I notice this seems to be a pretty big practice in the Philippines, some people call it climatizing the vehicle. But it's actually not good for the system. Your coolant system is designed to have that restriction in it and if your car is a computer controlled vehicle it can make the vehicles tune get out of whack like running to rich all the time.

The thermostat keeps the water in your radiator longer so it can be cooled, without it it will constantly run the system and may not be cooled enough. On the highway it's not such a big deal but a slow speeds and stop and go traffic your actually harming your cooling.

The better thing to do is get a T-stat that is a colder range. For a tropical climate a 165F to 180F is a much better option then removing your T-stat. Remember you car can still overheat even if you have removed it.

The other and very cheap solution we have been doing for years is to drill your T-stat. It's what I do on any vehicles I have when in a hot climate, and where I live we have had up to 60 days of above 100F weather, believe me it makes a nice difference.

Start out using a 1/16" drill and drill into the thermostat away from the 2 support arms on the thermostat. Once you've got the two small holes drilled, go back in with a 3/16" drill bit and enlarge the two holes. Use a screwdriver or sand paper to break off any metal splinters that you may have created during the drilling.

You will see on average for example a 195F/90C T-Stat will run on average 185F/85C with two 3/16 holes. Plus you will also notice it will stay cooler longer in stop and go traffic situations.



It's a pretty easy mod to do, and better for your cooling system than removing the thermostat. I would put no more than 3 holes in any stat and you don't want to get crazy and go with larger than the 3/16" holes because you can weaken the T-stat.

These days they sell coolant restriction plates that replace the T-stat all together, especially for racers, but they are becoming more popular in high heat climates. Also something you can replace the T-stat with but it would have to be custom made to the exact size of the OEM one. These have inner hole sizes of 5/8", 3/4" and 1" i.d.





These have become very popular in the states especially in racing but I would stick with the drilled stats because these are for larger displacements engines like V-8's. The orifice size will be a bit to big for most 4cly vehicles.