160 VVC THERMOSTAT REMOVAL/CHANGE.

Hi everyone.  What a bugger of a job this is turning out to be!  As I'm in the process of doing the HG I thought I'd change the stat at the same time,  not as easy as I thought the coolant rail has to be removed along with the oil cooler thingy,  the F is far, far easier. So I'm thinking about using the PRT set up instead as I understand its easier to change that
when things go wrong.  Anyone done this and are there new units available, what about heat from exhaust affecting it?    Any help/advice will be gratefully appreciated.
   Regards as always Glyn  (D4KGP)

There are two way to approach this. You can modify the pipe work at the front, under the spare wheel well & the conventional method.
There are several “how to’s, covering the standard method, but I’ve only seen one for the front mounted system.
I’ve tried both & am sticking with the standard system, the front system, I abandoned this due to it taking too long to warm up. In actual fact the PRT was faulty & having changed to the rear mounted system, there was no need to change back.
The pipe work was readily available a while ago & wasn’t expensive; things have changed I would bet.
If you buy a secondhand PRT, test it before fitting, I think David did a “how to” on this. After a couple of dead ends I bought a new unit & all is well.
M

Thanks for your reply/advice, I now realise that working on an F is much easier compared to the TF. But it'll all be ok when finished.
Regards Glyn.

Not a how to for conversion as such, but I did a how to on replacing the PRT. There was a small chat about the conversion with some piping pictures.

Yes I've seen thank you.

That was my prime inspiration years ago, I need to change the bottom hose from the PRT which leads to the stainless pipes. These are old & are failing & I have pink drops in the drip tray after putting her away after an energetic run.
If you buy the entire dangley bits as ably modelled by David, years ago, inspect the pipes before getting drenched twice. One on initial fitting & a second time after finding fault with the original fix.
M

Hi so going back to this, its said that a blanking plug is needed in place of the original stat if the PRT system is fitted. I don't understand this, surely you can't block up part of the circulation, so I need some clarification on this topic can you or someone help put me on the right track. Thanks. Glyn.

Maybe a fellow member might corroborate this as its been a while since the job was done.
I’m fairly sure you can remove all the active parts from the original ‘stat, leaving just the “chassis” to form the correct spacing & seal.
M

Yes, as above. The word "Blank" probably  gives the wrong impression. You just need the outer circular section of the old thermostat to give a proper seal at the original location.👍