My truck has been overheating on me lately... I drive very hard and it never used to get this hot.. I think I have found the culprit, but I also want other opinions on the matter and suggestions first. The coolant reservoir goes empty every 4-5 days... I have antifreeze coming out of the area near the water neck.. Instantly, I am thinking thermostat and gasket... Which is the best replacement? 160*170*180*195*? also there was a thread not too long ago that I cant find now about the upgraded version or something where you just drilled a hole, or bought an upgraded factory part or something? I think it might be from a celica, mr2 or supra maybe?

 

those pics will be up shortly, the server is running through its daily backup right now so its offline

 

i wouldn't go under 180 for a thermostat, get the leak fixed and that should fix it, i would strongly recommend to replace the thermostat if its gotten hot, because they are more likely to malfunction after they have seen very high temps, by the way just to let you know, my friend has a aftermarket temp gauge and when he over heated once (fan clutch went out) when his factory gauge got as high as yours the aftermarket gauge was pegged past 280, so i would fix this as soon as possible, or a head gasket job may be in the future

 

well i kept an eye on it and the water in the overflow wasnt boiling, so i was probably ok... those pics were taken while i was actually on the road in probably mid 80 to mid 90* weather... also i made sure when i got it to that point to shut it down and let it cool off a little bit... i am pretty sure that the leak is coming form the tstat housing/neck and since the overheating problem as well, i am going to replace the tsat while there...

 

might not be a bad idea to replace the radiator cap too.....I was having a leak problem in a prior vehicle...the pressure was building up and sometimes the cap wouldnt release it into the resivoir...replaced the cap and all was well....

 

the radiator cap is pretty new, so is the radiator.. the radiator was replaced last year around july when i got the truck.. then around september i blew the engine.. and didnt finish the engine swap until mid jan... at that time the cap was replaced becasue i couldnt find the one it had when i was reassembling everything... upper and lower hoses were also replaced... i do need to replace the middle hose though...

 

in a recent thread on here, there were posts about overheating and getting a new thermostat... well.... the part #s were listed for the new one and for the upgraded one... anyone have those handy? my engine is a 2.4l 22r with a carb

 

The thermostat you are talking of is the Dual-stage thermostat. It has a Toyota p.n.90916-03070. This thermostat is mainly for dealing with temperature guage overshoot on start up, not so much overheating.

I have this thermostat in my 4runner for more peace of mind knowing that a Toyota part is controlling the temp of my motor and not some POS crap-store thermostat.

Like superjoe83 said an aftermarket temp guage would be a good idea, My VDO is at least twice as acurate as the stock guage.

 

ah... wasnt sure on that one about the thermostat..... whats the stock toyota part # for the regular one? i wnat to be able to walk into the stealership and be like yeah i need this... the parts guys are like the charcoal or black crayons in the box

 

Should be 90916-03083. Locally they are like $10.00.

 

so should i get the dual stage or the regular then?

i dont want to get one and then be like, hmmm i wonder if the otehr one was better.....

 

The dual stage is only for if you have temp guage overshoot. If your guage acts normal
and does not spike high on start up just get the regular thermostat.

 

the above part # is for the 22r with the carb or is it different?

 

Its listed for both on the 85.

 

Heres some pics of my Temp guage.

 

Another one.

 

I have noticed that my temperature guage goes up after my truck is parked for a few minutes. Is that temperature guage overshoot? Is that bad for my truck if I do not install a dual stage thermostat? It goes down after it is restarted for about a minute or less.

 

the part i got that the dealer said was for my car is 90916-03078 this is also one of the part numbers that roger brown has listed on his site, i beleive it is the single stage regular tstat

 

ok got to put the thermostat in today.... there wasnt one in their to begin with!

anyways, i let a coworker drive my truck mid day... he said it got up there to about where its at in the pictures above.... so im still worried.... what lse can it be? the rad is new, and hte cap and hoses are new as well... wouldnt think its time for a power flush, but i do have the prestone flush that i plan on doing very soon..... im leaning towards the fan possibly? however it gets too warm for comfort when sitting in traffic and just freeway drivning... what else can i do?

 

Circulating pump maybe? Might not be circulating the fluid fast enough causing it to boil in the block?