1971 440 thermostat replacement temperature?

[mbc0724]

Good evening all:

1971 440 non- AC manual transmission. Replacing my thermostat. Have not pulled it from the motor yet. 160 or 180 degrees? Some other temperature? Thanks!

 

[4speed68rt]

195

 

[mobileparts]

160 ° is considered a Summer Thermostat...
180 ° is considered an All Year Round Thermostat.....
195 ° is considered a Winter Thermostat....

Since most Classic cars are driven primarily in the summer, most people opt for a 160 ° Thermostat......

 

[WileERobby]

180. The 195 was used to increase engine operating temps for emissions purposes. A 160 is good if your racing, but I've used 180's for 55 years in my cars.

 

[mobileparts]

I stock 8 --- 160 ° thermostats, and 5 --- 180 ° thermostats, and that is about how they sell...
I don't even bother to stock 195 ° thermostats --- and when I had a bunch of original MOPAR thermostats years ago,
I easily sold all the 160 ° s and 180 ° s , and I gave out all the 195 ° s for FREE, because of the BEAUTIFUL BOXES !!!!

160 ° s and 180 ° s sold fairly equally, as I recall...... I sold all of them for $ 8.00 each // $ 15.00 for two --- some people bought
a 160 ° and a 180 ° ..... at that price, it didn't take long for them to be gobbled up !!!! EH ???

 

[josephqatarcarguy]

been using 180 here in the desert (middle east)for 15 odd years ......

 

[Don Frelier]

160 is too low. Your engine was designed for 180.

 

[Outlawd]

I always try to keep my engines around 180. Thats a good number for 60's and 70's v8 motors.

 

[Mopar Miki]

180 is not what these engines had from the factory, try 190.
180 is too cold for today's fuel and does not help the long term health of the engine
180 is not a good operating temp - all these ideas are outdated.
A 195 t stat will work fine even in the desert, the car will run better - engine will require tuning, so retune the engine, gas mileage will increase and the oil stays cleaner longer etc etc
If one lives in the desert and the cooling system can't keep up there is something wrong with the cooling system

 

[toolmanmike]

180° is my choice. Buy one and boil it in a pan on the stove with a thermometer to make sure it works right before installing. The cheap ones at the parts store aren't worth bringing home.

 

[mbc0724]

Thanks for all the input. Will proceed accordingly.