180 thermostat

So when I first installed it, the temp gauge had noticeably dropped. Now a week later it seems to be back at the normal temp position. Did the truck just tune itself to run hotter?

Did you check the actual temp on the console? Curious what it's actually reaching. I've had mine creep up to a bit over 200 on hot days, with the A/C blasting, while stuck in traffic.
You could have an air bubble in the system.

I've had my 180 in for 2 weeks but I'm tuned and this adjusts the fan speeds accordingly.

Watching the EVIC, and driving in 80 degree plus days it hasn't gone over 185 so far.

Bobbo said:

Did you check the actual temp on the console? Curious what it's actually reaching. I've had mine creep up to a bit over 200 on hot days, with the A/C blasting, while stuck in traffic.
You could have an air bubble in the system.

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I will check the actual number on the dash and answer back. What's factory water running temp?

180 should be 180 the computer can't change it

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jljbtm said:

180 should be 180 the computer can't change it

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What's the factory operating temperature though? I ask because I believe the computer may be causing it to run at the factory temp by adjusting the tune to run hotter and get up to temp. The reason I believe that is because I've seen the gauge land exactly where it used to out of nowhere after a week of driving. I'm writing this sitting in the truck so I may learn more in a second.

After a 30 min drive the highest temp I saw was 188 momentarily after acceleration with the majority of readings being 183 or 185. I can say that I was definitely seeing mid 190's or higher earlier today in 75 degree weather based on gauge position. Possible explanations are a finicky thermostat, air in the system, or a computer compensating for lower temps in some cases. Most likely it is air in the system, followed by a finicky thermostat as a runner up possibility. I did have the truck idling with the cap off the radiator for like 10 mins though.

Ram1X4 said:

After a 30 min drive the highest temp I saw was 188 momentarily after acceleration with the majority of readings being 183 or 185. I can say that I was definitely seeing mid 190's or higher earlier today in 75 degree weather based on gauge position. Possible explanations are a finicky thermostat, air in the system, or a computer compensating for lower temps in some cases. Most likely it is air in the system, followed by a finicky thermostat as a runner up possibility. I did have the truck idling with the cap off the radiator for like 10 mins though.

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Sounds completely normal. I wouldn't worry about it. Just check the level of coolant after a few decent length trips and top it off if needed.

The thermostat controls the temperature not the computer. The computer adjust everything by the temperature

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Whats the gain to go to a 180* stat?

KCaudill said:

Whats the gain to go to a 180* stat?

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You get to adjust your fan speed with the custom tune.

jljbtm said:

The thermostat controls the temperature not the computer. The computer adjust everything by the temperature

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So the computer doesn't have the ability to generate a warmer tune in order to increase the temperature over that which the cooling system can keep up with?

The tstat controls the temperature of the coolant leaving the engine.
The fans control the temperature of the coolant leaving the bottom of the radiator.
Changing one ( tstat) without changing the other ( fan settings) will result in erratic unpredictable temperatures.
Most likely result is the tstat wide open with an increasing coolant temp until factory fan setting is reached. at that point all of the coolant will be at the same or near same temp and it will take some time for a differential to be created between the radiator and the engine and the lower (cut out) set point to be reached for the fans to cut out.

this can lead to a false belief that the tstat is bad, or the "computer has adjusted itself." IN reality, the observation of temp is more controlled by similar daily drives, and deviating form that will lead to new temps that can be confusing

Tune your truck, set your fans for the tstat and no worries

with a 180 tstat and proper fan settings normal temp is usually 185, and will go up with load, WOT runs towing etc, but will always return to 185 once the condition is removed.

