My upgraded aluminum housing thermostat for a 2014 Chevy Cruze decided to overheat my car after only 2 months, so I take it apart to see what went wrong. This thermostat works by the engine coolant heating up wax in sealed piston/cylinder arrangement, which pushes the actual thermostat valve disc open. A spring keeps the valve closed until the hydraulic pressure of the expanding wax has enough force to overcome the spring, and open the disc to allow coolant to flow to the radiator to cool the engine. There is also an electric heater built in that allows the engine control computer to add extra heat to the wax to cause the thermostat to open more quickly, or allow the computer to more accurately control the engine temp. Sounds great in theory, but in practice this seems to be a very weak link in the design of these engines, causing no end of troubles!
ChargerMiles007
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Chevy Cruze Thermostat Cut Apart to show pieces
My upgraded aluminum housing thermostat for a 2014 Chevy Cruze decided to overheat my car after only 2 months, so I take it apart to see what went wrong. This thermostat works by the engine coolant heating up wax in sealed piston/cylinder arrangement, which...
Open this video on ChargerMiles007Napanee 2026 Canada Day Car Show
July 1st Canada Car show in the Best & Bash parking lot. It was 90F or 33C in the sun, so shade was a welcome thing to find! I took a lot of photos, but still only got about half of the cars there. I know I missed Trans Am row, for sure! :( The music is by ...
Open this video on ChargerMiles007FrankenBriggs Model N brought back to life!
I restored about a 1950 Briggs model N to running condition. I had to do a bit of FrankenBriggsing to get it to run, as I was missing some parts! Note, this is not the same model N as the engine with the original carb and gas tank.
Open this video on ChargerMiles0071951 Briggs & Stratton model N intro.
I decided to try my luck at getting another old cast iron block Briggs that was kicking around in my basement running again. This one is a more or less complete 1951 Model N, so it is 6 cubic inches with a 2" bore, and 2" stroke. So I will be doing lots of ...
Open this video on ChargerMiles007Crankshaft Timing Marks on Model 5S & 6 Briggs and Stratton Cast Iron Engines
Where the timing marks are located, and how to line them up properly on an old cast iron Briggs engine.
Open this video on ChargerMiles0073HP Scrapyard Briggs Will it Run?
I got a 1977 Briggs 3 horse water pump engine at the scrapyard. It was a complete engine, so I thought I would have a try at getting running. The problem areas were the usual ones, no spark, very dirty oil, and a lot of dirt and sand around the carb. One th...
Open this video on ChargerMiles0072014 Chevy Cruze Oil Cooler Replacement Helpful Hints
I had to replace the Turbo oil cooler on my 2014 Cruze with the 1.4 Turbo motor. Here are my observations that will hopefully help you while doing the same repair. I watched several vids on Youtube before I started the repair, I found the "Repair Geek " Cru...
Open this video on ChargerMiles0071st Scrapyard Briggs in Months!!!
I finally found a Briggs at the scrapyard today, it was an oldie, and not complete, but I took a gamble on the old Lad! It is a late 1960s or early 1970s 3 horsepower model 92902 Briggs lawnmower engine,
Open this video on ChargerMiles007Help Identify this HHR Engine/trans noise!
My 2007 Chevy HHR is making strange whirring noise when it is shifted into Reverse or Drive. The noise continues when the engine is in gear idling. It can also be heard when driving the car at city speeds. On the highway you generally can't hear it. My gues...
Open this video on ChargerMiles007Chevy HHR Heater Blower Motor Replacement!
The blower motor stopped working in my Chev HHR, so I take it out, rework it, and put it back in, without buying the factory re-installation kit. Note, you will need a few square inches of 24 guage or thicker sheet metal to make 3 small tabs out of. I used ...
Open this video on ChargerMiles007Concentrate Anti-Freeze, Are We getting our Money's worth???
I normally buy concentrated (100%) anti freeze engine coolant. Twice now I have tried to mix it to a 50:50 mixture with water, like it lists on the jug. Both times the freezing point is not a s low as it is supposed to be!!!! Today I bought a new tester to ...
Open this video on ChargerMiles007I am building a Briggs Raptor Engine!
I have decided to build a Briggs Raptor engine, probably for use on a mini bike. I am not going to get too radical with the build, as it would get too expensive.
Open this video on ChargerMiles007