I had purchased a 195 degree thermostat to install after I drained the water and prior to putting in the
antifreeze for winter storage. In reviewing my data from the last race weekend, the water temp was running at about 185 degrees and
oil temp was at 220 degrees. I attribute the increase in
oil and water temp to a combination of slightly warmer ambient temperature and running the car a little faster and at higher rpms. Based upon these results and the potential to be running in more southern areas where temps will be warmer, I am going to leave the current thermostat in. Would rather run a little cooler on the water temp, than risk running hot. If need be, I can always block off some of the radiator to increase water temp.
Will get the car up on the jack stand shortly and start working on the winter projects to get the car ready for next year. The car does handle well and is fairly neutral in the corners. Engine is running fine and had no problem running it up to 7200 rpms. I did notice that in second gear coming out of the boot with full application of power in the 6500 rpm + range it gets loud and my ears start to hurt a little.
Next year I plan on continuing to drive faster and faster and testing the limits of the car.