Rupert said:

The tstat controls the temperature of the coolant leaving the engine.
The fans control the temperature of the coolant leaving the bottom of the radiator.
Changing one ( tstat) without changing the other ( fan settings) will result in erratic unpredictable temperatures.
Most likely result is the tstat wide open with an increasing coolant temp until factory fan setting is reached. at that point all of the coolant will be at the same or near same temp and it will take some time for a differential to be created between the radiator and the engine and the lower (cut out) set point to be reached for the fans to cut out.

this can lead to a false belief that the tstat is bad, or the "computer has adjusted itself." IN reality, the observation of temp is more controlled by similar daily drives, and deviating form that will lead to new temps that can be confusing

Tune your truck, set your fans for the tstat and no worries

with a 180 tstat and proper fan settings normal temp is usually 185, and will go up with load, WOT runs towing etc, but will always return to 185 once the condition is removed.

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Well my truck currently runs at 185 without a tune, aside from the weird case yesterday. I am trying not to tune my truck and void my warranty. I'm starting to see that there may be a lot of misinformation about this mod. Straight from Moe's website:

"Performance thermostat from CST. With one of these low-temperature CST thermostats, you get consistent engine cooling and increased horsepower by reducing engine temperature. You also get more precise metering of water throughout your engine, and since they're made from stainless steel, long life as well. • Opening Temperature Rating"

Nothing is mentioned about requiring a tune. So somebody is wrong. But who? Should I just put an OEM thermostat back in the truck? I want to tune my truck but I like having a warranty. Is this a case where i need to tune it or go back to an OEM thermostat?

It sounds like my fans aren't going to kick in early enough so with the wide open thermostat, the water temp will equalize throughout the engine and radiator and the fan will be the controlling factor at the original operating temperature, assuming it is hot enough outside to beat out the cooling system without a fan running. Does that sound right?

So what are the downsides or benefits of a wide open thermostat? It sounds like a mod that does nothing without a tune.

No

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I see that the Flashpaq tuner can adjust fan speed. While this still voids my warranty, I already have the Flashcal tuner that can be upgraded to a Flashpaq for around $150. I can then adjust the fan along with shifting, Rev limiter etc. Is the Diablo trinity with a hemifever tune $450 better than a superchips tune?

EDIT: According to superchips website, the dealer has no way of seeing that a tuner was used on the truck if you take it in for warranty work with it removed. They also say it's illegal to void your warranty simply because you used a superchips tuner but recommend removing it to avoid any hassle the dealer may try to give you. Is this the same case with all tuners such as the Diablo trinity?

always return truck back to stock before taking it to the dealer. better safe than sorry. if they flash your computer with the tune on it youll have to get the tuner unlocked before you can tune again.

Nothing is mentioned about requiring a tune.

You don't have to retune but if you don't your stock electric fan will not turn on sooner to take advantage of the lower engine temp.
IMHO if you don't retune why put in a 180 stat.

And really there's no benefit to running without a thermostat. If you drive your car in the winter you won't get any heat. Bummer

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Just an observation. I've got a 180 degree thermostat installed in my 2017 and the truck is not tuned. Most of my driving is hiway, and coolant temps typically stay at either 185 or 186 while moving. Even while driving slower non-hiway, the coolant temps remain at those levels. It goes up a little if in traffic, but quickly drops when moving again. As outside temperatures increase, and AC is turned on, the coolant temps rise to 188 while moving at speeds of 70 mph, and can climb to 190 if I get on it (all but the upper and lower shutters are removed). They slowly return to 188 (with AC still on) when not accelerating. I find this interesting.
On my 2011 Ram 3500 (Cummins), AC had ZERO effect on coolant temperatures regardless of vehicle speed. What this potentially indicates to me is the radiator/cooling system on the 1500 Rams is probably sized to the smallest effective. I know that the cooling systems on the Cummins equipped HD's are sized to WORK, and remain unaffected by outside temperatures, AC, or how hard the vehicle is pressed.
I imagine that towing with my 1500 in summer conditions with AC on will probably result in somewhat higher coolant temps. Only "fix" I see to this would be the sourcing and installation of a more effective, larger radiator. I've no idea what the aftermarket might offer in this regard, and I doubt a radiator from a 2010/2012 Cummins Ram would fit (newer Cummins Rams have a dual radiator system), though anything is possible with enough fabrication. Anyway, just an observation.