Can You Run a Car Without a Thermostat in the Summer

Ms. Millar has been an online writer for over viii years. She is well-versed in website evolution and has created several websites.

The thermostat that fits in Toyota A, E, Due south and C engines.

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What Does the Engine Thermostat Practice?

If a car'south engine is too hot, information technology can actually warp and become damaged. Simply, when information technology'southward cold, it doesn't run efficiently. And then, it is of import to keep the engine at the correct temperature, which is where the thermostat comes in. An engine'due south thermostat regulates the temperature of the engine by controlling coolant flow.

The coolant does exactly what you imagine—it cools the engine down. The engine thermostat tin open up and close. When it's open up, the coolant flows through, lowering the temperature of the engine. When information technology'south airtight, the coolant is blocked until the engine warms upwards. Engine manufacturers will install a thermostat that opens at the car's operating temperature (commonly either 180º F (82º C) or 212° F (100°C). While the thermostat controls coolant flow, the radiator'south job is to cool the fluid. The coolant does non flow through the radiator unless it is hot and needs to be cooled.

• When an engine is cold, the radiator fluid is common cold, so the thermostat is in the airtight position. In this position, coolant will only flow inside the engine. Information technology will non exist able to leave the engine to cycle through the radiator to be cooled.
• When the engine starts upward, the coolant warms. When the coolant reaches a specific temperature, the thermostat opens. Each thermostat is gauged to open at a specific temperature. In one case it opens, the coolant can broadcast through to the radiator to be cooled.

A thermostat in open up position and a thermostat in open up position

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Possible Signs of a Bad Thermostat

• The automobile overheats easily, or the radiator fluid steams or bubbles. A stuck thermostat is only i possible cause of a auto overheating (but it tin can be the easiest cause to fix).
• The heater doesn't provide warm air even after the engine has been running a while (though at that place are other possible causes including a bad heater core).
• You see a "check engine" light.
• The temperature gauge stays on "common cold" all the time.

Volition Replacing the Thermostat Fix My Problems?

You might hope then, considering the thermostat and housing together cost less than $twenty and are not difficult to replace. Keep reading to find out how to tell whether your thermostat is faulty.

How to Tell if Your Thermostat Has Stopped Working

When the thermostat gets stuck and stops working completely, there are several indicators y'all can check to determine the culprit. Run across the tabular array below.

three Ways You lot Can Check Your Thermostat's Operation

Symptom Test	Explanation
Cold engine test: Open the hood and remove the radiator cap. Offset the engine. Observe coolant activeness past looking downwardly into the radiator. The fluid should not be moving.	When an engine is common cold, the thermostat should exist airtight, thus bypassing the radiator.
Warm (non hot!) engine test: Open the hood and remove the radiator cap. First engine. Look down into the radiator and find coolant activity. The fluid should be swirling vigorously.	When an engine is warm, the thermostat is in the open position. This allows the coolant to flow through the radiator causing vigorous movement.
Common cold engine test: Start the engine. Turn on the heater. Time how long it takes the engine to warm up enough for the heater to actually produce heat in the passenger compartment.	If information technology takes more than five minutes for the heater to produce heat, it is a sign that the thermostat is stuck open up, allowing the coolant to detour through the radiator all the fourth dimension. This causes it to accept a good deal longer for the engine to warm up.

The Other "Radiator": Your Car's Heater Core

Y'all know where your car's radiator is, but there's another component, nether the dashboard that looks and acts similar a pocket-sized radiator: information technology is called the heater cadre. When the car is warmed upwardly and the heater is turned on, a fan blows air over the heater core. The estrus produced by the hot radiator fluid runs through the heater core and is dispersed into the cabin of the car, heating the car'south interior.

The thermostat on a Chevrolet 454

Jmillar

Locating the Thermostat

Yous can find your machine's thermostat by finding the upper radiator hose and following it to where information technology enters the tiptop of the engine. The thermostat housing is right where the radiator hose meets the engine housing. It looks similar half of a metal baseball.

Removing and Testing the Thermostat

If you are nevertheless unsure whether the thermostat is stuck, perform the following procedure to get an authentic diagnosis.

