Retrospective ceramic coating experiences ?

[AC Ventura]

I looking for actual proof that ceramic coated headers actually offer significant
temperature reduction. I can’t fine any independent tests and munufacurers data is selective. For example ‘Exhaust temp dropped by 170 degrees’ but from what....red hot? So has anyone ever coated headers after using the car, presumably because things were uncomfortably hot and able to tell if any improvement was forthcoming?

[Ron61]

I haven't but know a person who had his did after he drove it for almost a year and he told me that it did drop the under hood temperature but had no actual readings to show how much. I have mine wrapped and though his looks a lot better, I really can't tell there is a huge difference when we open the hoods.

Ron

[DanEC]

I have to admit to some skepticism also. My headers, primary pipes and mufflers on my under car system are all ceramic coated in black inside and out. My mufflers are Spinteck baffled mufflers (no packing). Now how effective they can actually coat the inside of pipes and mufflers I don't know - maybe not too well.

I think part of the problem may be the use of IR guns to shoot surface temps on the headers & pipes. I read a paper once that IR guns are mostly calibrated to a flat black surface and shiny or silver color can introduce error into their readings. Since most people use a silver, somewhat shiny coating - well relying on temperature reading on them can be a problem. My mufflers are under the seat area and I've shot temps on them of around 550 degrees - not excessively hot for exhaust gases but certainly not as low as I would expect from all the claims for outside heat refraction on outside/inside coated mufflers. Since they are flat black I tend to think theses readings might be more accurate than if I had a silver coating. Pretty much same at the headers although I don't recall specific readings.

So, I'm not saying BS on the claims. But I am a little suspicious of their validity.

[AC Ventura]

Originally Posted by DanEC

I have to admit to some skepticism also. My headers, primary pipes and mufflers on my under car system are all ceramic coated in black inside and out. My mufflers are Spinteck baffled mufflers (no packing). Now how effective they can actually coat the inside of pipes and mufflers I don't know - maybe not too well.

I think part of the problem may be the use of IR guns to shoot surface temps on the headers & pipes. I read a paper once that IR guns are mostly calibrated to a flat black surface and shiny or silver color can introduce error into their readings. Since most people use a silver, somewhat shiny coating - well relying on temperature reading on them can be a problem. My mufflers are under the seat area and I've shot temps on them of around 550 degrees - not excessively hot for exhaust gases but certainly not as low as I would expect from all the claims for outside heat refraction on outside/inside coated mufflers. Since they are flat black I tend to think theses readings might be more accurate than if I had a silver coating. Pretty much same at the headers although I don't recall specific readings.

So, I'm not saying BS on the claims. But I am a little suspicious of their validity.

Dan, just watched your links and car looks and sounds gorgeous. The street spec is very similar to my Mk IV
. I'm also running under floor, but am running the downpipes in front of the footboxes (like a sidepipe car) in the hope of unblocking the air out path. I'm constructing this part now, hence worry about the heat issue. What size primary/exhaust and what SpinTech model did you use? Would you recommend?

[BAsque1]

Originally Posted by Ron61

I haven't but know a person who had his did after he drove it for almost a year and he told me that it did drop the under hood temperature but had no actual readings to show how much. I have mine wrapped and though his looks a lot better, I really can't tell there is a huge difference when we open the hoods.

Ron

I ceramic coated my headers, done by Firefly (Ron Roberts) and while I did not actually take any temp readings my best gauge is the co-pilot wifey. She used to complain that riding the car in the summer was like an oven by her legs and mine as well. After the coating we have no problem riding in the summer. It is more comfortable.

[DanEC]

Originally Posted by AC Ventura

Dan, just watched your links and car looks and sounds gorgeous. The street spec is very similar to my Mk IV
. I'm also running under floor, but am running the downpipes in front of the footboxes (like a sidepipe car) in the hope of unblocking the air out path. I'm constructing this part now, hence worry about the heat issue. What size primary/exhaust and what SpinTech model did you use? Would you recommend?

Thank you,

I'm running the ERA headers and downpipes. The header pipes are probably the same as for their side exhaust and the collector and downpipe is different and crosses the end of the foot box and turns back about 1 or 2 inches from the edge of the rocker panels. That's in contrast to the original street cars where the downpipes seem to run further inside close to the chassis rails.

The down pipes from the shorty collector are 2-1/2 inch and I ran 2-1/2 inch all the way out of the back. The SpinTech mufflers are 2-1/2 in and out. The are the low profile mufflers (3 inches thick) and they can be purchased in different outside and center inlet and outlet configurations and thickness.

https://spintechmufflers.com/low-profile-mufflers/

If I were doing it all over again I think I might use a 2-1/4 inch outlet model and run 2-1/4 inch pipes out the rear. By the time exhaust gets through the muffler it should be cooling and condensing enough that a 2-1/4" tail pipe should still pass plenty for 450 to 500 HP I think.







