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Quote: "...I’ve also decided to add heat extraction vents to the hood, both to reduce drag and to reduce coolant temps during spirited/aggressive driving, especially since the new bumper cover has less grille area than my current one (if you count the unblocked upper grille), being that it has no upper grille."
I installed a couple of louvers in the hood of my Mazda3, mostly to increase longevity of the battery in my semi-tropical climate. Besides, I was going after the classic XKE Jaguar look. :-)
When I installed the hood vents, I also added a gauge under the hood to track temps there. I don't know what the temps were before the louvers, but with them the engine bay temps are about what the ambient temps are. IE, when the car is moving, if it's 50F outside, its 50F under the hood. If it's 90F outside, it's 90F under the hood. Until, of course, you stop the car. Then, the under-hood temps will temporarily rise to maybe 150F or so until the hot air is able to escape on its own without the aid of the forward movement of the car.
I know that it is arguable that keeping temperatures under the hood high is better for fuel economy, but I can't tell any difference. Besides, I think cooler temps in the engine bay are better not only for the battery, but also the computers, sensors, belts, hoses and plastics that are subject to degrading heat from the engine.
The hood venting doesn't affect my engine coolant temps. The engine coolant is controlled by the thermostat, and coolant temperatures haven't changed at all for me. However, if I covered the grill (which I don't), I'm sure the hood louvers would supply some amount of relief should coolant temps rise due to the air blockage.
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