[Mishimoto]

House of the Rising Engine Temperatures – 2016 Camaro SS Thermostat Housing R&D, Part 1: 3D-Printed Prototype

For those of you not familiar with the climate here in New Castle, Delaware, let me educate you on our summers; they are hot, and they are HUMID. In the dead of the July heatwave, there is nothing worse than smoldering in an apartment with no AC. I am always very appreciative of the little part of my psyche that drives me, once I can barely stand the heat, to pause Top Gear, get off the couch, and grab a cold, refreshing drink. If I were a car, that little part of my psyche would have a name, and it would be called a thermostat.


2016 Camaro thermostat housing (OEM) next to some of our other 2016 camaro pa (oem housing)rts

What is a Thermostat, and in what Neighborhood is its Housing?

In a liquid-cooled engine, a thermostat is responsible for keeping coolant from flowing through the radiator until the engine reaches operating temperature, at which point it opens to allow coolant into the heat exchanger, thus preventing overheating. The thermostat resides within a protective cover called the thermostat housing, which keeps coolant contained and allows it to interact with the thermostat. Its construction incorporates a passage for coolant to return to the cooling system if the thermostat is closed.

Many vehicles utilize a housing that is made of metal, but the 2016 Camaro thermostat housing is plastic. Not only is the plastic unsightly, but it also will not be nearly as durable in the long-term as a metal housing would. That’s where we come in – Mishimoto has begun development on a 2016 Camaro thermostat housing!

Development Process for the 2016 Camaro Thermostat Housing

One of the first steps in developing 2016 Camaro parts is to engineer a prototype as a 3D-model using CAD design software. Check out some of the renderings our engineering team put together after modelling our new thermostat housing.


Renderings of our 2016 Camaro parts

The next step is to ensure that our prototype will fit properly and not interfere with any other Camaro parts. For this, we broke out the trusty 3D printer and gave it a few hours to bring our model to life. Once the printout was finished, we threw it on the Camaro to see how it looked!

First, our engineer removed the OEM housing.


Removing the OEM 2016 Camaro thermostat housing

The next step was to install the 3D-printed prototype for its time in the limelight!


2016 camaro parts

Next Time…

As you can see, the fitment of this piece looked pretty darn good, and it will look even better made out of aluminum! Additionally, this part will also fit any 2015+ Corvette equipped with an LT1, so make sure your Corvette-owning friends know that we are helping them out too. Our engineers are making a few more adjustments, but I will continue to share any information with you throughout the process as this 2016 Camaro thermostat housing gets closer to production.

Keep your eyes peeled for thermostat housing updates, as well as for updates on other 2016 Camaro parts that we are developing.

Check out our blog for more information on this project and all of our others, too!

Thanks for reading, and see you next time!
- Gardiner

[vtirocz]

Where's the evidence that the stock housing is not durable long term? I've never heard of one of these failing (ie. the housing itself).

[jimmypop13]

Originally Posted by vtirocz

Where's the evidence that the stock housing is not durable long term? I've never heard of one of these failing (ie. the housing itself).

Some people may prefer metal. Options are good

[Mishimoto]

Originally Posted by vtirocz

Where's the evidence that the stock housing is not durable long term? I've never heard of one of these failing (ie. the housing itself).

Originally Posted by jimmypop13

Some people may prefer metal. Options are good

Plastic will not hold up as well as metal to repeated heat-cycles throughout the life of the car, and WILL crack eventually, whereas a metal thermostat housing should generally outlive the car. That said, this part is also great for people who want to improve the looks of their engine bay in addition to the durability benefits.

Thanks!
-Gardiner

[Kracka]

Originally Posted by vtirocz

Where's the evidence that the stock housing is not durable long term? I've never heard of one of these failing (ie. the housing itself).

No issues in C7-land. I'd call this a cosmetic mod.

