The potentiality of knock mitigation by means of the control of the coolant flow rate is investigated. As a first step, the dynamic behavior of the wall temperature in response to a sudden variation of the coolant flow rate is analyzed experimentally in a small displacement, 4-valve per cylinder SI engine, which is equipped with an electrically driven pump. Subsequently, the influence of the wall temperature on knock onset is analyzed through a zero-dimensional model and the Livengood and Wu integral. Finally, an experimental activity on the engine test bed is carried-out in order to evaluate the influence of the coolant flow rate and of the engine inlet coolant temperature on the knock phenomenon. Results show that, even though a retarded spark advance and a mixture enrichment are not avoidable in the early stage of knock onset, a cooling control can help reducing the time of use of these fuel consuming strategies in the case of prolonged high-load conditions.