water temp: is this normal?

[Arc Angel]

Hello SVX guru's...I have a strange question about the SVX's operational temperature. Before Christmas, I drove down from PA to Florida. The outside temperature was around 10 degrees when leaving PA. The temp guage just barely moved off the "C" area of the dash guage for most of the trip...when the outside temperature got up around 30 - 40 degrees, the guage finally started registering in the "normal" range on the very low side. Now take into concideration that I was also driving most of the time around 80-85 mph, steady. Once in Florida, and with outside temps in the 70's...the guage finally registered about dead center (where it normally registered before this trip at ALL times).
Same thing happened on the trip back to PA, except in reverse order. Now, back in PA, and the temperature still sub-freezing, the car barely registers in the normal range at all, always just on the "C" on the guage. If I leave the car sitting at idle for about 20 minutes, the guage will slowly move up towards the center range, but, as soon as I drive it, it drops back down just under the "normal" side again. Is this something normal? If not...thermostat trouble, or what?! My guess would be that the darn thermostat is stuck open...anyone else up here in the northeast (recent cold spell) that sees this happening?
Any thoughts or recs would be greatly appreciated. This is the first winter I'm taking the SVX through. Thanks.
Note: other than this weird glitch, the car is running absolutely fantastic, btw.

Frank

[SilverSpear]

I think that as long as your engine in not heating up, you have no problem. In the same time, the gauge shouldn't stay at C, because engine oil must be heated in order to smooth up, so friction inside the engine increases (when oil is cold). As long as it is above C till the middle, it is safe.

[Chiketkd]

Originally Posted by Arc Angel

Hello SVX guru's...I have a strange question about the SVX's operational temperature. Before Christmas, I drove down from PA to Florida. The outside temperature was around 10 degrees when leaving PA. The temp guage just barely moved off the "C" area of the dash guage for most of the trip...when the outside temperature got up around 30 - 40 degrees, the guage finally started registering in the "normal" range on the very low side. Now take into concideration that I was also driving most of the time around 80-85 mph, steady. Once in Florida, and with outside temps in the 70's...the guage finally registered about dead center (where it normally registered before this trip at ALL times).
Same thing happened on the trip back to PA, except in reverse order. Now, back in PA, and the temperature still sub-freezing, the car barely registers in the normal range at all, always just on the "C" on the guage. If I leave the car sitting at idle for about 20 minutes, the guage will slowly move up towards the center range, but, as soon as I drive it, it drops back down just under the "normal" side again. Is this something normal? If not...thermostat trouble, or what?! My guess would be that the darn thermostat is stuck open...anyone else up here in the northeast (recent cold spell) that sees this happening?
Any thoughts or recs would be greatly appreciated. This is the first winter I'm taking the SVX through. Thanks.
Note: other than this weird glitch, the car is running absolutely fantastic, btw.

Frank

Do you have an external transmission cooler installed in your car? If so, how many and how large are they?

[Arc Angel]

No external coolers...she's bone stock. 203,051 miles and in very, very good shape. Excellent body, near mint interior...and...short of this little cool-running engine, the engine seems extremely strong for the miles on 'er. That entire trip from PA to FL and back, some 2400 miles, and the engine only used one quart of oil. Not bad, eh?

[Chiketkd]

Originally Posted by Arc Angel

No external coolers...she's bone stock. 203,051 miles and in very, very good shape. Excellent body, near mint interior...and...short of this little cool-running engine, the engine seems extremely strong for the miles on 'er. That entire trip from PA to FL and back, some 2400 miles, and the engine only used one quart of oil. Not bad, eh?

Not bad at all! Not sure why the coolant temp is so low, but those are some very cool temps you were driving in. My advice would be to PM "Nik Fu S" who lives in Alaska and see if this is normal. He normally drives in extremely low temps on a regular basis.

I have yet to drive my SVX in temps below 15* to date and my gauge would always come up to operating temp eventually (maybe after 10 minutes of driving)

[mbtoloczko]

That's not normal. It sounds to me like the thermostat is stuck open. Luckily, its easy to get to. You'll have to drain the radiator, but after that, its just a few bolts to get to it.

[Earthworm]

I can confirm it's not normal. My SVX has seen -40° and the engine will still reach normal running temperature. Either your thermostat is stuck or missing.

[Arc Angel]

That's pretty much what I had thought. I've had two XT6's and a Turbo XT, which are "similar" engine designs, and I've driven all of them in extremely cold temps, well below zero and they always warmed up to normal. I just took it out again this afternoon for a hundred mile trip - as soon as I start driving highway speeds, the temp gauge drops down to "C" (below the normal range), so it may not even HAVE a thermostat in there. I'll check it out tomorrow am...thanks.

[Budfreak]

Yes, definitely not normal. I've had mine out in -5 degree weather and the gauge always stays right in the middle.

[Arc Angel]

Update: It was a bad thermostat as you all suspected. Mangled and torn appart, actually. Now...please bare with my unfamiliarity with the SVX engine layout. The bad (old) thermostat came out, and I replaced it with my new one and gasket, the same way - ie. with the poppet and spring side facing in towards the engine. Is the water in the SVX engine actually flowing from the bottom of the engine, out to the lower end of the radiator, and then back into the engine (after passing "upwards" through the radiator) and into the top of the engine? Sorry for what may be a really idiotic question...never saw this layout, even on my XT6's or Turbo XT with the H-6 engine. The only reason I ask, is I HOPE I just put the thermostat in the right direction!

Thanks again...

[Earthworm]

Hot engine coolant enters the top of the radiator.

[Arc Angel]

Coolant flows from the TOP of the engine, down? Nice...now I'm wondering if I put the darn thermostat in the correct way. I put it in the way the old one came out, but, who knows if that was in the right way to begin with.
Better grab a Subaru SVX manual, as I just got my wife's Christmas presents (late) from Subaru Motorsport Warehouse...wow, do I have allot of neat "stuff" to install (check out the "new" signature). Can't wait to try out this MSD Ignition system. Plug-n-play!

[mbtoloczko]

The spring points into the waterpump (vs pointing into the neck). There is a little bleeder hole in the t-stat. The t-stat should be rotated so that is at 12 o'clock.

[ensteele]

I will check and report back if someone else doesn't find out.

[NikFu S.]

There is absolutely no reason your engine should not heat up even in sub zero weather unless your thermostat is stuck open or gone, as you have found out.

Out of every vehicle I've ever been in this one heats up the fastest.
10*F out today, idle adjusted to 2k, I let it sit for about 3 minutes and it was a warm. The needle never budges the rest of the trip.

Now with an external tranny cooler and at a steady highway pace the gauge should read just below the center, and never higher than the exact center.