Mishimoto - Will you be offering a lower degree thermostat to go along with your new housing, and if so, will that thermostat remain compatible with the stock housing? The reason I ask is because I have a 2014 C7, and as far as I know while the housings do differ a bit, the thermostats are identical in design. Lingenfelter had one, then pulled it do to issues with the seal failing and leaking in short order. Summit and JEGS both sell one from a company I've never heard of called JET Performance which people seem to be having better luck with.

[Mishimoto]

Originally Posted by Kracka

No issues in C7-land. I'd call this a cosmetic mod.

Mishimoto - Will you be offering a lower degree thermostat to go along with your new housing, and if so, will that thermostat remain compatible with the stock housing? The reason I ask is because I have a 2014 C7, and as far as I know while the housings do differ a bit, the thermostats are identical in design. Lingenfelter had one, then pulled it do to issues with the seal failing and leaking in short order. Summit and JEGS both sell one from a company I've never heard of called JET Performance which people seem to be having better luck with.

Hey, that's a great question. We are actually releasing a 160 degree F thermostat for the C7 and Camaro SS, which should be released around 1.5-2 months from now. It will absolutely be compatible with our housing as well as OEM!

Thanks,
Gardiner

[Kracka]

Just a thought, but that is on the cold side for a street car. I would suggest something more like a 180F. 160F will cause a hit to MPG and may not even allow the ECU to see what it considers to be full operating temp lifting the reduced redline (indicated) on the C7 tachometer.

Some further reading for consideration:

[Mishimoto]

Originally Posted by Kracka

Just a thought, but that is on the cold side for a street car. I would suggest something more like a 180F. 160F will cause a hit to MPG and may not even allow the ECU to see what it considers to be full operating temp lifting the reduced redline (indicated) on the C7 tachometer.

Some further reading for consideration:

Hey,

All very good points - our thermostat is geared more towards racing applications, so we anticipate it seeing higher running temperatures on average than a typical street car.

Thanks!
-Gardiner

[Mishimoto]

Hello everyone!

Our racing thermostat for the 2016+ Camaro SS is now available. As mentioned above, this part will also fit a C7 Corvette as well as a variety of GM trucks.

Check it out here.

Keep checking back for updates on the thermostat housing. I should have some info in the not-too-distant future.

Thanks,
-Gardiner

[Mishimoto]

Hey Everyone!

So I wanted to give you all a quick update on our progress with the Mishimoto Camaro SS Thermostat Housing, and also to reach out for some input on what you want out of this product in terms of aesthetics.

Vote on your favorite colors HERE!

In testing the housing’s fitment and appearance in the engine bay, we began throwing around different ideas for what types of finish we might want to offer. We have narrowed our initial ideas down to a few options, and I wanted to publish them up here to see what you all might have to say. These will likely be painted or powder coated (TBD), but please let us know what you like as far as colors go - the red/blue/yellow will match the OEM colors.

Option 1: Black


Option 2: Silver


Option 3: Chrome


Option 4: Red


Option 5: Blue


Option 6: Yellow


Option 7: Give us your suggestions or ideas!

Please vote on your favorite option here, and drop us a comment below.

Thanks,
-Gardiner

[Mishimoto]

Hey Everyone,

Just wanted to let you all know that we have decided to put this project on a temporary hold. We have a lot of exciting projects that we are working on for our Camaros and for other vehicles too, and we want to make sure we are putting our limited resources towards developing the parts that you all want the most.

That's not to say that this thermostat housing will never see the light of day, but we feel that it's important to be transparent with you about the R&D process, and in this instance, there are other projects that are taking precedence over this.

Thanks very much to everyone for your input and poll responses, however. All this said, if you have any further suggestions/feedback/questions, by all means, continue to post here and ask away!

Thanks Everyone!
-Gardiner

[TSloper]

If you have such limited resources how about stop chasing solutions for problems that have yet to exist? The way you guys market makes it sound like the Camaro could start falling apart before our very eyes.

Face it... there just isn't much to be gained on the LT1 platform until you go into the motor. If you want a project go investigate what size TB blade will net the best gains with a MSD intake manifold with stock H/C.