1. Disconnect the negative bombardment cable.
2. Drain some of the coolant (a gallon should exist enough) and then the fluid won't pour out when you perform the next step.
3. Remove the upper radiator hose.
4. Remove the thermostat housing.
5. Remove the thermostat.
6. Locate and write down the temperature stamped on the lip of the thermostat.
7. Fill a pot with common cold water and a thermometer and place on a stove burner.
8. Identify the thermostat into the cold water.
9. Turn the burner on.
10. Watch the thermometer. When the temperature rises to the number y'all recorded in stride #six, the thermostat volition beginning to open up. If it does not, or if it doesn't open until reaching a dissimilar temperature (hotter commonly), and so the thermostat is bad and should exist replaced. If it opens at the designated temperature, then the thermostat is just fine.

Why Replace Your Thermostat?

When the thermostat becomes stuck, it is reasonable to simply replace it.

Read More from AxleAddict

The thermostat is such a vital component to the well-being of your vehicle, however it is then cheap. Replacing it is far less plush than repairing a warped engine. A warped engine must be removed and either resurfaced, if the damage isn't terribly bad, or completely replaced.

And whenever the thermostat housing is removed, even but to check the thermostat, you should at to the lowest degree replace the housing gasket. A housing gasket needs to be able to seal fully, and it won't if it's been used.

Sometimes instead of replacing a thermostat, automobile owners remove it and drive around without it. This is not a good idea, considering a cold engine does non function efficiently, and consistently spending long periods warming up your car will accept years off of the engine'south life.

Be safe and replace!

Cheers for stopping in!

This commodity is accurate and true to the best of the writer's knowledge. Content is for informational or entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for personal counsel or professional advice in business, fiscal, legal, or technical matters.

Questions & Answers

Question: My car is not running hot, merely I have no heat going inside my car. Is this my thermostat not working?

Answer: It's your heater cadre or the fan that blows beyond the heater core. Supplant the heater core and/or fan and yous volition accept rut.

Question: I permit my car warm up, and when I get going, I'll turn my heater on and then my temperature gauge goes back down to absurd. Then, I'll plough the rut off, and the gauge goes back upward. What could be happening?

Answer: This anomaly is normal. In some vehicles, it is more obvious than in others. Some drivers use this anomaly to aid them if the motorcar starts to overheat. To understand the cause a little cooling system background is in need. The heater in a vehicle uses the radiators cooling system. Yes, really. The radiator fluid is routed through the heater core in your vehicle and back to your engine. Bank check back for a hub entitled Vehicle Engine Cooling System. It will go into depth about what you are experiencing.

Question: My temperature judge is betwixt midway and cold and never seems to get hot but I take heat in the cabin. Is my car'southward thermostat going bad?

Answer: Between midway and common cold sounds like a great reading to me. Is information technology usually hotter? If and so, yeah, check your thermostat. Every bit long every bit the engine is running cool that'southward fine. You don't want it running cold, or hot. Anywhere in betwixt, specially towards the cold side is expert.

Question: I just put together a 462 big block Chevy for drag racing. The engine is running hot, the thermostat is working, but when I removed it, in that location is no coolant in the housing, shouldn't there be some fluid in there?

Answer: Yeah, in that location should be coolant unless its running low, leaking out, or but not enough to run into it in the basin. If the thermostat is atop the engine when yous open information technology up the fluid may be just beneath it.

Question: How do I change my thermostat housing on a 2004 Toyota Tacoma V6 ??

Reply: This article reflects on the 2007 Mustang, but the process is similar beyond all vehicles. It will walk you through the thermostat housing change. https://axleaddict.com/auto-repair/2007-Ford-Musta...

Question: The fan in my motorcar stays on. I've changed the temperature switch. What can be problem?

Answer: If you are referring to the radiator fan at that place could exist a few different reasons for this. Some vehicles are equipped with a fan that remains on even after the engine is turned off to proceed cooling the engine. It eventually turns itself off. Another reason may be a wire is touching basis, thus continually sending the signal to the fan to proceed running. If information technology's an older vehicle the fan clutch may have gone out and needs to be replaced.

Question: Just replaced temperature sensor on my Audi. Afterward a month of the car running cold, mostly on the freeway, but when going dull likewise, information technology stays warm. It takes a too long to warm upwardly. Is the temperature sensor stuck open?

