Packard Forum Index » Pre-War (1899-1942)

I think I have restored the functionality of my thermostat. I drilled a small hole the bottom center of the cup and input approximately 2oz of methanol Drygas. There was nothing in it to start. Put in pot of water and brought it slowly up to 190 degrees. The shaft started moving around 100 degrees. I got a total movement of approximately 11/16”. Put a Delta faucet cartridge gasket under the screw and a tiny bit of RTV under the gasket to seal the cup. Once near boiling I did notice some bubbles coming thru the solder on the front in one section. Must be where the original alcohol went. I attempted to solder it but had no success getting new solder to adhere. I cheated and ran a bead of graphite RTV around the full circumference of the solder. Let that cure and tested again. Good movement and no bubbles. Installed it yesterday and will test it in the car tomorrow. After doing all this I noticed a small bead of solder on the front center of the plunger. This got me thinking that, if the shaft was hollow, this is where the alcohol was probably injected at the factory. If this was unsoldered new alcohol could be introduced through the shaft without drilling any additional holes? IF this worked, one could actually install the new methanol without removing the thermostat from the car! Thanks!