Billet Aluminum Thermostat Housing for 4.0L 1GR-FE

Looks like you are not getting a refund,just cut your losses and chalk it it up as learning experience .
Seller is selling an item that doesn't work,plain and simple.

 

Glad I held off on this one, was almost tempted to buy

Reminds me of when that FJ guy came on here sold everyone on the CM TOB setup then dipped.

 

Looks like he's dodging the question about overall coolant temp and focusing on vague descriptions of coolant flow and reducing hot spots.

Coolant temp is easy to measure, coolant flow not so much..

 

Exactly. Even then, there are no flow diagrams on how much of an improvement it actually is. Regardless of it all, the tstat design that he is providing does not support the internally cored coolant passages of the tacoma v6, that's why the temps are higher overall. Someone here had a great explanation about it.

And the seller is being very arrogant. So much for any customer support.

 

He is just selling an aluminum housing unit which most likely is more durable then plastic,but there are no other benefits that come with it,his even raises the temp,so that's a negative in itself,also you can buy 3 plus factory units for the price of one of his .

 

There's lots of stuff out there that's way better than factory and the idea and build quality were solid. Just unfortunate the performance wasn't there to match in this case.

The sellers message sucks though. Not even nice about it.

 

Sadly, and yes, I was the one that did a bunch of the homework as to why this billet setup runs hot, the design flaw is not so much the billet housing (except for supercharged folks).
The design is flawed on account of the designer / seller not having a proper understanding of the details regarding the flow of coolant in these engines.

Had he made and offered a billet replacement, identical in shape and dimension as the oem plastic housing AND utilized the oem thermostat, the setup would have worked.

Seeing his reply to another buyer was very disturbing.
I purchased mine thru his Tacoma World topic, if I had purchased thru EBay, it would be sent back for 100% refund.

Yes, I too have a paperweight…did buy a new oem Toyota setup to replace my 95,000 mile original thermostat.
Making matters even more costly for me, but did take worry away about my 14 year old oem radiator, is that I bought an aluminum radiator also before realizing the billet thermostat housing setup is junk.

 

BTW folks, karma will sort him out at some point…
He got my money, I posted the truth. The seller has failed, maybe got our money, but that only lasts so long.
Would benefit others if there was a way to caution folks buying from his EBay store.

 

I originally purchased mine because my heater blew luke-warm air at idle when the outside temp was maybe under 20 degrees. I flushed the heater core (or at least I did a light flush) with no change. Instead of the Toyota 185 (maybe 180. I don't remember) degree I put in a 210. Better but not perfect. Then I decided to really get after the heater core and hit it with some serious Irontite ThoroFlush using 5 gallons of hot water mix on a circulation pump for 10 minutes backwards. (This stuff doesn't harm aluminum radiators and isn't wimpy like Prestone flush). I got a ton of crud out of it. I ran clean water through the core, blew that out with compressed air, filled the core with coolant, and got the air out of the system. With the 210 it was way too hot in the cabin. I put a normal 185 back in and it runs no difference when idling or on the freeway in sub freezing temps. Thanks to this billet I was able to diagnose where the problem was and swap thermostats as needed. I see no need to go back to the OEM plastic one. This one is better built by far. I don't see how this aluminum one would degrade the cooling performance. It's larger than the OEM so more coolant flow when open. It's a thermostat so it will close when the engine temp cools below the 185 degree threshold. If you're getting overheating problems you have issues with a clogged radiator, crud in your hoses, or faulty water pump. Even if you suspect a bad thermostat, with the billet one you can cheaply put in a new $20 one instead of the $100 OEM.

 

Seems you are the only positive buyer of the aluminum unit.Glad it worked out for you.

 

Someone can PM a mod to see if they will remove his eBay link in the OP given the negative findings on the product.

Usually if you buy through eBay they will side with a buyer 9.5/10 times through their money back guarantee. Idk if that process will then prevent leaving the guy negative feedback though.

