Weapon X 160 thermostat
 

I installed the weapon x 160 thermostat and this week it failed with only about 1,200 miles on it. It was stuck solid and would not open.

Anyone else have any issues with this thermostat? I put in a stock GM thermostat for now, what is everyone else running? Katech has 174 degree thermostat.

the stock tstat on my car shows 178 on the road, sits around 188 hot idle. didn't see the point in swapping them.

A 160-degree thermostat is designed to maintain a lower engine operating temperature, which tends to make a little bit more horsepower and torque. Myself I am looking for any edge but I want a good quality make. This one failed pretty quick. Anything to give a head start to the engine cooling to prevent early detonation.

160 Thermostat providing any benefit on modern engines is a fallacy. These engines are intended to run hot. In fact, you'll end up with worse gas mileage and will be putting out more emissions on a 160 thermostat.

Moreover, cylinder bore & piston ring wear are increased. Studies have shown engine wear is double with a 160 thermostat vs. stock. There is also debate over whether the engine oil needs to reach operating temperature to boil off any condensed moisture.

This topic has been discussed repeatedly over the years. The only 2 thermostats worth a damn: OEM or Katech. That’s it. Mishimoto, Weapon X, etc are all junk and you run the risk of overheating your motor.

On an NA build there is probably not a ton of advantage with a lot lower stat. If I was NA, I’d probably run the Katech 174 which does not need tuning. On a FI car, I would definitely run the Katech 160 and tune for it. With a supercharger, running the temp lower let’s the fan cool your intercooler better, so that’s a no brainer. ;)

And just a PSA: a 160 thermostat does not mean your motor stays at 160. For example, with the Katech 160 my engine is typically in the 174-185 range on the street. Your fan settings play a massive role.

Mishimoto has a 82 celsius 179 degree stat that looks just like the factory GM stat. My OE 194 stat usually reads temps in the low to mid 180s cruising and the Mishimoto runs a solid 15 degrees less all the time, high 160s to low 170s. I also have the fans coming on early at 185 to 190 degrees.

Do NOT run that stat. Multiple members of both this board and Corvette Forum have had those stats die prematurely. Same thing with Weapon X.

You’ve been warned. :)

I have about 5000 miles on the stat, It has been rock solid and I monitor the digital read out temp guage constantly. This stat is a mirror image of the OE stat. I did have a issue back in 2016 with a Lingenfelter 180 stat and that did fail early but the design was totally different.

By the way, what actually happens to the stat when they die prematurely? they stick closed? open ? If its the seal, that is what the older different design did and that makes the car run to cool.

I am certainly not worried about gas mileage and the engine pistons/rings/heads etc are built for nitrous so I am not expecting any high mileage record for my engine. Just can’t believe they are still selling these.

So are you recommending to stay with stock thermostat? Anyone have the Katech thermostat and can chime in?

I have a Katech 160 and it has been solid for the last 3 years. In your case, I’d run a Katech 174.

5000 miles isn’t exactly OEM-level validation… making it to one oil change isn’t that big of a milestone. ;) :smiling1:

They stick shut (!), leading to overheating in the vast majority of cases I’ve seen over the past 4 years on these forums.

in an effort to push the cooler temps is more power agenda - what performance gains did you see by using a 160 tstat?

I had TWO of the Mishimoto thermostats crap out, both with just a few months of use. JUNK.

IMO, go with a Katech thermostat if you want to make a change from stock. My experience with their thermostat was that it lasts for years, instead of just a few months like both Mishimotos had.