General purpose engine

A general purpose engine which comprises:

• a cooling fan fixed to an engine rotary shaft;
• a muffler to silence exhaust gases;
• a muffler covering to cover the muffler;
• and
• an auto choke device to control an opening of a choke valve in an air intake passage by the utilization of heat evolved from the muffler, wherein
• the auto choke device comprises:
• a drive source, which is fitted to the muffler covering in a non-contact fashion to the muffler and exposed to an outer surface of the muffler covering;
• and
• a link member to connect between the drive source and the choke valve,
• the drive source includes a bracket fitted to the muffler covering and a bimetal fitted inside the bracket, the bimetal being laterally disposed between the muffler and the muffler covering, and
• the bracket includes a heat shield extending towards an inner side of the muffler covering and configured to block out a cooling wind then flowing towards the bimetal.