By the way, if you're car isn't street able to take it to a muffler shop, I found 2" PVC pipe and 90/45 degree fittings worked well for mocking up a tailpipe to take to a muffler shop for them to bend or weld up the pipes from. I was fortunate on the ERA that the tailpipe routing only requires a 2-D layout to get through the wheel wells and out the back. The tailpipes came out inside from where they do on the originals but the ERA rollunder behind the tires is deeper than on originals and would have to be trimmed or the tailpipes dropped down lower behind the tire to route further to the outside and clear.

Also still a fan of ceramic coating - for durability if nothing else. That VHT paint just doesn't seem to last very long for the most part.

[66gtk]

Dan, your installation continues to be such a nice and clean solution when I compare it to some others I've seen. I would LOVE to see your car and HEAR it at various speeds in person some time. Your car is TOPS! I hope you are enjoying it.

[C5GTO]

I have ceramic coated headers and side pipes on my Cobra. I've been really happy with them, but not so much for temp reduction, but for good looks and protection from corrosion. The biggest heat reduction I've had was provided when I changed out the side pipe mufflers. The original mufflers had very restricted flows and new ones didn't. The heat radiating from the side pipes dropped dramatically with this change. So muffler choice maybe a bigger factor in heat radiation than coatings?

On another of my cars, replica Ferrari 250 GTO, I decided to use a different coating for the headers and head pipes: White Lightning. It's much thicker than typical ceramic coating and they claim much better at keeping heat in the pipes. I went this route as the exhaust is under car and very tight to footboxes, tunnel and transaxle. I don't have any comparison numbers to share but I thought I'd let you know about another alternative. In this case, the exhaust is all 304 stainless so I didn't do the coating for corrosion protection, it was all for heat control.

I just got the car back from paint shop last week...



...so I can't tell you from driving experience yet if I've got the exhaust heat under control. Hopefully in a couple of months I'll be able to talk from on the road experience

[AC Ventura]

Originally Posted by DanEC

Thank you,

I'm running the ERA headers and downpipes. The header pipes are probably the same as for their side exhaust and the collector and downpipe is different and crosses the end of the foot box and turns back about 1 or 2 inches from the edge of the rocker panels. That's in contrast to the original street cars where the downpipes seem to run further inside close to the chassis rails.

The down pipes from the shorty collector are 2-1/2 inch and I ran 2-1/2 inch all the way out of the back. The SpinTech mufflers are 2-1/2 in and out. The are the low profile mufflers (3 inches thick) and they can be purchased in different outside and center inlet and outlet configurations and thickness.

https://spintechmufflers.com/low-profile-mufflers/

If I were doing it all over again I think I might use a 2-1/4 inch outlet model and run 2-1/4 inch pipes out the rear. By the time exhaust gets through the muffler it should be cooling and condensing enough that a 2-1/4" tail pipe should still pass plenty for 450 to 500 HP I think.







By the way, if you're car isn't street able to take it to a muffler shop, I found 2" PVC pipe and 90/45 degree fittings worked well for mocking up a tailpipe to take to a muffler shop for them to bend or weld up the pipes from. I was fortunate on the ERA that the tailpipe routing only requires a 2-D layout to get through the wheel wells and out the back. The tailpipes came out inside from where they do on the originals but the ERA rollunder behind the tires is deeper than on originals and would have to be trimmed or the tailpipes dropped down lower behind the tire to route further to the outside and clear.

Also still a fan of ceramic coating - for durability if nothing else. That VHT paint just doesn't seem to last very long for the most part.

That’s exactly what I’m doing Dan! And perfect answers. Thanks for all the info. I’m guessing your primaries are 1 3/4”. My existing Mk IV oe system is 2 1/4.....but motor supposedly 530hp. Borderline I think. 2 1/2 must be right and I think too small doesn’t help heat build up issues.

[DanEC]

That sounds right on the primaries without going out and measuring them. You have about 50 more HP than I do so considering how short the car and exhaust systems are on them, 2-1/2" pipes are probably a good idea if you have room for them. There are also oval pipe that can be used if it gets too tight somewhere. Good luck.

[HI Cobra]

I had the original restrictive pipes on my Classic Roadster painted vht black with
the headers wrapped. The side pipes were very hot - if you touched them you
were burned. I got Don's unrestricted pipes on, then got a deal for ceramic
coating the headers and side pipes and tried that. There was no rust on the headers after nine years, but did not wrap the coated ones. Long story short
regarding heat - made a big difference in my case. Liked the extra power from
the unrestricted pipes too! No temperature readings, but no more burns and a
much cooler ride in the summer.