Thermostat MISHIMOTO or MotoRad

Big fan of the Motorad SNN-2000-195. Works great.

Just so happens my clearance thermostat is a Motorad which has the VW/Audi p/n cast on the housing!

I use them all the time with no issues.

I remembered the old thermostat looking like it did, so I waited a few hours to let the engine cool down then swapped the new thermostat for the old one, turned the engine on and no overheating. I've been driving the car as it is for a while now without any problems other than I can't drive long-distance without it running too hot (ex. I drove 4 hours a couple times a year traveling for college, and in the summer the car sometimes would overheat by the time I got to my destination).

Forget about the Mishimoto thermostat. The OEM thermostat is way more reliable and does the job.

I put the mishimoto 160* in hot water to test it out. Lo and behold, wax started seeping out.

I had 2 fail back to back. The first lasted 3 months, a couple thousand miles, the 2nd lasted 5 weeks, also a couple thousand miles. Left me stranded. 275 degree spike followed by coolant puking.

Had a Motorad Fail Safe a few years ago and it was a POS.

Tried a Gates from RockAuto and it was a Motorad in the box. Installed it anyway, it seemed to hold the temp *lower* than the 170 Stant did, and my engine cooled all the way down to cold when I went down a long grade.

when installing a mishimoto thermostat, check that the shoulder/flange is the same thickness as oem. Otherwise your stock hardware WILL NOT FIT. You will bottom out the bolt in the timing cover and snap that mf. Those bolts are extremely hard to access and a MAJOR HEADACHE to get extracted.