Alright...call me crazy, but I need to know the location and how easy it is to replace the T-stat in these cars[00+].

Its easy. 5 minute job.. un bolt the two bolts on top of the thermostat housing (follow the upper radiator hose to the engine) I recommend clamping the hose shut to minimize spillage. pop the t-sts out of the rubber o-ring. put new t-stat into o-ring. reinstall housing with new t-stat.

When you are done let the car run for a few minutes and open the bleeder screw (on the top of the housing) a little bit until no air bubbles come out. tighten bleeder. and your done

photo compliments of olblueeyesbonnie

Its easy if the bolts arent in super *** freakin tight. Thats where I ran into problems. It took me a good 30 minutes to pry them lose.

I dont think mine was ever replaced. If you can get those 2 bolts off quickly then its easy. While your at it you might as well change the coolant and the hoses. The cars a 2002 so that means you got it in 2001? Coolants due for a change every 5 years anyway.

Good luck.

when i did mne they werent SUPER tight but just needed a good tug to crack them loose

Mod/Admin: Please move to 00+ mechanical

Instead of running the car w/the bleeder screw out. Fill it with the screw out. when you get a constant flow put the bleeder back in. That should keep you from having to mess with the bleeder while the coolant is hot.

no need to take it out. its a bleeder, so when its backed out 2 turns or so it opens, no fighting with it needed at all... its not meant to be removed. and be careful not to overtighten it, its made out of brass /copper and can break quite easily

Well all went well. The bolts weren't really tight. Cooland and hoses I checked out and were in good order[recent coolant change]. I just wasnt smart about it. I did it about 15 minutes after I got out of my car. Coolant was lil warm, but that didnt stop me too much since I used leather search gloves. But Im happy with being my second minor mod to the car.

congrats, remember all the little mods add up...

You learned a good lesson. Coolant stays hot for a while after you run the car. Sometimes you gotta do it though.