Hello All,
I'm a newbe to the 914 World and am very impressed with the knowledge and support provided by everyone, members and vendors alike. I am restoring a rust free 71 914 I obtained out of Florida where it spent its life, 30 years of which, stored in a barn. The 2.0 Lt type IV had been "refreshed" by an engine builder while in Destin and he removed the cooling system components (flaps and thermostat etc) explaining that he didn't expect the car to need a warm up system in their year round warm climates.

I should add that the PO didn't make the car road worthy so I've no experience for or against the effectiveness of the cooling system. I've not yet fired up the engine myself as wiring efforts are still in process.

The car is now here in the Cleveland area and will only be used on warm summer days.

Without the cooling flaps system, I would expect the warm up period to be a little longer but I'm mostly concerned about over heating during the summer months.
Without the system in place, will I risk overheating with normal use?

Thanks in advance

While not necessary, removing it was just laziness IMO. The flaps should at least be there and closed.

When car manufacturers had department meetings, the engineers would say 'we need this' and the accountants would say 'it costs too much.' So, believe me when I say, if the engineers managed to out argue the accountants - it belongs there. Putting it on meant raising the cost or reducing the profit or both.

You have to have the flaps
Anyone removing them is making a bad choice
It discredits the competency of the person who built your motor

1.7 engines were original to your year car

Absolutely necessary. The flaps in the 'off' position force air through the oil cooler. Without you're not getting full efficiency out of your cooler. Taking them out aids nothing. There is zero compelling reason to leave them out.

As in the engine will burn up in short order.

You can delete the thermostat, but all the flaps, deflectors under the cylinders, engine tin with and holes plugged and seals must be in place for proper cooling.
Even deleting the thermostat is stupid and IMHO the mark of a lazy and/or hack engine builder.

Please don't say that, it's just plain wrong!

Without the flaps your oil cooler will not get any air forced through it, which is essential to cooling the engine.

Conclusion: You all feel the flaps are necessary for best cooling so I'll add them to the engine.
Thanks guys.

Really? Not necessary?

Edit: I had not read sir Andy's answer when I posted.

When I was young & stupid, I rebuilt a 1.8 into a 2.0L and left out the cooling flaps completely.
Drove the car for many years, sometimes through death valley in the summer, never had an overheating problem.

So I believe that IF you leave the flaps out, the oil cooler will still get enough air flow.
Optimum - No, enough? - Must be....

It is possible (based on the geometry) that the cooler might get too MUCH flow, and the 3/4 head not enough if the oil cooler flap is missing entirely.

We have seen multiple cars with overheating issues that were solved by simply installing the cooling flaps.

Dunno how yours didn't overheat.

--DD

Broken temp gauge?

Rob, who hijacked your account? Better change your password.

It may be true, but why add to the confusion? Why share this experience? As I mentioned above, taking them out aids nothing. There is zero compelling reason to leave them out.

I am utterly flabergasted.....yes that.s the word.

Driving through Death Valley in the Summer....no cooling flaps...?

Was the targa top off too?

Oh no, the thought police!

It is an observation, I shared it.
What, are we not supposed to share our experiences with these cars if the information might be used for nefarious purposes?

(EDIT - I thought about this some more.... WTF?!?! So someone posts a thread about "DO WE NEED FLAPS" and I am supposed to shut the fuck up because MY opinion differs from yours???)

The FACT is that I drove my first 914 for >5 years without the flaps and never overheated even driving through very hot weather/regions.

Would I do it again? - No.

But if someone out there thinks: "Oh My GOD my car doesnt have the flaps, it will detonate if I try to drive it anywhere!" - I am here to say "Dont worry TOO much about it", while also saying "Dont do it on purpose".

AND I disagree with some of the "theories" that state "If you dont have the flaps you wont get ANY cooling through the cooler".
I think you will still get air through the cooler, just not in the proportion intended by the engineers.

Actually (related) once I got to LA, I upgraded the engine to 2.0L (still no flaps)
Then the temp gauge DID read too high.
Reduced CR, tried oil cooler - Didnt help.

REPLACED temp sender and temps were fine for 5 more years

Engine was always carbed, perhaps that makes a difference.

I'm referring to the 'system.' As I went on to say, the flaps need to be there and closed.

Hey, relax. Share your opinion, tell everyone. Make T-shirts. Doesn't matter to me. If it were my story though, I wouldn't mention it because it's just adds support to a bad decision, in my opinion.

But don't get your panties in a bunch. I don't think it's wrong. I don't think your stupid. PLEASE don't let my opinion cause you frustration. You shared your opinion on cooling flaps, I shared my opinion on cooling flaps. Everybody's winning here.

It's all cool man...

Or is it ...?

See? Even TALKING about removing flaps gets things heated up.

The flaps have a very specific design which acts like a damper in an HVAC system, routing different volumes of cooling air to different parts of the engine. Without the flaps, there'd still be lots of air flowing, just not in the right places or at the volume the engineers intended.

It's a pretty cool system actually....

Take some time to look at the flaps and the vanes and it's clear that the flaps are essential for proper air flow over the oil cooler while open and closed, but mostly when open.

I imagine if one runs a full flow oil external cooler you could get away without the flaps. Without a stady flow of air through the cooler, you will likely burn up your motor and overheat the oil. They also seem to play a role in directing the air over the cyls, more specifically they look like they ensure balanced air and that the cyls closest to the fan gets adequate air. Looks to me that the ones farthest would get the most, but that part is just a guess.

Well, now I'm completely flappergasted.

I'm not going against what the professionals here are saying about flaps. However, I've heard that people who have removed the thermostat bellows, wire and flaps will leave in the oil cooler air flap/ air direction guide. And even put a screw in it to stay in place over the stock cooler, putting a constant stream of air through the cooler. The only thing I've heard about this is it takes longer for the engine to come up to proper operating temperature.

flame on...

The longer the engine takes to come up to operating temperature, the longer it's running a rich mixture, and the longer that absorbed water stays in the oil. The richer mixture causes poor fuel economy, higher emissions, and higher cylinder wall and ring wear due to oil washing.

You also have poorer driveability due to slow warmup, as the AAR closes too quickly, as the internal heater is designed to close the valve at the proper time, assuming the cooling flaps are operating properly.

The longer water stays in your oil, the more it causes it to sludge, leading to bearing failure. BTW, the active extraction of water vapor from the crankcase is one of the benefits of having a properly functioning PCV system, too.

This mod is for a race engine....

I had a girlfriend once that took her flaps out regularly.

Always got me overheated.

Doesn't flap mean apron in the UK?

What ever turns your crank.....

Obviously lost in translation...

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=flaps

A lot of flapping going on here. Flapparently they were designed for good reason, I'm sure those engineers weren't flappant about just throwing something on an engine unless it had a specific flapplication.

Flap.

I sometimes wish my 914 had flappy paddles, but then I realize real men drive a stick, floppy as these are...

Flap.

The biggest problem with missing flaps is that you can't just go down to your FLAPS and get a set.

Flap.

I'm with ya Darren.

Not for nothin, but in general things that go 'flap' aren't much of a turn on for me. Now bounce...... that may be another story