[Formulajones]

No real reason to be afraid of a 160 stat. An engine will only run at that temp if the cooling system and everything else about the engine is up to snuff and capable of holding that temp.
In most cases, with stock cooling systems and warm climates, the engine will still run well above that thermostat temp rating. It will just settle in with what your system is capable of.

I have one car here with a 160 stat, with it's original 50 year old radiator, stock cooling system, clutch fan, etc... It generally runs around the 175 mark most of the time, and on the hottest days here in AZ 185 is the hottest I've seen it.
I've since put a Cold Case radiator in it, left everything else the same, and it now does run closer to the stat rating and has a more consistent temp on the hotter days. Hasn't seen 185 since.

Most of our other cars are also 160 stats and efforts made to keep them at or around that temp for various reasons. The biggest being that we push the compression envelope with our engines, and have to run this crappy 91 octane pump gas. Tunes have to be spot on but also just as important to maintain and have good control of engine temps. Especially here in AZ where our summer temps are over 100 degrees. We don't care about emissions, I'm not looking to burn off all the hydrocarbons, I'm looking to control combustion chamber temps and detonation, with sharp tuning, tight quench, proper camshaft, and controlling the engine temps. There is no real downside to it that I've found after doing this more than 30 years.