggle valve, I don't want to go too large, and how many holes or is 1 hole enough, if more than one, where did you drill them, thanks

[GSXRJJordan]

The "jiggle valve" isn't the reason the thermostat's not opening. If you're intent on opening it, one 1/8" hole will do just fine - but it won't solve your problems.

[Bigsyke]

I wouldnt do it, i drilled a small hole after clipping the jiggle valve, my car took alot longer to warm up. If your going to do it, just clip the jiggle valve

Instead get a snap on funnel kit for the radiator. That will cure the problem without a question. 35 on ebay.

[JRas]

Nismo thermo installed correct
Lower rad hose cold, upper rad hose hot
Bled properly LOTS of times

Going to take out the jiggle valve out and drill hole(s)
What's the ideal size to drill out the jiggle valve, I don't want to go too large, and how many holes or is 1 hole enough, if more than one, where did you drill them, thanks

sounds like to me you didn't bleed it fully..

I highly suggest you don't drill any holes into your thermostat.

I just changed out my thermostat recently and had a similar problem

turn ignition on
move temperature lever to hot position
wait until air mix door moved to hot position
remove rad cap
remove air bleeder bolt
start car
make sure coolant level in radiator is filled ( reservoir should be filled also, double check )

add fluid as necessary, until the air bleeder starts shooting out a steady stream of water. ( the more fluid you add into the raditor the more fluid should be coming out of the air bleeder )

put bolt back into air bleeder, do not over tighten 1/4 of turn from where snug is

put cap on radiator
take car for test drive, watch temperature gauge, don't drive far from house
around neighborhood is ideal.

unless you have a steady steam of fluid coming from the air bleeder.. it is not fully bleed... trust

[MissShiftS13]

I had the same problem when i installed my water pump and i just let it run without the radiator cap on and eventually it blew some air bubbles out and a lil coolant and after that, my car ran fine and everything was cool.

[reinvent]

engineers just are not smart people. be sure to drill lots of holes and of course remove the jiggle valve. what use could that have :tinhat:

[reinvent]

i imagine 90 percent of 240sx coolant parts that are sold are replacing perfectly good parts because the owner doesnt know how to bleed air out of the system.

[Bigsyke]

As for bleeding, I could have a steady stream of water for hours (bleed screw), yet still pockets in the system. Hell I dont even have a bleeder screw anymore, just jbwelded over it after I snapped the bolt.

You have to jack the car up, loosen the upper coolant/heater hose right above the mechanical gate lever, loosen upper and lower radiator hoses. When refilling, I make sure to allow air to excape from the hoses and then resecure them.

I then attach the allmighty snap on radiator fill kit, and fill it up to the top. While running I will slightly remove a hose to let what ever air pocket excape (either upper/lower rad hose)

The OEM fan will turn on @ 203f, if the lower hose is still cool, you have an air pocket, thus you need to shut down the car, and let it cool off completely. Then turn the car back on and let it run.

I found it pretty efficient to race the engine a few times just before and while the thermostat opens to get the big air pockets out.

Durring this idle/bleeding not once do I then touch any bleed bolt or loosen a hose. The hight of the funnel and the weight of the fluid forces all the air bubles out, thus no need for all this bull shit.

I could bleed my car 8 times, correctly in the time it takes you guys to correctly bleed without the snap on radiator fill kit.

[Indolent]

Ok I'll go more into detail about my problem
New temp sensors (both)
New nismo thermo

Driving the car is fine, temp does not go up, only time it goes up is when i'm climbing up hill for almost a mile or 2, then it'll go back down or i'll put the heater on

but, daily normal driving the temp doesn't really go up, but when i pop my hood the lower rad hose is pretty cool, while the upper rad hose is HOT, this is nothing like my previous s14

as far as bleeding goes
previous owner broke off the bleeder screw, so I'd jack the car up stupid high on a driveway, use a funnel where the rad cap goes, squeeze both the upper/lower rad hoses, with the heater on full blast

I'm searching/looking for this magical kit bigsyke is talking about, sounds like a beer bong for a radiator

[theronin]

swirl pot.

radiator breather, eBay Motors items on eBay.com (http://shop.ebay.com/items/__radiator-breather_W0QQ_kwZradiatorQQ_kwZbreatherQQ_ckwZpotQ Q_fromfsbZ?_trksid=p3286.m104.l1198)

[McRussellPants]

Expansion Tanks Rule.

Makes it so much easier to get air out.

[reinvent]

i assume your water pump belt has no more than.5 inch deflection

rad cap should be replaced.

i dont think the hose temperatures are a definitive test. you need away to test if the rad is blocked by rust. one guy said to loosen hose and see how fast water pours out of rad.

i wouldnt squeeze the hoses. have not heard anybody authoratitive mention that.

[Bigsyke]

Expansion Tanks Rule.

Makes it so much easier to get air out.

