Pentastar 3.6 T-Stat

[sumonda]

I have a 2013 1500 with the Pentastar 3.6.. long story short last October I had the engine replaced (used motor) because of a cracked block / head on the original. It had overheating issues and I am still concerned about how hot these engines are allowed to get. Has anyone changed the T-stat to something like a 190* ? If so can you post a link or part number? Any other advice would be appreciated too. Thanks.

 

[Dave2018]

Hello, Welcome to the forums!

In answer to your question, I've owned a pentastar 3.6l since 2018 and I've never seen the temp gauge go over 1/2 way on the dial. There is a purge valve on the thermostat housing on the front of the block, follow the upper radiator hose down to the housing. It's a screw bleeder type of valve. If you open it and get coolant that's a good sign. If not, then there is air trapped in the system and you are allowing it to exit. Be sure to keep the overflow tank filled to the full mark on the dipstick.

This video is for a jeep but the procedure to replace the thermostat and bleed the system is the same as for your pickup.

Thermostat Housing Replace and Bleeding Air from Cooling System - 2015 Jeep Wrangler JK 3.6L

It's time to take care of that leak! I wanted to do this before the Moab trip, and I'm running out of time. So, today was the day! In this video, I change o...

www.youtube.com

 

[sumonda]

Yep, I have done this. Just wondered if anyone had a part number for a lower temp T-Stat. I have purged all the air out and still get up to 230+ normal driving cold outside temps.

 

[CamperMike]

That's definitely too hot. 210-220 you might see some with the stock t-stat but not 230. Are you sure the radiator isn't blocked or something else? I only saw temps of 230 on my old pentastar minivan when towing in mountains.

 

[Dave2018]

Since the old engine did the same thing, if I'm reading your post right, then the problem must lie in the parts that weren't replaced during the engine swap. that would be the radiator, and hoses and the grill shutters, and the cooling fans. When you see the spike in temperature are the cooling fans running or off? Hope this helps!

 

[15 Handicap]

Do the AGS delete.

 

[sumonda]

Since the old engine did the same thing, if I'm reading your post right, then the problem must lie in the parts that weren't replaced during the engine swap. that would be the radiator, and hoses and the grill shutters, and the cooling fans. When you see the spike in temperature are the cooling fans running or off? Hope this helps!

Rad is NEW, everything else checks out. These motors just run darn hot! I've been reading about the AGS delete mod which looks like it helps keep temps lower and more consistent.

 

[sumonda]

Do the AGS delete.

I am going to do this for sure..

 

[Dave2018]

Ok, if you really want a cooler thermostat, ripp has this. Maybe try this before you defeat the AGS just to see.

Pentastar 3.6 180 deg Thermostat

The RIPP thermostat increases the efficiency of your engine's cooling system by opening up at 180°F compared to your vehicle's standard thermostat which opens at a very hot 210°F. This allows coolant to flow through sooner, reducing temperatures in the engine. Fits many 2011-2016 3.6L equipped...

rippmods.com

 

[sumonda]

Update, I did remove all the middle slats in the AGS system leaving only the top and bottom ones in and it seems to have improved quite a bit! Coolant temp is down overall and much more consistent.

 

[ronr]

I have a 2013 1500 with the Pentastar 3.6.. long story short last October I had the engine replaced (used motor) because of a cracked block / head on the original. It had overheating issues and I am still concerned about how hot these engines are allowed to get. Has anyone changed the T-stat to something like a 190* ? If so can you post a link or part number? Any other advice would be appreciated too. Thanks.

How many miles were on it? My ‘18 had 98k and had to replace it because of a bad #2 cylinder/head gasket. Just spoke to a friend that had the same thing at 98k but he rebuilt his. Apparently this is common.

 

[Robcar]

Hello all,Does anybody know if I do install the Ripp thermostat will I see a check engine light?Also i installed the zautomotive taser just for the cooldown mode only to find out that it didn’t work for my year in Drive ,only ,in Park and yes their tech support told me just do the latest update and it would work of course it didn’t 2017 Ram V6 Thanks for all the info everybody it has really helped me out with this Truck

 

[2manycars]

I have a 2013 1500 with the Pentastar 3.6.. long story short last October I had the engine replaced (used motor) because of a cracked block / head on the original. It had overheating issues and I am still concerned about how hot these engines are allowed to get. Has anyone changed the T-stat to something like a 190* ? If so can you post a link or part number? Any other advice would be appreciated too. Thanks.

 

[Robcar]

Hey guys I know this is an old post I recently bought a 2017 with the 3.
6 I did the grill shutter ,I also am running the Ripp Thermostat still a little hot so I send the PCM over to Kevin Sykes performance engineering
He had it for 1 day turn around time I’m now below 200 My fan was programmed to turn on at 230 it now turns on at 190