Just wondering if improving the cooling system too much is bad for the engine? I try and keep the water temps around 76-78C by turning the fans on with the A/C trick. Should I let it get hotter instead?
cooling mods: ribbed water jackets, Koyo, NPG+ at 0psi, throttle body bypass.

 

nope

 

78C is too cold IMO.

 

Not that it doesn't get hotter, it will hit 90c if I run it hard to redline with full boost a few times on a hot day.
But if I'm cruising down the freeway at 80 on a cool day the temps drop into the low 70's even with the fans off.

 

Really? I get around 80's cruisng down the highway.

 

what cooling mods do you have?

 

AST, fan mod. No upgraded radiator yet.
I'm happy as long as it doesn't go to 100C.
I switch the fans on around 88C.

 

I still have my stock AST :-(
I should do the fan mod, it's on my list of stuff to do.
I have a turbo timer though, and if the temp is over 80 when I go to shut down I let the timer idle it for 3-5 minutes.

 

You are keeping your car too cold. 78C = 172F. The double-throttle plates are barely open at that point. I would never get on the engine really hard at that low of a temp.

These cars run great in the 185-200 F range and IMO, that's where they should be.

 

Jedon: What is you opinion of the Evans coolant? I'm getting ready to reinstall my engine and can't decide what coolant to use.

 

I really like it, as long as you buy enough to always have some in the car in case you need to top it off. I firmly believe that it saved my engine when my AST exploded.

 

I removed my double throttle plates :-D
So what is 185-200 F in C?
That's what the PFC commander reads in.

 

About 85-95 C.

The stock fans don't even come on until 221F = 104 C. While I feel this is certainly too high, I think running at 172F (78C) is way too low for hard driving.

 

It would take about 30 minutes of driving to get up to that temp without running it kinda hard, it takes me less than 20 to get to work :-(

 

Shouldn't the Evans coolant run a little hotter than regular coolant?

 

yes, it can run hotter due to the fact that it has a much higher boiling point so won't create hot pockets like water will. Perhaps I should try and just run the car without turning on the fans like I usually do and see what the temps balance out to.

 

replace t-stat, opens at 82C.

get fans on at about 92C, with parking lites, PFC, fan mod, miata switch (97C).

 

I must admit that I am using a NAPA thermostat not the OEM like I should be.