Reply: The temperature sensor detects the temperature of the engine. There is no "stuck" about it. It sounds like you are having a problem with the thermostat. Is that what you were referring to when yous said temperature sensor?

Question: Would a bad thermostate cause some rut merely on i side of vehicle other side cold?

Answer: I wouldn't doubtable the thermostat. I'd look into a blockage in your cooling lines. Coolant isn't reaching one side of the engine. Check to see that the hoses are in place, likewise.

Question: How do I cheque to run across if the thermostat is stuck closed, and what are the possible furnishings of this?

Respond: One simple manner to cheque the thermostat is to remove the housing, which is commonly located on the top, front and near the centre of the engine. Then, remove the thermostat for inspection. Is information technology rusty? There's a pocket-size postage on the thermostat reflecting the temperature it should open at. Adjacent, put it in a pot of water and bring the h2o to a boil. Does the thermostat open when the water reaches that temp? Effects: slow warm-up and overheating.

Question: How exercise I set a 1999 Honda Accord Sixty if it is overheating into the overflow jug, and the thermostat quit working within the car? What do y'all recall it is?

Answer: Check the heater core. It may be blocked or leaking.

Question: My heat isn't working and my auto started to overheat just the last time that happened it was considering my radiator had a crack in it so I replaced it. What could be wrong with my car now? I take an 06 Acura tl

Reply: You may desire to bank check the heater core. It is a radiator inside the car that produces the heat when you turn the heater on. Have y'all noticed a smell of radiator fluid in your car? Is the windshield getting foggy for no credible reason? If the heater core checks out then check the h2o pump. With the radiator cap off, plough the auto on. Lookout man for the water flow within the radiator. Is information technology swirling around vigorously as the car warms up? Or is it not moving much at all? Every bit your vehicle warms upwards the thermostat opens up and the water should first churning around as the water flows through the water pump cooling the engine.

Question: I take a 2000 Honda Borough. Can a thermostat that is stuck closed cause an old radiator to fissure?

Answer: Not necessarily. It would crack from overheating or freezing. The thermostat could be the culprit, but low coolant would be more than probable. Coolant not simply cools the engine it as well prevents the fluid from freezing. Practice you have coolant in your system or just plainly h2o? Water will freeze, expand, and fissure engine parts. That's what freeze plugs are all about. They are supposed to popular out before your engine cracks if it becomes besides cold.

Question: My car's temperature judge on nuance is not reading, only my heater is still blowing hot air. Practice you think information technology might be the coolant temperature sensor that went bad?

Answer: That wouldn't be my get-go option. Check the wires offset. Beginning at the gauge and make certain the wires haven't been pinched, detached, loose or broken.

Question: My car only overheats when in traffic or at idle. My radiator fans do not come on unless I turn a/c on. What could the problem exist?

Respond: If you do not turn on the a/c volition the engine overheat where yous accept to pull over? Sometimes the engine will get very warm but information technology's okay. When the a/c is turned on it volition push the engine also hot, thus engaging the fans. A/C is notorious for pushing engines too hot. Where yours is overheating enough to kicking in the fans merely when the a/c is started. Also, check that your thermostat is in working order.

Question: The lower hose came out in my car while driving and then got it replaced, merely now the temperate gauge does not move at all and does not take hot air either. Is this considering of the thermostat?

Answer: Information technology sounds like your thermostat was adversely affected when the hose fell out. Information technology probably ran the fluid out, causing the thermostat to run dry out which in plough froze information technology in one position.

Question: I have a 2014 Dodge Caravan, the heat is working and the temp guess doesn't go by half point. Yet, my check engine lite came on with the code p0128 for the thermostat. I don't understand why it has not overheated and I still take really good heat inside. What could this mean?

Answer: The thermostat may be working inappropriately. Have yous pulled the thermostat and boiled it in a pot to cheque when and if it is opening? A vehicle can run just fine if the thermostat doesn't open. It will run on the warm side, non by halfway, and heat the interior just fine. Merely, when the weather gets warmer exterior that thermostat stuck closed will not exist able to allow the reservoir water menses and the vehicle will begin to take overheating problems. My first step would exist to pull the thermostat, boil it and brand sure it is opening at the proper temperature (unremarkably marked on the lip of the thermostat.

