Don't go cheap unless you plan on flipping the vehicle within a year or 2. If it's a secondary vehicle or recreational use only, I might lean towards OEM. (chinese junk only if you're dumping the vehicle immediately, IMO).

If you plan on keeping and using it, the HDS housing makes sense to me. The way I figure, the cost comparison breaks even at the third OEM 'stat, and for me that's about 4ish years. After that it's money saved.
THAT is only figuring cost vs mileage. There are likely other small intangible values, such as mileage gains, and engine longevity from proper operating temperature control, but that wasn't figured in.

That's where I'm a little torn ... I'm not entirely sure how much I'll be using it in coming years. I am not selling it, so cheap part was never a consideration. I plan to keep driving, but how much, I don't know. I ordered a Chevy Cruze that I intend to use as a worry-free commuter, but assuming I can get and keep the Jeep in good order, I plan to keep it in the rotation regularly, especially in winter months or anytime I need cargo space. Sometime this year I also hope to finish my 87 Mercedes which I will drive pretty frequently. So, the Jeep isn't going to be the workhorse it is now as far as miles, but it will get more use than a purely recreational vehicle.

That said the mileage gain, possible improvement of engine life, and avoiding an annoying repair down the road are all appealing to me. I've just had a lot of unexpected costs lately so spending a lot more stings.

"If you plan on using the CRD less in the future I would go with a new OEM. It will last you 50K miles and with your reduced usage that should be 5 yrs if your car is 13 Yrs old and you only have 135K on it right now. I understand the ease of changing the t-stat replacement in the future but that is once the HDS housing is put into the CRD. Remember that in either case you need to install a t-stat housing into the vehicle from scratch. It will take you 2 - 3hrs, OEM or HDS. The 10 - 20 minute replacement only comes into place once the HDS is installed. So for your reduced usage is $110 OEM vs $500 HDS worth the 2-3hr labor every 4 - 6 yrs."


*This part of the quote has been removed, as it was determined to be spam by the site administrator.*

Blah Blah Blah. This has all been discussed before. I understand it. Must you keep repeating yourself.

I was strictly pointing out a labor vs cost review based on his amount of vehicle usage. Pure economics, nothing else. I was not discussing any other advantages or disadvantages.

You must have a persecution complex. Read my context again. I did not write good or bad about either product nor bring up which one I own. I strictly brought up a cost/labor based analysis with the thermostat replacement. The owner can make his decision based on the upgraded performance of the HDS vs OEM and the cost/labor/time involved in replacement of each.