I am about to swap out both radiator hoses and the thermostat, but I have found 4 different temperature settings that are available.
92c/197f-original
87c/189f
82c/180f
71c/160f

I live in Alabama (yes, it's already hot) and wondered if anyone could offer some insight on what might be the best option. Keep it simple, I am new to this Volvo thing and still learning!

Thanks in Advance!
And this board/forum is great resource.

Philip

Since you bring up that subject,
what is the good/better manufacturer?
There is Wahler and Calorstat(France).
Is there also a stainless steel ?
Or what stat brand is recommended?
TIA

If you clean off the old one and look very closely at it, you should be able to find its temperature rating stamped into it somewhere. I really think the 160 and 180 are too cold. I'm not sure about whether the 189 or 197 are proper. Someone else can probably suggest the proper one. (The owners manual might even list it.) If you were happy with the way your heater worked in the winter and if the engine never ran too hot, then why not go with the same temp as the old one.

I think there is a bit of a misconception that just because you operate the vehicle in hot climate that you need to go way lower on the thermostadt temp. If you have a clean and healthy cooling system and a properly tuned engine, it should maintain a fairly consistant engine coolant temp whether in Alabama or Alaska.