Question: If I accept a 98 Dodge Ram five.9 my gauge stays between cold and halfway after warm up but the heater but blows cold air could this exist the thermostat stuck open?

Respond: If the thermostat was stuck open the heater would eventually warm up. In between cold and halfway sounds similar a fine engine temperature. This is more likely a problem with the heater core.

Question: When my car is idling the temperature gauge rises equally normal to midway. When I offset driving, the temperature guess drops quickly dorsum to zero. Is this a thermostat problem? The heat inside works.

Answer: Information technology sounds more like a defective gauge to me. When the motorcar starts to motility, information technology sounds like the signal is lost to the temp guess. I am also thinking perchance when you beginning to bulldoze the thermostat opens and dumps all the cool radiator fluid into the engine causing it to cool down, but I don't believe it could cool it that much that fast. I'd check your connections first.

Question: I have a 2022 Toyota Corolla, the heater is but hot on one side the other side remains common cold?

Answer: If I understand correctly the heater only works on ane side of the vehicle and non the other. That sounds very odd. Check that the coolant level is full and at that place are no air bubbles in the cooling system. If the coolant isn't full it can cause poor heating inside the vehicle.

Question: My temperature gauge merely moves up to the i/four marking on afterward driving 20 miles. Shouldn't it exist one-half way past then?

Answer: No. The halfway mark on the temperature judge is not the "go to" position for your car. Some vehicles temperature is regularly at a quarter, some at just below the half mark, or somewhere in betwixt. Equally long as the gauge does non go above the half marking your engine is fine.

Question: My truck is non leaking fluids, steam is non coming from the radiator but the cap is stuck on and the temperature approximate is at 220, is this the water pump or the thermostat?

Respond: If I understand your question, the radiator cap is stuck and your guess reflects 220 degrees? The radiator cap is "stuck" because there is a huge amount of pressure backside information technology. 220 degrees is overheating. Overheating causes force per unit area. The pressure presses on the radiator cap, thus making it very difficult, if impossible to remove because yous shouldn't remove it. Allow the temperature to reduce and the cap should come off by pressing down and twisting clockwise. Do not endeavour to remove the cap when the temperature is loftier!

Question: I take a 2022 ram 1500 3.half dozen v6 right now it's about 1 Celsius exterior. It takes my truck about 30 minutes of highway driving to warm up. Could it be that the my thermostat is stuck open?

Answer: Absolutely.

Question: When I am On the highway my motorcar heater works fine but when I slow downwards it blows out common cold air and the temperature gauge rises. What could be wrong with my car?

Reply: The wind created when driving on the highway is what is keeping your engine from overheating. When you slow down the oestrus becomes cold most probable from low radiator fluid.

Question: Recently my top radiator hose came off while I was driving. I'one thousand guessing it was loose. The antifreeze had spilled out when the hose came off, so I walked to the auto parts store to buy more. When I put the hose back on and added the antifreeze, my temp gauge is high, but information technology is not overheating. Why would the temp gauge go downward when I step on the gas pedal?

Respond: There may be something stuck in the coolant lines or your thermostat is bad and when yous hit the gas it'south forcing information technology to open which allows the coolant to menstruation. When you release the pedal it stops flowing and heats up once again.

Question: My motorcar'southward thermostat isn't moving at all, what does that mean?

Answer: If your thermostat is non moving, fifty-fifty when the ignition key is turned to the ON position, y'all have a wiring problem. Somewhere the wire sending the signal to the dashboard is broken, or the fuse is blown.

Question: My heat only works when the vehicle is going down the highway, it cools downward when I deadening or terminate. Could I just replace the thermostat and information technology will be fine or is information technology more that?

Reply: Sounds like the heater core is not working properly. Cheque to come across if the radiator is depression on fluid, if non then I would check your heater core.

Question: My heat gauge is slightly past the center and stays like that on curt trips. When I collection 50 miles, the heat gauge started going towards hot. Any thought why?

Answer: My question for you is, "How far towards hot?" Did you have to stop for fright of over heating? If information technology just went a picayune towards the hot side then information technology was merely due to continued work of the engine causing it to become warmer than mere local driving. If it went a lot towards hot, just not over heating, check your antifreeze fluid level, it may be depression.

