[Charles]

As you can see, the Honda OEM is way beefier than the aftermarket version. Not only are the springs heavier duty, but the opening is substantially bigger.

Also, the OEM version has a little valve opening (circled below). It prevents backflow but allows a bit to always get through the top. Why is this important? I think it is because if you are trying to bleed the system, you can't really do it well with the aftermarket thermostat until it opens completelty. I think that little valve allows the air bubbles to pass through.

Now here's the side that fits into the block. The two red circles are tabs in the rubber to make sure that it fits with the valve at the top (even though I took the picture with it upside down). Again, you can see the difference in quality.

Now considering that an OEM thermostat is only $15 including rubber mounting ring, I think it is worth the extra cost.

 

[dohcrxl]

rule of thumb- oem if you can afford it.

Honda spent kajillions on Research and Development. There are few car manufacturers who also spend kajillions on R&D that surpass Honda quality. There are yet fewer companies in the aftermarket (that btw don't spend kajillions on R&D) that surpass Honda quality.

Whatever you do, don't ever buy an aftermarket timing belt for your CRX. That's kinda like accepting a liver donation from a life long alcoholic over an 18 year old catholic school boys' just cause you'd save 20 bucks.

 

[red89si]

What brand is the aftermarket thermostat?

 

[Charles]

Some no-name AutoZone brand. Threw the box away. It's a 180F stat instead of the 192F OEM stat. Anyone want it for the shipping cost?

 

[shortA25]

rule of thumb- oem if you can afford it.

agreed, this applies to a lot of stuff, including the timing belt (and water pump don't forget) that heu mentioned.

I would throw in distributor cap and rotor, ball joint dust seals, and oil filter (s2000 one) off the top of my head. But hey, thats just me. Nice pix and write-up Charles. later,

- short-A

 

[akirarex]

I thought stock was 180f

 

[Charles]

Stock begins to open at 172F and is fully open at 192-194F.

 

[Charles]

rule of thumb- oem if you can afford it.

agreed, this applies to a lot of stuff, including the timing belt (and water pump don't forget) that heu mentioned.

I would throw in distributor cap and rotor, ball joint dust seals, and oil filter (s2000 one) off the top of my head. But hey, thats just me. Nice pix and write-up Charles. later,

- short-A

Thanks. Though I would disagree about the oil filter. I think a Mobil1 or Purolator PureOne would perform better than an OEM filter based on a couple of comparisons I have seen, including one by davens.

 

[stick]

If you do buy aftermarket, make sure that it's a good quality brand and that the product looks to be of good construction. I've been using Goodyear Gatorback timing belts in my cars with no issues. But I certainly wouldn't put a no-name generic brand one in my car.

 

[Ragnaarok]

i would say aftermarket is fine for ANY part. it just needs to be a good company. after all, tons of honda parts are actually other people's parts, they are just stamped "honda" before they go out the door of the factory.

autozone = not quality. I would never buy any parts from autozone or advance, etc. Napa and equivalent are okay.

 

[Charles]

Actually, after I posted I remembered that I did get it from NAPA because I felt they were higher quality than Autozone (if I can't find at O'Reilly's). When I asked the NAPA guy about the quality of it he said most low cost parts are made at the same few factories and just rebranded.

 

[Ragnaarok]

Actually, after I posted I remembered that I did get it from NAPA because I felt they were higher quality than Autozone (if I can't find at O'Reilly's). When I asked the NAPA guy about the quality of it he said most low cost parts are made at the same few factories and just rebranded.

hmmm, well I guess oem is the only way to go for top quality...

 

[Kwicko]

Thanks for the heads-up, Charles. Did you find and fix your overheating problem yet? I'm kind of in the same boat - Ruby has been losing a little coolant over time, and it's slowly gotten worse. I think I *finally* found the culprit: the little coolant line from the throttle body than connects to the cylinder head at the thermostat housing. I found a small break in the rubber hose, just where the spring clamp holds it on. It was driving me nuts, because it would take 2-3 weeks to lose enough coolant to start overheating, and I just couldn't find the leak anywhere! It looks like it was probably only losing coolant under load/pressure, and it was spitting it on the head, where it would quickly be burned off.

Anyway, I bought the new hose ($5.80 at the dealership) and it goes on tomorrow. Let's hope that's the last of my coolant loss issues.

And I have to second that opinion on OEM-vs-Aftermarket water pumps. I used an aftermarket water pump when I put the engine in the car, and it failed less than 20k miles later.

I find SOME AutoZone parts to be fine. I use their axles, their brake rotors, and even their distributors on a regular basis, and without a problem yet. On lots of their parts, I like the price for the quality, and the lifetime warranty is handy if, like me, you're planning on keeping the car 'til the end of time. Still, though, I have this vision of me standing in the middle of a 120º desert next to a dead CRX, holding an obviously dead water pump in my hand and screaming to the heavens, "But it's got a lifetime warranty!!" In other words, the lifetime warranty on many AutoZone parts is nice, but I'm not sure I'd want to stake MY lifetime on their quality.

Mike

 

[red89si]

Actually, after I posted I remembered that I did get it from NAPA because I felt they were higher quality than Autozone (if I can't find at O'Reilly's). When I asked the NAPA guy about the quality of it he said most low cost parts are made at the same few factories and just rebranded.

Usually napa uses stant for the supplier on most of their thermostats, and most of the time theyre pretty good... oreillys used to use stant for their thermostats too, but they got tired of spending the money on stocking stant and went with some cheaper brand that isnt worth the metal the parts are formed in(I think the name is murray or four seasons or something...I think autozone uses that brand too..

 

[Charles]

Thanks for the heads-up, Charles. Did you find and fix your overheating problem yet?

Seems like I have. It wasn't the thermostat after all. I pt the OEM one back in there. I have no idea why it was overheating since I messed with it so much. I think it all came down to an air pocket somewhere messing with the temperature gauge. After flushing with a Prestone Kit, refilling with about 20% OEM coolant, 80% distilled water, and Water Wetter, and bleeding it after alternately reving it and letting it cool off. It is working great now and it running very cool. It doesn't look like it is losng any coolant but I am still watching it.