Why not just bleed it right the 1st time? saves $100+

http://cgi.ebay.com/Lisle-24610-Radiator-Cooling-System-Spill-Free-Funnel_W0QQitemZ200276203764QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_ DefaultDomain_0?hash=item200276203764&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A570%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C2 40%3A1318%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50 (http://cgi.ebay.com/Lisle-24610-Radiator-Cooling-System-Spill-Free-Funnel_W0QQitemZ200276203764QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_ DefaultDomain_0?hash=item200276203764&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A570%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C2 40%3A1318%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50)

Best $25 you will EVER spend.. Buy it, dont look back

[importdude]

jacking the car up always worked for me
then filling rad with a funnel

[zugoi]

i assume your water pump belt has no more than.5 inch deflection

rad cap should be replaced.

i dont think the hose temperatures are a definitive test. you need away to test if the rad is blocked by rust. one guy said to loosen hose and see how fast water pours out of rad.

i wouldnt squeeze the hoses. have not heard anybody authoratitive mention that.

How would he know how to compare a rusted radiator and non rusted radiator by just taking off the hoses? Just by saying how fast it pours out? What is he comparing that too. That would only work if hes draining two exactly the same radiators side by side and if one is rusted for sure and radiator is brand spanking new. How fast the coolant also depends on how big is radiator is. If hes running a thicker koyo radiator of course its gunna pour out faster then a skinny stock radiator.

squeezing the radiator hoses while bleeding the system helps air escape "faster" by forcing air out of the hoses and coolant into the block and hoses. So instead of waiting for the water pump to pump all the air out of the top of the radiator hose you force it out to the radiator by squeezing it couple times when the engines cold when you first fill the cooling system. When im at work and change radiators or whenever i need to drain and refill the cooling system, with one end of the upper hose attached to the block i like to fill the hose up with coolant directly into the block that way it doesnt take as long to fill the cooling system or wait for the air to bleed out by just filling the system through the radiator. Sometimes it takes awhile because thermo is in the way but i think its still faster then jacking the car up and hoping all the air bleeds out. I never put the a car on jacks stands to bleed the system. Do it right the first time and you wont need to do all that. Also some said to turn the heat on while bleeding the system... Turning the heat all the way up while trying to bleed the system wont do anything. No matter what the coolant is still going to flow through the heater core. If anything i'd run the A/C system full blast to try to stress the motor to see if it overheats.


And to the OP, Why would you chose to get a nismo thermo stat and temp sensor? Why not go stock? If i recall nismo thermos open at a different temp then "stock" thermos. If you dont need the nismo thermo and think your doing something better for your car it could be causing your car to overheat with your driving conditions.

[Homer_Simpson]

http://www.professionaldistributormagazine.com/images/article/1197646571047_EditorsPick13.jpg
Amazon.com: Lisle 22150 Spill-Free Funnel: Automotive (http://www.amazon.com/Lisle-22150-Spill-Free-Funnel/dp/B0002SR6WK)

[fliprayzin240sx]

Eh, Id tap the jiggle anyways. There was a thread about this not too long ago...even Russ was pro tapping the thermostat. I did this on my SR cuz no matter what I did, my temp would slowly creep up once i get stuck in traffic. I tapped the jiggle out and tapped 4 more holes around it.

I did that after I've gotten a Greddy radiator, got a Billion thermo and new cap.

[murda-c]

I never have a problem bleeding.

i never open bleed screws or anything.

i leave the climate control on cold.

replace whatever part in the cooling system i'm gonna replace, then fill'er up again with coolant and water and then start it and make sure my heater still works and the temp gauge reads normal...which they always do.

[SochBAT]

I'm getting the same problem.

Freshly installed thermo, warms up, then overheats like mad. I think I'm going to just run without a tstat now. SoCal Winters are getting warm as hell.

http://zilvia.net/f/tech-talk/75546-termostat-problem.html

and more recently..

http://zilvia.net/f/tech-talk/230172-ka-overheating-odd-problem.html

[Bigsyke]

I'm getting the same problem.

Freshly installed thermo, warms up, then overheats like mad. I think I'm going to just run without a tstat now. SoCal Winters are getting warm as hell.

http://zilvia.net/f/tech-talk/75546-termostat-problem.html

and more recently..

http://zilvia.net/f/tech-talk/230172-ka-overheating-odd-problem.html


a thermostat will make your car run "cooler" even in 100*f weather. How is the liquid in the radiator going to chil down to near ambient temps when it spends hardly any time in the radiator?

[HyperTek]

make sure you guys are rocking distilled water and not tap, and i usually prefer 30/70 or 40/60 mix of antifreeze to water.

I had the same problem when i installed my water pump and i just let it run without the radiator cap on and eventually it blew some air bubbles out and a lil coolant and after that, my car ran fine and everything was cool.

Thats how i always do mine, and no problems... keep the engine running til its warm and you should see the water level in the rad cap start to go down due to expansion, keep filling it til its not thirsty anymore and engine is at running temp.

Check your fan setup, maybe your mechanical fan is out...

[reinvent]

distilled water is too pure and leaches minerals from the components. we have soft water in my area so i use it right out of tap. not sure what i would do if i had hard water.