Question: My car is not warming up quickly when I start it. I have to look for 7 to 10 minutes for information technology to warm up otherwise I cannot drive information technology. Is this a thermostat not working?

Answer: Yes, it sounds like the thermostat is not closing properly. An engine warms up fairly quickly because the thermostat restricts the flow of antifreeze to only the engine. Once the engine is warm the thermostat opens allowing all the antifreeze to menstruum. It sounds similar your thermostat is staying open up, thus allowing all the antifreeze to menstruum, all the time, making the warm upward process slow.

Question: My car started heating up. So I changed the thermostat. It kept on heating upwards. So I used the motorcar without the thermostat all summer. It was good. What should I practise about my overheating car?

Respond: I have an former truck I pulled the thermostat from and even so use it without it. It will take your engine longer to heat up without information technology. Try a new thermostat with fresh radiator fluid, or go out it out.

Question: My thermometer takes about two to 3 minutes to ascension up to par. When the car is stopped like at a reddish calorie-free or something, the thermostat starts ascent upward to over heating. But when I start driving it goes dorsum downwardly to the center. What's going on?

Reply: Check the fluid level in the radiator. Add radiator fluid if necessary. If there is not enough fluid running through the system when you lot are stopped the temperature of the fluid goes up. When yous drive the wind blows beyond the radiator cooling the fluid downwards. When there is non enough fluid in the system information technology cannot keep the temperature down without assistance from the air current passing over the radiator.

Question: At that place is no coolant leaking and the oil color is normal, but my temp estimate stays on common cold. Would these symptoms point a stuck thermostat?

Answer: Yes, information technology definitely would exist a stuck thermostat.

Question: My auto temperature goes up to overheating within five minutes. With the heat on the air begins to warm slowly similar the thermostat is stuck open. Why would my machine overheat and so fast if the thermostat was open up?

Answer: Information technology may exist considering you are low on radiator fluid.

Question: My thermostat is stuck closed (i.e. it'southward stuck at 50) and my Ac is no longer working. Could my A/C failure exist but a thermostat problem?

Answer: I'm not certain what is meant by "information technology'southward stuck at 50". Is it l degrees it's stuck at? A closed thermostat will cause an engine to overheat. The A/C unit of measurement is sometimes the first to shut down on such an occasion as overheating. Endeavour replacing the thermostat kickoff, information technology's the cheapest and fastest ready to meet if there united states a further trouble.

Question: Information technology takes my 2022 ram 1500 xxx minutes to warm upwardly at -5 Celsius out side. Stuck open thermostat?

Answer: Yes. You may want to cheque the rating on your thermostat likewise. In that location are diverse temperature settings better for Summer and others are better for Wintertime.

Question: Why is the overflow for my radiator in my Blazer humid?

Answer: What is your thermostat reading when this happens? Water boils at 212 F. The thermostat opens at nearly 180-200 F. If the h2o is humid in the overflow tank that means it is at or above humid temperature of 212F. Check your thermostat for proper functioning and superlative off your radiator fluid.

Question: Why is my auto's engine leaking coolant subsequently I replaced the thermostat?

Answer: Check the hose clamps. Something is loose. If you are positive all the hoses are secure, check the hoses themselves. There may be a crack in a hose line.

Question: How long does it have to warm upward the engine of a Corolla hatchback after the engine is turned on?

Answer: That depends on several variables IE: What is the weather? Cold, Warm, Hot? Is the automobile being driven correct abroad or parked while it warms up? Is the radiator full of fluid? If everything is on a medium ground, warm conditions, parked while warming, total of fluid, I would say inside 3 - 5 minutes it volition upward to warm.

Question: Why does the temperature guess climb loftier while I still have heat?

Respond: The gauge continues to climb because the engine is overheating. The heater is not related to the reading of this gauge.

Question: My temperature estimate, in the auto, reads normal, and the motor doesn't over estrus. But I don't have heat in the car. Why is this?

Answer: When you turn the heater on high can you lot feel the air blowing into the cab of the vehicle? If yes, you can feel air blowing, but it is cold air, so look to your heater cadre. The heater core is where the heat comes from. If yous practise not experience air blowing and so your heater fan, or control console, needs to be replaced. Bank check the heater core starting time.

