Xj7piggy

Sup fellas changing out thermo on my 4.0 any one no the torque specs on the thermo housing

liftedjeepxj

Quarter turn before it breaks.

Call the dealership and they can find some specs in sure

Xj7piggy

Lol.

djb383

If u use a thin film of RTV on both sides of the gasket, just snug should be sufficient.

cruiser54

One of my favorites and you beat me to it!!

"Wrist tight" is how tight you want the bolts.
That means only as hard as you can twist a ratchet with your wrist with the head of the ratchet in your palm.

Xj7piggy

Wrist tight yep perfect no leak. Flush, new fuel filter, new thermo, painted the housing It purrrrrrrs like brand new

DrShaggford

Glad you got her up and running again! For anyone else that may look at this thread hoping for torque specs....The thermostat housing bolts must be torqued to 15 ft/lbs. You want to run both bolts in by hand until they are both touching the housing. Then tighten each side little by little to ensure even pressure all the way around. if you simply torque one side then the other you are likely to split the housing!

cruiser54

Good point, and making sure the t-stat hasn't slipped down out of it's groove when installing the housing.

Xj7piggy

Yeah that thing don't like to stay kept dropping out

cruiser54

2 small dabs of gasket sealer on the back side to hold it til you're ready to go together.

cf1k1

Actually, putting a thin layer in both sides of the gasket is best. Will cover any imperfections in the housing or engine. All it takes is a pinhole and you got yourself a leak.

cruiser54

I'm referring to keeping the stat in place so it doesn't fall down during reassembly.

I like your method of sealing the gasket. I use that, too. Key word is THIN.

cf1k1

Exactly. Just to fill any imperfections. Also, op. do it when it's cold. Makes things helluva lot easier.