ehattey said:
I just put in my stage two jet-chip, and i noticed that i am running way hotter than before
stock: 185-200
with chip: 200-230
someone had mentioned i should do a 180 degree thermostat... but i wondered if i should do a 160 instead? How much is something like this for the hemi engine? who makes it? difficulty of install?
First off, ehattey, are you certain that your increased coolant temps are jet chip specific? Weather's no warmer than pre-jet chip? Reason I ask is I ran the Jet Chip Stage II for well over a year here in Phoenix with absolutely no increase in coolant temps resulting from running the chip.
If you're quite sure that the temps are up due to the jet chip I'd suggest you pull the chip and run your car for a few days. If the coolant temps drop and the ambient temps hold or increase then it appears very likely that the chip was, in fact, the cause. I'd suggest you then reinstall the chip, being meticulous about getting the chip fully seated. Hopefully you'll not see a resultant increase in coolant temps this time (I'm hoping that the chip is merely not seated fully, resulting in bad inputs to the PCM). If the temps do rise with no change in your weather pattern I'd suggest you contact Jet Performance & advise them that you're getting a 15-30 degree rise in coolant temp from running the chip and that you're requesting an RMA number to return the chip for replacement. Don't let them merely talk you into a cooler tstat - that would only treat the symptoms, not the cause, which would be a chip that erroneously commands an over-lean condition and makes the car run hot.
I'd suggest you do run a cooler thermostat, however. The best one out there, IMO, for most LX owners is the Prestone 383-170, a nominal 170-degree tstat that runs at a precise 176 degrees in cool weather or when running a fan mod. In heavy traffic, without a fan mod to command your radiator fan to on your coolant temps will run just as hot as they do with the stock 203 degree tstat installed.
For all you need to know about alternate thermostats for your LX see:
http://www.lxforums.com/board/showthread.php?t=19830&highlight
Again, a cooler tstat is only half of the fix. You also need a fan mod. Those are covered in the listed thread as well.
Good luck. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.