Question: I'thousand from the Uk. I have an Astra H Mark 5 09. I have been getting a fault lawmaking, which suggests the thermostat is faulty, but I don't accept any symptoms of a faulty thermostat. Could it be the heating element that is gone bad?. The problem I have is when I common cold start the car, it starts the showtime time. When I turn information technology off or go for a brusk journey, information technology won't startup. I must plough the fundamental twice. It always starts on the second attempt. Any suggestions?

Answer: Hi to yous in the UK. I am not familiar with the Astra H. Just knowing the starting organisation in vehicles I would expect at the starter first for sings of going out then like you said, check the heating elements, especially the one on the exhaust. Heating elements build up filth fast when on the exhaust.

Question: My car is running hot, but I accept no heat going inside my car, is this my thermostat not working?

Answer: This would be a heater core issue. The heater in your car uses a device called a heater cadre. It is very similar to a radiator, but it is located under your dashboard. Heated radiator fluid flows from the engine into the heater core and back out to the engine. When the heater is activated in your car a fan blows across the heater core causing the rut from the radiator fluid to menstruum into the cab. Either the heater core is bad or the fan that blows beyond the heater core is non working.

Question: My 2010 Buick Enclave got hot likewise fast and my dashboard is proverb "reduced power to engine". The coolant is in the car but non working obviously. What should I practice?

Answer: The starting time thing I would bank check is that the coolant level is indeed full in the radiator. With the engine cold, open the radiator cap. Turn the engine on. Scout the radiator fluid inside the radiator where you removed the radiator cap. The fluid should jerk some at first, after a few minutes, when the engine warms up, the radiator fluid should being jostling quite a bit due to the water pump working. If the fluid never jostles effectually the water pump is not working. Next, I would check the thermostat. If the thermostat doesn't open the engine tin overheat.

Question: I accept no heat in our van fifty-fifty when the temperature and engine are warm. Sometimes the engine most runs hot, so all of a sudden, the temperature goes to normal and we have estrus. Could this exist a thermostat issue?

Answer: That sounds very much like the thermostat is the culprit.

Question: I have Dodge Journey 2009. My heater is not working. Information technology is giving cool air only and there is also a check engine low-cal on my dashboard. Could the trouble heater in my Dodge Journey exist a stuck thermostat?

Answer: Make sure the radiator fluid is full with no bubbles. Squeeze the upper radiator hose to printing out any air bubbles that may be trapped in the upper hose. The check engine light comes on when the smog system has a problem. Check the EGR valve.

Question: I accept estrus in my car but my car is bubbling by the radiator and steam comes out of my machine information technology's not overheating could it be the thermostat?

Answer: Admittedly. Information technology sounds similar the thermostat is stuck in the closed or semi-closed position.

Question: My fan runs as soon as I turn my car on and my temperature gauge is staying on cool. Is this a sign of a bad thermostat?

Answer: Not necessarily. I am assuming your vehicle uses an auxiliary fan and non a clutch fan. Before blaming the thermostat check and brand sure the fan itself doesn't take any problems.

Question: Tin a thermostat that opens and close when put in hot h2o however become stuck at close when installed in the automobile? I am experiencing this state of affairs.

Answer: It is unlikely a problem with the thermostat if it has proven to open up and close fine in humid h2o. What was the temperature of the h2o when information technology did open up would exist my question? Have you lot checked for strange debris? If there is an obstruction blocking the thermostat from moving such as rust buildup at the site of installation. Also, there may be foreign cloth in the radiator fluid which becomes caught in the thermostat when the engine is running.

Question: If my car overheats it causes my fan to finish working. This happened every bit I was driving. What you recall the crusade of my motorcar'southward overheating tin can be and what is the best mode to fix it?

Answer: If I understand your question, the radiator fan turns off when your auto overheats. Cheque to be sure if it isn't the opposite way. The automobile may be overheating BECAUSE the fan turned off. If the fan turns off an engine will overheat quickly. If the overheating is causing the fan to plough off the check that there is no wiring that is condign hot and causing a footing which in plough could turn the fan off.

© 2012 Joanna

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Source: https://axleaddict.com/auto-repair/How-to-Determine-if-a-Cars-Engine-Thermostat-is-Stuck

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