180 thermostat

will a 180 degree tstat work in a 2019 4runner without flashing the ecu

 

Yes. Also why change out on a 2019?

 

HEAT GENERATES FRICTION, FRICTION GENERATES WEAR

 

I get where you're coming from but unless you can put 500,000 miles on this truck it's going to wear you out first.

 

The factory thermostat is 180 degree.

 

Leave what it came with the Toyota engineers most likely know more about the vehicle than you do.

 

Try the TRD radiator cap. I swear it made the motor run better/smoother. Maybe it decreased some hot spots in the motor, or the motor likes a little higher heat range, or maybe I am just hallucinating, but I feel it runs better and will be keeping this mod.

 

I still have my original T-stat from 1996 in......

 

I "knew" you were wrong about this so I Googled the subject. You're absolutely right, 180*.
I can't believe that Toyota can allow their engines to run cooler than the American brands and still meet emission standards.

 

On mine, I like how they put the left AND right bank O2 sensors in one connector. Genius!!!

 

Whaaaaat? Picture or it ain't true

 

Yeah, I always feels it runs better after I clean the engine bay. For sure, I can hear and feel new oil. As for heat, it’s better running hot.

 

I have the scan gauge II monitoring the engine coolant temps on my 2016 runner.. the engine temp is 184-186F ...temp holds very good because it has a clutch fan not electric fans.
this temp IMO is a bit lower than many other manufacturer engines. GM 195F .. on my 2000 silverado and that old truck uses 1/3QT of oil every 7-10K miles 5-30wt synthetic .. has 176K miles on it .. no wear issues still working good ..
these toyota runners do last over 300K miles with no engine wear issues ...no problem .
if your in a dusty or farm area then inspect for any debris in the condenser/radiator .. wash it down if dirt in /on it ..

 

First of all friction is a CAUSE of heat (and wear), not the result of heat (rub your hands together, they get warmer).

The surface area of the fins and length and size of the tubing in the radiator, and what all is needing to be cooled by the radiator determines how well it cools under load. For instance, if you add a trans cooler, you have effectively increased the cooling capacity of the system by adding more fin area and tubing, and offloaded the heat generated by the friction in the trans from the main radiator. The thermostat only regulates the minimum coolant temperature. Once it’s wide open, only the radiator’s cooling capacity can keep temps under control. Part of what the OEM minimum temp is set for is the emissions systems. The ECU controls them based, in part, on the coolant temp. For example, when the engine (coolant temp) is cold, the ECU sends a richer fuel/air mixture to the engine. As it warms up, the mixture is leaned out. If the thermostat is cooler than OEM, the ECU may not think that the engine is completely warmed up yet, so it does not completely lean out the mixture.

If you want to help your engine run longer and cooler, use good quality oil to reduce the friction inside.

Back in the ‘70s I had a VW Double Cab pickup. The air cooled VW engines normally ran hot by nature. I was running standard Valvolene oil (synthetic oils would not come around for another decade or two). Every time I changed the oil, it came out with a viscosity almost like water. The heat had broken down the oil causing it to loose much of its lubricating properties. I started seeing adds on TV for Castrol GTX oil “engineered for smaller cars”. Castrol was legendary in the motorcycle racing world at the time (small, high performance engines running hot) so I decided to try it. It wasn’t synthetic, but whatever the formula was (which included castor oil), it was supposed to be better oil. The next time I drained the oil, it came out dirty as usual, but pretty much the same viscosity as when I put it in. The heat had not broken it down. I’ve used Castrol ever since (1985 Toyota Hilux Longbed 300,000+ miles before I sold it, 2003 Tacoma with 250,000+ miles and still going).

Bottom line, good oil will reduce friction in the engine which will reduce wear and help it run at its normal temperature.

 

There must be something about the TRD accessories that make these things run better. Here’s a similar thread from elsewhere on this site.

 

Oh man the TRD oil fill cap gives you like 30+ hp and about 5-6 mpg.

 

Don't forget the TRD stickers.

 

I have the scangauge II also. It runs at 190 degrees according to the gauge with the TRD radiator cap.

 

When a hydrocarbon molecule is completely oxidized (burned), the only combustion byproducts created are carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O). If the oxidation isn’t complete (like in the fraction of a second of an internal combustion engine piston’s power stroke), unburned hydrocarbons (HC), carbon (C, soot), carbon monoxide (CO, a poisonous gas) is created. Since the combustion does not occur in a pure oxygen environment but an atmosphere that contains 78% nitrogen and only 21% oxygen (which begs another thread on why would you pay $$ to fill your tires with nitrogen when they’re already 78% full of it anyway), various oxides of nitrogen (NOx) are also produced.

Enter the Smog Police in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s with their emissions standards. Detroit’s answer was to simply slap a catalytic converter on the tail pipe which, fairly inexpensively, converted the NC, CO, C, and NOx into CO2, H2O, and N2 (nitrogen). But, in order to pull this off, the exhaust had to be ripping hot to initiate and maintain the catalytic reaction. The key was to run the engine at 190° to get the crud cleaned out of the exhaust.

The Japanese took a different approach. They re-engineered their engines so that the engines produced less crud in the first place. Honda was king in this arena with their CVCC engine that could pass California smog requirements WITHOUT a catalytic converter clear into the late ‘70s (I owned a 1977 Honda Accord with a CVCC engine that could run regular leaded gas because it didn’t have a catalytic converter). Toyota has followed in the Japanese technology tradition and figured out how get their engines to run clean even though the coolant is only 180°.

A beneficial side effect of this Japanese technology was that their engines were, by nature, more fuel efficient (they were wringing more energy out of the hydrocarbons by burning them more completely. They touted that they could go over 300 miles on a tank of gas (30MPG with a 12 gallon tank vs Detroit’s 200 mile range with 10 mpg and a 20 gallon tank). With gas skyrocketing to $0.75 a gallon, Americans started buying Japanese cars. Detroit’s response to compete with the Japanese and try and lure back customers, were TV ads for cars for the new model year with a 350 mile range (the truth was that Detroit’s cars still got the same 10mpg, but now they had 35 gallon gas tanks).

 

Just when you "know" that you know it all.....