Engine bay heat, abit of advice would be appreciated.

[Trophy264]

Exhaust manifold heat reduction options
- Exhaust insulant wrap
- ceramic paint coating

has anyone got one of these options? or both!?
The idea is that the heat from the exhaust manifold increases performance though various pathways which i wont explain now decreases. by insuring the exhaust gases stay hot and the air in stays cold this makes for a more efficient engine. ...... makes sense.

it seems to be a fairly cost effective mod, and something to do on a sunday afternoon. has anyone done this, or have any pervious experience.

 

[liam1610]

I have been looking into this in my Trophy the first thing i noticed when i got it a few weeks back was the temperature of the engine bay.
Now if no one knows this the air intake should take in colder air due to it being denser however if the air is hotter then the less dense the air is the less performance you get, so in theory heat wraps should increase performance.
I personally have been looking into just the heat wrap as its rather cheap to do and my manifold now being 5 years old has signs of corrosion starting so paint wont stick unless thoroughly prepped.
I have been wondering how this heat in the engine bay would affect the life of electrical components and the wiring loom, there is only so much heat a wire can take before damage is done. This decrease in heat should extend life expectancy of components and wiring.
There is a few downsides to this however and thats due to a decrease in life expectancy for the manifold only due to moisture and heat being kept in the exhaust system. Corrosion and cracked manifolds are not unheard of though.

 

[trophy380]

Do it! Don't worry too much about moisture making the manifold rust, as soon as it warms up the moisture will be gone! A little tip for you, don't go too far down the manifold. You wont need to do the whole thing, only what you can see in the engine bay! A good thing about doing it this way is that it wont pick up any dirt from the road and soak up water etc...

I've done a few of these and this is what I do, as shown by a few motorsport experts!

Soak the bandage in water - makes it much easier to shape and wrap.
Don't bother with those expensive ties - buy some thin steel or stainless wire. (lots cheaper, pulls tighter and not so noticeable).

Hope this helps.

 

[keith185]

Another part to look at regarding heat transfer reduction is ptfe gaskets on the inlet manfold. Very easy to fit and quite cheap.

 

[Trophy264]

hmmmmm.... seems like a plan.
thanks for the water tip! though searching it would seem race/ track cars use this.
wrap all the way to the cat, most websites are saying.

 

[spank-it]

not many people are aware of this but exhaust wraps also make your exhaust system quieter. Handy if you have an aftermarket exhaust and do lots of tackdays or if your racing car has a straight pipe from manifold to exit.

 

[BoroGTI]

i had exhaust wrap on a previous car and would reccomend it, although its hard work. i would go for the spray on heat stuff if i had the money, but when i looked into it it was extremely expensive. just need to be careful that you dont spill any oil on heat wrap lol!

 

[Trophy264]

Got a quote though from a place in Oxford for 'performance white' some kinda coating that's 9 times better than ceramic .£ 370 unfortunately which especially ATM I really don't have the money for, so wrap it is I think!
Good news about the noise reduction!! I posted on here alittle while ago I didn't like the motorway noise. So that makes me smile seems like a win win really.
Thanks for the help I'll post up when it's done.