I pulled the thermostat out of my 1986 bronco with a 351w figuring that since I live in south Florida and already disconected the heater core I had no need for the thermostat to help get things warmed up. I'm also looking at replacing the radiator and can get a thin 1 row design for cheap but figured I would want the 4 row thicker higher capacity one to help cool it since I'm gonna be driving in stop and go traffic and slow offroad. I've heard that a lower temp thermostat is bad cause running the water tempt too low is harder on the engine and creates more wear but then why would people recomend leaving the stock temp thermostat in it while at the same time spending extra money on better higher capacity radiators to help cool it better? Also if leaving the thermostat out slow the warm up process down but I live in really hot south florida is is going to warm up fast enough and then not really matter?

 

taking thermostat out is a bad idea because the water is also slowed down by it as to collect the heat from the block and heads. take it out and the water runs through so fast it collects no heat,well very little. the water shows cool on the guage but the block and heads are really hot learned that from my stockcar racing days, you dont run thermostat so as not to have one stick closed but moroso makes colored washers that fit in the water neck to slow water to properly cool the motor the different color the washer the bigger or smaller the opening changing flow rate to cool or add more heat. answer to your question for bigger rad , run thermostat that your motor calls for, and depending on your driving style or load on motor you need the rad /fan to keep it there temp wise from not over heating thermostat shuts water down to heat it up quick but rad and fan cool it to keep it in range rad and fan cool to much thermo shuts and water heats up. if you have a overheating prob due to high horsepower or off roading or heavy towing or bad traffic need bigger rad or better fan or both without thermostat the motor might cool down too much and effect performance mpg and emissions cj

 

Engine wear doubles for every 10°F lower engine temp. Your fuel economy is also directly related to engine temp. Colder engines use more fuel. Put the stock temp thermostat back in. Radiator efficiency is also directly related to temperature difference.

Use a stock type thermostatic clutch fan with an OEM type radiator shroud.

 

With no personal testing or experience I have heard that consistent temperature of the engine= longer life due to the parts not expanding and contracting with the temperature changes as the engine is running hot then colder then hotter.... It's news to me that once the engines temp starts dropping below the ideal temperature range that it actually starts decreasing that gas mileage u get?! I guess I'll have to get an acurate external temperature guage, new thermostat (are they all the same quality cause I don't want a stuck thermostat to be the death of my engine), and a high capacity multi rod radiator to help cool things off once the thermostat opens. My original idea was pulling the old thermostat would ensure it doesn't stick and overheat the engine, would better cool the egine by flowing more water right off the bat equaling less friction/wear from expanding metal parts in the engine, and cooler engine temps/ engine bay temps would equal slightly cooler fuel/air going into the engine and more hp.

Hey for every action there's a chain reaction and I'm just glad to have all the help ya'll have been giving me to keep a cheap fix from being my trucks achilles heel. This trucks turning into pandora's box but I'm learning alot and having run working on it!

 

Why would you try to re-engineer the engine cooling systems? The automotive engineers do a pretty good job engineering these things and they do a lot of testing. Do a lot of research before modifying the vehicle systems. Schooling and education helps to understand some of the research data out there. It can also help you identify the bull that is out there also.

The Pandora's box problem may be due to trying to fix things that aren't broken.

 

Cold engine, and warm=up takes much longer. Unless you like sucking gasoline out of the tank, due to poor warm-up capabiliites, you are simply wasting gasoline, needlessly.
I would only remove a thermostat, if I was out traveling, and discovered the 'stat was stuck closed. I would replace as soon as possible as a engine running close to optimum temp is very beneficial and the engine was designed this way.

You can drive your Bronco without shocks too. Why not do that as well?