Engine Overheating Options

[Araykhel]

I have an ST204 that just crossed over 107k miles and I'm having some overheating issues after the car has had about twenty minutes of drive on it. When my car is driving at normal speeds my indicated temperature usually sits at half, great and normal . But once I let off the gas and decelerate the temperature climbs in no time. I find that idling is the worst and my temperature sits just below the red line when I do so.

I've used the great and nifty search feature to educate myself on all the issues to check/ possible fixes however I still have some questions. The first thing I want to check/ replace is my thermostat however I tried searching for a how-to assuming it wouldn't be a simple swap and found none. Do I need to drain fluids ( ) to do so?

[samir0189]

Oh. that is the bimetallic vacuum switching valve.... and that's about the extent of my knowledge on that one. I am not sure what is does... I don't think it is going to solve your overheating problem though.

Mine was broken in the same way. However, I never noticed a difference in vehicle performance when it was broken, nor after replacing it.

I must add, your radiator is looking preeeettttyy old. Check it for cracks, leaks, etc. A common place is under the fill neck, it likes to crack there. And if you are missing coolant, it'd be nice to figure out where its going anyway.