I just replaced the thermostat on my 97 last night, and thought I'd make life easier for anyone needing to do this repair by doing a writeup. Being the "F it up and learn" type of guy, I thought I'd save you the pains of my mistakes and tell you the right way to do it the first time.
Be sure to get the OEM thermostat. I bought OEM and an aftermarket one, and the difference in quality is huge.
Tools needed: new thermostat, gasket, wheel ramps, 12mm socket w/ long extension, 12mm small box wrench (or rachet wrench), small funnell with about 2 ft of flexible tubing, a clean bucket with about 3 gallon capacity, shop rags, plentiful #6's on ice.
First off, get some wheel ramps. This will make the process much easier, as you have to crawl underneath to remove a protective bracket and the radiator drain plug.
First step is to remove the bracket below the radiator with a 12mm socket, this will make accessing the plug much easier. You may have to remove the 2 bolts that hold the steering stabilizer in place as well to get the bracket completely off. I elected not to do this, and instead just rotated the bracket out of the way.
Locate the white drain plug, which is on the bottom left if you are underneath looking up. Position the small funnel as close as you can below the plug (hold in place with some bailing wire, etc), attach the plastic hose to the bottom, and place the hose in the bucket. Why use the funnel? One, the coolant will NOT come out the hole in the frame it's supposed to, instead spewing all over the damn place like a 16 old girl after drinking 4 liters of Purple Passion on prom night. Two, if you're planning on reusing your coolant as I was (brand new) this will keep it from becoming contaminated after touching every dirty/greasy object on the way down.
Now once you have everything positioned properly, remove the bottom drain plug. THEN remove the radiator cap slowly, but don't take it all of the way off. This will allow the coolant to drain, but not come out too fast and make a huge mess.
Once the radiator is fully drained, it's time to remove the thermostat. Looking down at the engine from the hood, follow the hose from the bottom left to the thermostat housing on the engine, it looks like a triangular piece that swallowed a golf ball, held on by 3 bolts. The bolts on the housing are a real hoot to get at.
First remove the front half of the heat shield from the exhaust manifold with a 12mm socket. Then get your 12mm box wrench out and remove the thermostat housing. This would be a great place to have a ratchet wrench, as the bottom left bolt is a bitch to get at. Replace the thermostat and gasket, be sure the gasket is properly seated.
Replace the housing, being careful not to overtighten the bolts. Replace the heat shield. Replace the radiator plug, refill the radiator, and replace cap. Replace the bottom bracket. Start the engine and make sure there are no leaks, let run for a minute, then check the coolant level, refill as necessary.
If you did it the way I did the next step is to throw faulty thermostat at wall because you're pissed that you were too lazy to buy a funnel and now have a red coolant pond covering the garage floor.
:stupid:
Next tutorial: patching small holes in drywall. :
Be sure to get the OEM thermostat. I bought OEM and an aftermarket one, and the difference in quality is huge.
Tools needed: new thermostat, gasket, wheel ramps, 12mm socket w/ long extension, 12mm small box wrench (or rachet wrench), small funnell with about 2 ft of flexible tubing, a clean bucket with about 3 gallon capacity, shop rags, plentiful #6's on ice.
First off, get some wheel ramps. This will make the process much easier, as you have to crawl underneath to remove a protective bracket and the radiator drain plug.
First step is to remove the bracket below the radiator with a 12mm socket, this will make accessing the plug much easier. You may have to remove the 2 bolts that hold the steering stabilizer in place as well to get the bracket completely off. I elected not to do this, and instead just rotated the bracket out of the way.
Locate the white drain plug, which is on the bottom left if you are underneath looking up. Position the small funnel as close as you can below the plug (hold in place with some bailing wire, etc), attach the plastic hose to the bottom, and place the hose in the bucket. Why use the funnel? One, the coolant will NOT come out the hole in the frame it's supposed to, instead spewing all over the damn place like a 16 old girl after drinking 4 liters of Purple Passion on prom night. Two, if you're planning on reusing your coolant as I was (brand new) this will keep it from becoming contaminated after touching every dirty/greasy object on the way down.
Now once you have everything positioned properly, remove the bottom drain plug. THEN remove the radiator cap slowly, but don't take it all of the way off. This will allow the coolant to drain, but not come out too fast and make a huge mess.
Once the radiator is fully drained, it's time to remove the thermostat. Looking down at the engine from the hood, follow the hose from the bottom left to the thermostat housing on the engine, it looks like a triangular piece that swallowed a golf ball, held on by 3 bolts. The bolts on the housing are a real hoot to get at.
First remove the front half of the heat shield from the exhaust manifold with a 12mm socket. Then get your 12mm box wrench out and remove the thermostat housing. This would be a great place to have a ratchet wrench, as the bottom left bolt is a bitch to get at. Replace the thermostat and gasket, be sure the gasket is properly seated.
Replace the housing, being careful not to overtighten the bolts. Replace the heat shield. Replace the radiator plug, refill the radiator, and replace cap. Replace the bottom bracket. Start the engine and make sure there are no leaks, let run for a minute, then check the coolant level, refill as necessary.
If you did it the way I did the next step is to throw faulty thermostat at wall because you're pissed that you were too lazy to buy a funnel and now have a red coolant pond covering the garage floor.
:stupid:
Next tutorial: patching small holes in drywall. :