Proper assembly thermostat housings.

[LovetheA's]

I’m thinking I want to upgrade to the billet thermostat housing as apposed to the standard OEM one on my 383. My question is what additional steps do I have to do to make sure that the billet housing seals? I notice when putting the two housings side by side the OEM unit has little ribs just inside where the thermostat sits so it sits higher and flush with the base so it can’t move. It appears as if the thermostat in the billet housing can move slightly up and down. Will that be a problem? Also I remember someone saying that they used an O ring to seal the billet thermostat if so where is it placed and what other steps need to be made to make it seal correctly?

 

[Dana67Dart]

Regardless of which type housing you use i recomend you use this gasket. NO sealant and like 25 in lbs on the bolts but i have not had a leak and it is reusable. I have never had a cooling system tbat didnt seep but this one holds 16 lbs


Mopar 53063 | eBay

 

[69_340_GTS]

You can't use an o-ring to seal the housing unless it is made for one. Yours does not appear to be. There needs to be an actual groove in it where the o-ring sits. The groove has a specific OD, ID, and depth to fit a specific size of o-ring, which is normally supplied with the housing.

 

[LovetheA's]

Thank you everyone for the info. I’m wondering also if I can put some sort of spacer under where the actual thermostat sits so it is tight in the housing when I bolt it down? As I said in the original post the recession in the billet housing is noticeably bigger and the thermostat can move around and isn’t seated tight like in the oem housing.

 

[69_340_GTS]

The correct gasket will overlap the edge of the thermostat. When you tighten everything down, I think that will hold the thermostat from moving. But even if it doesn't, I wouldn't worry about it. Even if it has room to move around, it certainly isn't going anywhere.

 

[Dana67Dart]

As I said in the original post the recession in the billet housing is noticeably bigger and the thermostat can move around and isn’t seated tight like in the oem housing.

I had used a newer thicker housing too and the thermostat did not seal well into the housing but it did not seem to be a problem.

Ultimately I bought a Classic Ind OE style and used the silicon gasket i mentioned above and have had no issues at all.