heat wrapping headers

[Markland556]

I was thinking about heat wrapping my stock C36 headers. I was thinking it would be good to keep some heat out of the engine bay for when my CAI goes in, but reading around on some of the honda forums it looks like the extra heat that cant escape will eventually cause your header to crack. Maby its just a better idea to go with a heat shield. I would love to get the headers Jet-Hot coated, but ill save that money for the SS headers that omey is working on. I have heard that wrapping the intake in the wrapping will only make things worse as it traps the heat in the piping. Any thoughts?

[Proven Guilty]

the difference in quality from the japanese steel to the german steel is very much different. european cars tend to use a harder, thicker steel, american cars are about the middle grade, and the japanese cars are often the lighter end of the spectrum (depending greatly on the model of course).

i've never heard of an OEM exhaust manifold cracking due to heat wrapping on american or german cars. they're usually much much thicker than they need to be.

[Nelson Lago]

i say leave it stock i think the car was made to handle that heat

[omeyhomey]

heat wrapping can cause oxidation issues. realistically bet thing is either ceramic coat (which if you are lazy you can just have the exterior ceramic coated without taking them off the car) or you can just have them shipped off. Honestly best thing may be to just wait until my headers come out then just have those ceramic coated before you install them that way you get more power and less heat. Its up to you.

[OzC36]

You are trying to keep the CAI cold.


Leave the headers stock so they can get rid of heat (or omeyhomey modified), and insulate the new CAI components from the heat.

[omeyhomey]

Originally posted by OzC36
You are trying to keep the CAI cold.


Leave the headers stock so they can get rid of heat (or omeyhomey modified), and insulate the new CAI components from the heat.

yup exactly. Best thing is to isolate & make sure the cold air intake is SEALED (meaning no heat leaks at all) and get performance headers. Ceramic coating headers does make a tremendous difference but its $$ and annoying to do.

[Markland556]

well i just did my CAI yesterday and i can feel the heat on the pipe after driving around. I was thinking about making a heat shield that will deflect incoming air toward the headers and down under the car. What kind of material can i use to insulate the CAI pipe? I heard that the heat wrap will only keep the heat in.. kinda doesn't make sense though and i already have some sitting around.

[RemoLexi]

Ive been thinking .... what if you re-route the intake ?

what I mean is, use a 90degree elbo off the throttle body like the Komp M111 engines use, then mount the air flow meter, then go striaght down under the drivers' headlight and remount the A/C dryer a few inches to the side that way the intake pipe is nowhere near the exhuast manifold. just some rough brain sketches.

[Markland556]

definatly the best way to do it. It would change the MAF readings because the computer is programmed for that exact location. But i think it would still work great. I was going to go this route and throw in an IC too, but i think i might wait, i really want to go turbo. But i have some engine problems that need to be fixed first.

[RemoLexi]

well, if the MAF is reading more air past it means it should run your engine slightly richer if you have upgraded fuel injecters, theres a slight enhancement already.

[OzC36]

I heard that the heat wrap will only keep the heat in.. kinda doesn't make sense though and i already have some sitting around.

Insulating material prevents heat transfer. It can work both ways. For example, gloves can keep your hands warm in winter, while heat proof gloves will keep your hands cool when handling hot items.

Heat transfer through air is by radiation and conduction if I remember correctly. So I would guess an insulation material that has a shiny surface on the outside would work best at preventing heat transfer into the CAI.

The relocation idea to move the CAI away from the exhaust manifold has a lot of merit. I don't know enough to comment on the performance of the mass flow sensor in a changed location, but I would guess that it should work OK?