Confused over thermostat position in 5 cyl 4kq

[SIMON HOLTBY]

--- Leah Mueller <muellerl at cadvision.com> wrote: > I had my rad recored on
my 86 4kq. The car began to overheat, so I
> replaced
> thermostat, but it still overheats.  I let the car idle and when the fan
> came on, I removed the expansion tank cap and the tank boiled over each
> time the fan came on until the coolant was very low in the expansion
> tank.
> It seems the new thermostat is sticking shut? I think I have put it in
> wrong. It is a newer aftermarket style that fails in open position. I
> will
> remove it today and check its operation in hot water. There is no
> directional arrow on this one unlike the thermostat I removed. Should
> the
> thermostat be parallel or perpendicular to the engine?
> 

Leah,

Thormostat should be perpendicular with arrow pointing down. I renewed the
o-ring on mine the otherday and the stat did not have an arrow. The Audi
dealer said it did not matter which way it went in. I cannot see what
difference its rotation makes.
Back to the over heating problem. If the car was OK before you recored the
rad then could the rad be faulty, blocked.
If it boiled before then your head gasket may have gone. Start engine from
cold and remove expansion cap if you see bubbles then the gasket has gone.
I am not sure if the new stat is faulty because if it was stuck shut
coolant would not circulate around the radiator. No harm in testing it
though.

Simon Holtby
'84 Urq

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