Radiator reservior

[SleeperSolara]

I have the stock radiator cap on my Solara [1.0 kg]. And my cap of the resrevior popped off one time, is it because of pressure build up, or is it because it got caught on the hood brace. I have a TRD radiator cap which is 1.3kg, and from what i read it suppose to let the Solara/Camry run cooler somehow. But i put it in twice and the temp was the same on the instrument guage. Does the Solara run hot at all for a NA stock wit K&N airfilter?? I was thinkin about makin' custom hood vents to reduce the heat in the engine bay, and upgradin' the fans so it "would" run cooler. Would makin' hood vents, and droppin' better fans make the car fun cooler. What could be the problem wit my radiator??

[Stock Solara SEV6]

A different radiator cap won't make your car run cooler. I think you are describing a radiator cap with a higher pressure rating. The higher pressure rating will keep the coolant from boiling until a higher temperature. Switching to a lower temperature thermostat will make the engine run cooler, but you could run into other problems (like the engine running too rich because it's cold). If it's operating at the normal range, then I wouldn't mess with it. If it's running hot, I would investigate further.

[Jai_Jai_Binks]

Switching to a lower temperature thermostat will make the engine run cooler, but you could run into other problems (like the engine running too rich because it's cold).

^^ that is what i'd recommned if you want a 'cooler' engine. but then you'd have overworked waterpump that would def. need replacing every 50K miles or so! If your wanting to do it 'cosmetically' i'd rather put vents than hood scoop (like the Gt-Four RS inverted vents) NOW those look beautiful..can someone photoshop those vents on a solara...???

[JoeB]

If your engine is NA, you definitely shouldn't be having trouble with it running hot. Do you just want it to run cooler for some reason or is there a problem? What Stock Solara SEV6 said was good advice. -JoeB

[StockSolara]

put in some Redline Water Wetter it claims to lower your tempurture by 20 degrees

[JoeB]

put in some Redline Water Wetter it claims to lower your tempurture by 20 degrees

I think that is more marketing hype. If the properties of the fluid could somehow drop the temperature by 20*, the thermostat would restrict the flow of water until it went up to the rating of the thermostat. The only time it could make it cooler is if the cooling system in the car couldn't maintain the nominal temperature of the thermostat and it would go above that. -JoeB

[TadS]

The cap helps prevent boil-off, but puts more pressure on the coolant system (hoses and whatnot).

[SleeperSolara]

Should i upgrade the radiator hose that goes from the cap to the radiator??
It only a NA, but also is my 98 Camry wit the same 1MZ-FE, and when i drive for some time, and touch the hood of it, it's not as hot as me Solara.
When i drive my Solara for a certain time, and then park it the hood is really hot.

[TadS]

I switched my cap about 2 years (60,000 miles) ago. I am still on the stock hoses without any problems. I am not sure how much benefit you'll get from the cap, but at less than $20 it shouldn't hurt anything.

Note: I was actually having minor boil-over issues before the cap, but it fixed them for me. I am not sure if this is due to the higher operating temps that are usually associated with the 5S motor, or my driving style.