 

[QUOTE="...I don't see how this aluminum one would degrade the cooling performance. It's larger than the OEM so more coolant flow when open. It's a thermostat so it will close when the engine temp cools below the 185 degree threshold. If you're getting overheating problems you have issues with a clogged radiator, crud in your hoses, or faulty water pump. Even if you suspect a bad thermostat, with the billet one you can cheaply put in a new $20 one instead of the $100 OEM."[/QUOTE]

I guess you didn't read this Post #180 by @PMK :

"Finally had time to research why my engine ran hotter and with fluctuating temps when the billet housing and Motorad high flow 180*f thermostat is installed (actually tried two thermostats with the same results).
These 1GR engines utilize a Double Valve type thermostat as oem. The disc diameter at the end of the thermostat is important, as is the discs location and travel when going from cold to 180*f.

Explaining, when the engine is cold, the actual thermostat is closed, and the disc has the water bypass port uncovered. This allows the engine to warm up quickly by recirculating coolant without sending any to the radiator.
As the engine temp gets to 180*f, the thermostat opens while at the same time closing off the bypass port. This allows water to flow from the engine to the radiator, and back to the engine.

If the bypass port is not capable to be closed, heated coolant circulates back thru the engine without being cooled in the radiator.

The oem thermostat has a much larger disc to block flow as needed, sending coolant to the radiator. The Motorad thermostat had a smaller diameter disc and is not capable to block the flow as needed."

 

I’ve been running mine with the high flow 180 since they came out. On a 110 degree day my temps do climb in the 200-210 range with the ac blasting. I do notice warmer heat temps inside the cabin during the winter which is nice. Truck drives great.

 

OEM is only $36 that includes the housing and thermostat.

 

Hope everyone gets their money back. Seller and product are apparently garbage.

 

No plans to argue or debate this with you, just fwiw, my truck had no issues running Scangage monitored temps of 190*f max with a stock thermostat and housing, stock radiator, and coolant in acceptable condition.
The simple change from stock thermostat and housing, to the billet set up, no other changes, saw a 10*f temp increase at 60 mph on flat road, with daytime temp same as the day before when it ran cooler.
Concerned, but still expecting better results, I ordered a new Motorad thermostat and replaced the one supplied with the billet housing. No other changes, exactly the same 10*f temp increase at 60 mph on a flat highway.
Using your logic of a clogging up radiator, I then ordered from URD a multi row all aluminum radiator. With the larger radiator installed and coolant serviced / purged of air. Even with the larger new radiator, the temps remained 10*f hotter than with a stock thermostat setup.

Retained the radiator, reinstalled the oem thermostat and housing, temps decreased back to the previous 190*f.

All that said, I researched other possible thermostats. I found articles about modern thermostats and how the double valve design controls coolant flow. Also, learned that Toyota installed the thermostat in the coolant return hose, not the common engine outlet hose to the radiator. Learning that, reasons why the engine ran warmer became more apparent. The Motorad thermostat supplied with the billet housing apparently is not able to close off the coolant recirculating passage for engine warm up, and therefore recirculates water within the engine vs purging the heated water to the radiator.

Ultimately though, a couple of the buyers of the billet thermostat housings are very happy with using them, so please enjoy, but also understand, my experiences were not just whims. I tested a multitude of parts trying to understand why the engine ran hotter.

 

I do notice on hot days my truck can sit for 10-12 hours. As soon as it start it the needle is already moving. Needle stays in the middle once warm.

 

Quite obvious you are very content and happy with your billet thermostat housing and supplied Motorad high flow thermostat.
I am not selling donuts, so nothing I referenced or posted is sugar coated.

If your skill set is finding the temps your engine operates as acceptable to you, I have no issue with as it is your truck / engine.

Realize though, what I posted was actual experiences and methodical troubleshooting without concerns towards cost of additional even expensive parts trying to ensure my experience of higher temps was the result of the billet housing and Motorad thermostat setup as purchased and supplied to me from the seller here.

All the best with your truck and setup, I have no concerns about your choice, merely I offered information you can use if you prefer.

 

I returned to an OEM thermostat assembly but I went so far down the rabbit hole during all of this that I've decided to continue with my plans to add the CSF Performance radiator and B&M transmission cooler with Mishimoto pusher fan. I do lots of Death Valley and Mojave desert trips with a heavy truck on 35s and I figure they can only help. I really couldn't spare the extra 10° that the Motorad thermostat seemed to cause.

 

I’m not saying you’re wrong so put the gloves down. Sorry your experience was a bad one. Maybe I’m wrong with those temps I’m seeing. I haven’t tried putting a load on the engine like towing. Maybe then my experience would change.