98 Voyager 3.0 liter V6 Thermostat Replacement?

How hard is it to replace the thermostat on a 98 Voyager with the 3.0
liter Mitsubishi V6?

We've had some really cold weather on the east coast the past few days
and I noticed that the temperature gauge in my wife's Vger is only
going up 1/4 the way, even on the highway. In the summer, the temp
gauge would head up about half way.

I'm thinking I have a defective thermostat, which also could explain
the poor gas mileage the minivan has gotten for some time, asssuming
it's not getting up to proper operating temperature. The vehicle also
takes a long time to warm up - more so than it used to.

I haven't looked under the hood yet to see where the thermostat is
located to see if this is a job I can do myself. If it's behind the
timing belt cover, I may bite the bullet and pay to have someone do
it, but if it's an easy job, I'd like the challenge.

 

very easy to replace, you may as well flush the system too, drain the
petcock, remove the housing and clean off the old gasket, reassemble. make
sure as you are filling it up you get the air out of the system while the
engine is running

 

On Tue, 21 Dec 2004 19:04:52 -0500, "maxpower"

Thanks for the reply - looking in my Haynes manual, it does not
mention the 3.0 as an engine which requires "bleeding" to get the air
out. Yet the Chiltons does... (go figure). Looks like it should be
fairly straight-forward. Wish me luck!

 

<Thanks for the reply - looking in my Haynes manual, it does not
mention the 3.0 as an engine which requires "bleeding" to get the air
out. Yet the Chiltons does... (go figure). Looks like it should be
fairly straight-forward. Wish me luck!>
==============================================
Here comes the "detractors" of Haynes and the like.

HNY
h

 

On Tue, 21 Dec 2004 18:12:04 -0800, "howard"

I don't usually need a manual, but like to have one for reference.
Often times those manuals are quite generic and don't give me the
exact stuff I am looking for when tackling a repair. The old
carpenter's saying "measure twice and cut once" comes to mind...
forewarned is forearmed... I'll be quiet now. (grin!)

 

I replaced the thermostat on my 3.0 Voyager. You might want to spend
the money for the original Mitsubishi part from the dealer. It's about
$20 versus 3rd party for $6-$10 but it is made a little better and less
likely to stick. I don't want to replace this again and it did seem
to work a little smoother than the Slant or 3rd party thermostats.

It's not hard, although I was careful and took me almost 2 hours.
I am sure it can be done in 30 minutes but I did not want anything
to fall into the engine. Just take off one of the radiator hoses and
voila, sits on the front of the engine, so very accessible leaning
over the front of the engine compartment.

I also replaced the hose at the same time, figuring why not.
Not have to worry much about bleeding, just made sure not much
air was getting in. Also check the engine codes and sure enough
it was the thermostat.

 

On Wed, 22 Dec 2004 04:38:52 -0500, "Treeline"

Thanks for the insight - I thought about getting a dealer part as well
as I do not mind spending more for a quality part.

 

Hmmm... $30 for the dealer part. Hope to pop it in tomorrow when it
warms up a little.

 

Thanks for everyone's help - it was a pretty easy job. The old
thermostat was stuck slightly open - I could see light thru the
sealing surfaces. The new 'stat gets the temp up to half-way on the
gauge whereas the old one only went up 1/4. The proof will be in the
colder weather to come and also to see if we get better MPG now. I
suspect we should as the car was running too cold.

Thanks again!