Thermostat and housing?

esreveRBackwards · 07-17-2009, 09:48 AM

Anyone got a writeup or some good photos of these? I have a coolant leak from this area. Going to change it tomorrow. Would help if I could see better what I am looking at. Thx!

te51levin · 07-17-2009, 10:53 AM

There's nothing to it, and no writeup necessary. The thermostat is in its own housing over the transmission. It's illustrated here as 16331A:

There are writeups around for the fill procedure. The important thing is that you find the procedure and follow it exactly. All air must be bled from the system, using the correct procedure, for the engine to run properly and safely. There are no shortcuts - PERIOD.

One other point - you'll definitely want to use an OEM Toyota thermostat. Parts store replicas (Stant, etc) simply are not made as well and do no operate nearly as reliably or consistently, and it does make a difference in how the car runs and how long it lasts. Everyone disregards this advice the first time, but it's true, so you may as well stat with the right part the first time.

toyotaspeed90 · 07-17-2009, 11:12 AM

There is a shortcut.....I don't follow procedure as I have a special tool called an Air Lift (puts coolant system under negative pressure then pulls coolant from a bottle straight into the system, filling it air free)..... I HIGHLY recommend this to anyone who has an MR2. Saves time and possible headaches!!! However, you need a good air compressor to run them. I can fill an empty system 100% in about 10 minutes.

I would say get the battery out, move all wires as much as pobbible first.... (if standing from the drivers side) remove the left side only, do not unbolt the right side of the housing from the transmission. There are 2 bolts that hold it together, remove those, but try to hold it closed. Have your ready thermostat (with gasket) in one hand and attempt to (quickly and smoothly) pull the housing apart, pull the old out, install the new, and put the housings back together. Doing this quickly will help in the loss of coolant.

te51levin · 07-17-2009, 03:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by toyotaspeed90

There is a shortcut...I have a special tool called an Air Lift...However, you need a good air compressor to run them.

I stand corrected, but most home mechanics don't have the necessary equipment. I'm super paranoid about shortcuts, so I'd want to visually confirm an absence of air by the factory procedure even after a vacuum fill.

esreveRBackwards · 07-19-2009, 05:23 PM

Well i swapped out the thermo. Thx everyone. Still leaking tho. seems to be coming from the part the arrow is pointing to ...

...Is there a gasket besides the one that goes around the thermostat? Maybe one that goes between 16321 and 16323?

Also, the old thermo was 1/2 gone. only thing left was the front 1/2.. the other 1/2 was nowhere to be found. could it have been in there so long it rusted and broke off? Dont sound good if it broke off. It was not inside 16323.. what if it is further up or down the cooling system?

te51levin · 07-22-2009, 01:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by esreveRBackwards

Is there a gasket besides the one that goes around the thermostat? Maybe one that goes between 16321 and 16323?

No sir, the only gasket is the one on the thermostat.

Quote:

Originally Posted by esreveRBackwards

Also, the old thermo was 1/2 gone. only thing left was the front 1/2.. the other 1/2 was nowhere to be found. could it have been in there so long it rusted and broke off? Dont sound good if it broke off. It was not inside 16323.. what if it is further up or down the cooling system?

If it has broken off, it would travel rearward, then into the large pipe that goes to the back of the water pump. I'd take that whole pipe off and make sure you don't have part of a thermostat sitting inside, waiting to tear up your water pump impellor like a fork in a garbage disposal...

esreveRBackwards · 07-23-2009, 01:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by te51levin

No sir, the only gasket is the one on the thermostat.

If it has broken off, it would travel rearward, then into the large pipe that goes to the back of the water pump. I'd take that whole pipe off and make sure you don't have part of a thermostat sitting inside, waiting to tear up your water pump impellor like a fork in a garbage disposal...

I'll have my mechanic look into that when I get the transmission fixed.

07-17-2009, 09:48 AM	#1 (permalink)
esreveRBackwards Some Skills Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 74 Thanks: 15 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	Thermostat and housing? Anyone got a writeup or some good photos of these? I have a coolant leak from this area. Going to change it tomorrow. Would help if I could see better what I am looking at. Thx!

07-17-2009, 10:53 AM	#2 (permalink)
te51levin Lithia Toyota Parts Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Oregon Posts: 1,928 Thanks: 33 Thanked 146 Times in 125 Posts My Google Map iTrader Rating: (126/100% )	There's nothing to it, and no writeup necessary. The thermostat is in its own housing over the transmission. It's illustrated here as 16331A: There are writeups around for the fill procedure. The important thing is that you find the procedure and follow it exactly. All air must be bled from the system, using the correct procedure, for the engine to run properly and safely. There are no shortcuts - PERIOD. One other point - you'll definitely want to use an OEM Toyota thermostat. Parts store replicas (Stant, etc) simply are not made as well and do no operate nearly as reliably or consistently, and it does make a difference in how the car runs and how long it lasts. Everyone disregards this advice the first time, but it's true, so you may as well stat with the right part the first time. Last edited by te51levin; 07-17-2009 at 11:00 AM.

07-19-2009, 05:23 PM	#5 (permalink)
esreveRBackwards Some Skills Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 74 Thanks: 15 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	Well i swapped out the thermo. Thx everyone. Still leaking tho. seems to be coming from the part the arrow is pointing to ... ...Is there a gasket besides the one that goes around the thermostat? Maybe one that goes between 16321 and 16323? Also, the old thermo was 1/2 gone. only thing left was the front 1/2.. the other 1/2 was nowhere to be found. could it have been in there so long it rusted and broke off? Dont sound good if it broke off. It was not inside 16323.. what if it is further up or down the cooling system? Last edited by esreveRBackwards; 07-19-2009 at 11:50 PM.

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07-17-2009, 11:12 AM	#3 (permalink)
toyotaspeed90 No Skills Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Bellingham, WA Posts: 433 Thanks: 0 Thanked 32 Times in 32 Posts My Google Map iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	There is a shortcut.....I don't follow procedure as I have a special tool called an Air Lift (puts coolant system under negative pressure then pulls coolant from a bottle straight into the system, filling it air free)..... I HIGHLY recommend this to anyone who has an MR2. Saves time and possible headaches!!! However, you need a good air compressor to run them. I can fill an empty system 100% in about 10 minutes. I would say get the battery out, move all wires as much as pobbible first.... (if standing from the drivers side) remove the left side only, do not unbolt the right side of the housing from the transmission. There are 2 bolts that hold it together, remove those, but try to hold it closed. Have your ready thermostat (with gasket) in one hand and attempt to (quickly and smoothly) pull the housing apart, pull the old out, install the new, and put the housings back together. Doing this quickly will help in the loss of coolant.