Changed Thermostat ..... Hurray!!!!!! Options

[FrankB2]

Okay.... I'm lazy sometimes. I bought a Toyota thermostat at least a year ago, since my engine was running cold during cold weather. I live in a townhouse community, and didn't feel like bothering. On days when the temps were below 55 degrees Fahrenheit, the needle would go up around 1/4" at 35 mph, and on colder days, it would barely move. My wife and I cruise the road that runs along the frosty Delaware River, and it was just plain cold inside the car this winter. Soooooo.......

I called the local Toyota dealer, and asked how much for a flush and to install the thermostat. $90 for the flush, and two hours labor to install the thermostat @$105/hour!!!! I told the guy he was a joke, and hung up. A pan under the engine, a 10mm socket for the top nut, and a stubby 10mm wrench for the bottom nut, and I was done in 15 minutes. I didn't flush the system, but the temperature gauge is pegged right in the center now, it heats up very fast, and there's loads of cabin heat. I drove it for an hour just to make sure everything was good, and that needle never moved.

The weird thing was this. The top and bottom hoses used to get hard as a rock after the engine had been running for a while. Not a hot engine, just once it had run for 20 minutes. Now the hoses can be compressed without using a Kung Fu grip. The old thermostat's plunger was in about 1/4" further than the new one, so I'll assume it was stuck open. I wish I had done this back in 2013......

I should probably have the system flushed, but who knows what the dealer will come up with. $210 to replace a thermostat?!? I bet they do them all day long.