[S14DB]

distilled water is too pure and leaches minerals from the components. we have soft water in my area so i use it right out of tap. not sure what i would do if i had hard water.
:rolleyes:
Any water will do that. Why you run antifreeze or an additive package with the water. Galvanic corrosion is a bitch... but calcium deposits in your water jackets is worse.


Once you go bubble tank / swirl pot you'll never go back.

[reinvent]

:rolleyes:
Any water will do that. Why you run antifreeze or an additive package with the water. Galvanic corrosion is a bitch... but calcium deposits in your water jackets is worse.


Once you go bubble tank / swirl pot you'll never go back.

I'll stick with what the engineers say.

[S14DB]

I'll stick with what the engineers say.

I know they say to use "Soft water" but, I don't believe any tap water is soft enough to not cause deposits. Reverse-Osmosis or Distilled is the only real soft water IMHO.

My main point is that that mineral leaching shit is BS. Good additive package in antifreeze or race additive and no problem.

[Om1kron]

im with s14... dunno how you guys fuck up filling a radiator... pretty simple... fill radiator turn car on, continue to fill radiator and stop when it's finally flush with the water neck, top of resivior to the max...

never had a problem with a radiator.

[reinvent]

Pour slowly. Thats it. I have done this 4 times and every time iv done it iv never had any problems with air getting trapped in the system. I spend about 6-10 min pouring the coolant into the rad. Beats the hell out of spending 30 min while your car is overheating screwing with a jack and all the BS that usually follows changing the Ka's coolant.

Step by step.
---Coolant out of the motor---
1- Remove your bleeder valve on the intake manifold.
2- Spend 10 min pouring the coolant slowly into the radiator(funnels ftw). Take small breaks after 20-30 seconds of continual slow pouring.
3- Keep pouring until a little coolant starts to flow out of the bleeder port. Stop at this point, and get ready to put your bleeder bolt back in. Put enough coolant in the funnel to create a steady stream of coolant coming out of the bleeder valve for as long as it takes you to screw the bolt back in. If you do it right you should still have some coolant thats backed up in the funnel, i use a funnel that fits inside the water neck to the radiator.
4- Top off the fluid in the radiator, then put the cap back on. 5- Start car and drive. http://images.nicoclub.com/forums/images/smilies/yesnod.gif

If you still have air, park on steep hill to spare yoruself the ordeal of jacking the stupid car up and run engine with rad cap off.

[Indolent]

drove around t-stat's opening but slightly overheated after long driving, and uphill driving too

problem: previous owner put the clutch/radiator fan on backwards

[Bigsyke]

So another question, which may be most important? Since antifreeze wont remove calcium/rust, what will?

Could be another issue.

[reinvent]

drove around t-stat's opening but slightly overheated after long driving, and uphill driving too

problem: previous owner put the clutch/radiator fan on backwards

Check your clutch fan. It should rotate about 6 inches when engine cold or about one third revoltion if car has been on.

[JRas]

Check your clutch fan. It should rotate about 6 inches when engine cold or about one third revoltion if car has been on.

maybe he forgot to plug it back in? worth a try

[S14DB]

maybe he forgot to plug it back in? worth a try

How do you plug in a clutch fan?

[reinvent]

How do you plug in a clutch fan?

I think he means the silicone has drained out. I wish these fans were not on all the time. The so called slow speed must tax the electrical system during idle.

The air temperature coming through the radiator is sensed by the bi-metal thermal spring on the front of the thermal fan clutch. It expands and contracts with the change in air temperature operating a valve inside of the clutch. When cold, the silicone drive fluid is pumped from the working area to the reservoir. When hot, the valve opens allowing fluid from the reservoir to be transferred to the working area thereby increasing the fan speed. The clutch disengages as the air temperature decreases, closing the valve and allowing the silicone fluid to be pumped back into the reservoir.

[reinvent]

maybe he forgot to plug it back in? worth a try

hkjhkjhk hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[theronin]

rofl

/msglength

[JRas]

How do you plug in a clutch fan?

my bad, thinking of the other fan, don't know the technical name for it..

but I guess that wouldn't cause it to overheat either, right?
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e25/vancouverbc_2008/w001.jpg

funny, I admit

[S14DB]

my bad, thinking of the other fan, don't know the technical name for it..

AC fan.

[Bigsyke]

I run no clutch fan, I have an altima fan triggered @ 203f off of the OEM harness (cooling fan relay 1). My fan rarely comes on, and im running no egr. How are you guys having so much trouble?

I installed a new OEM thermostat with the jiggle valve installed this time because it was taking too long to get to warm up temp. Then again I have no A/C, so maybe im running more efficient.

Maybe you guys need to remove the lime/calcium deposits in your head/block

[240tuned91]

its not fuking up filling the rad. i think hes trying to say he cant get it to burp or simple just cant get the thermostat open. im havig the same problem

[SochBAT]

Test it. Boil it in water.

I just removed the jggle valve and am going to put it back in today. i can't deal with it running on the cold fuel map. Backfiring like Jesus.

[TheRealNighthog]

You should just get a new OEM thermostat. I have never used a nismo therm. and I track my car alot. Never had a problem with cooling either.