What’s everyone’s opinion on header wrap? Is it needed when doing long tubes?

 

Needed? no. I did some digging myself and came to the conclusion all wrap will eventually over time become brittle and deteriorate. Even the good stuff DEI Titanium.

I would have them ceramic coated and never worry about them again.

 

I have neither, wrap or coating. Haven't noticed any issues. I would think heat reduction would be the biggest help.

 

Coating is the way to go. Wrap is just going to deteriorate and hold condensation which will accelerate rust.

 

I would definitely either wrap or ceramic coat them. You may want to check out this thread: https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...ader-wrap.html
This is a VERY good article you should read over: http://www.chevyhardcore.com/tech-st...reat%2C%20too.

 

Most recommend putting high temp silicon over the wrap to prevent that issue

 

I'm going to go against some opinions and say either leave the headers exposed or ceramic coat them, but it's not the first time I hear that header wrap is a headache. High temp paint also won't hold up

 

Agreed.

 

I've done both coatings and the DEI Titanium wrap on a couple of the my cars.

First coatings....I have a 650 hp Viper with American Racing headers. When the car was stock with cats, the footwell area would get warm enough that on hot days I'd run the A/C to my feet and panel to stay comfortable. When I decided to do the the AR headers I sent them to one of the top names to coat them which was Jet Hot. I coated not only the headers but the down pipes which is essentially a cat delete pipe that goes straight to the side pipes. So now my footwell is just as hot under the same conditions....sorry, but I claim bullshit on ceramic coating being able to make a measurable difference once the car is heat soaked. Would I do it again?...yes, because my AR headers are stainless and they will start to look like crap after a few thousand miles. I will say that the Jet Hot coating still looks like the day I installed them. Taking IR readings with a hand held gun and there was no real difference once the car was up to operating temps and the engine was fully heat soaked. I've never seen anybody do a temp probe comparison between raw and ceramic coated.

On my C5Z, I run stock manifolds but have a lot of the exhaust system wrapped in DEI Titanium wrap. I was trying to keep the heat in the pipes and also not heat soak the transmission between track sessions. I have a cat delete pipe from Magna Flow and noticed that the plastic connectors for the O2 sensors started melting. So much for the header wrap helping. I had some left over aluminum single sided tape that has an adhesive backing (I can't remember if it was DEI, Cool It or Thermo-Tec). I wrapped the aluminum foil tape around the header wrap and did some experiments. To my amazement, even after the car was run hard I could hold my had an inch away from pipe and it barely felt warm. With just the header wrap you could feel a lot of heat radiating off the pipe. The aluminum tape is not designed to be wrapped directly around pipes and it will melt. But when wrapping it around the header wrap it has survived 3 hard track days and looks perfectly normal. My theory is the lower radiating temps are a result of this hybrid system acting like a heat shield with the header wrap acting as an air gap. Warning,....you will see a lot of smoke for the first few hard runs. I thought the stuff had caught fire, lol. My header wrap did the same thing too...just not as bad.

The only thing that will keep the heat from radiating and damaging the sensitive things under the hood is a heat shield with an air gap. If you're trying to lower under hood temps, then air flow in and out of the engine compartment is your only friend. There are other head shield products to encase the headers but the good stuff can cost $500.00 or more depending on your headers. You'll notice whether examining a Toyota econobox or brand new Ferrari, they all use a heat shield with air gap to protect heat sensitive components. And regarding header wraps, I think that a lot of the "titanium", "lava rock", etc is B.S. too....they are all essentially woven fiberglass. Don't fall for the marketing hype. And if doing a wrap, don't buy the very expensive stainless steel zip ties they brand names sell...go to Harbor Freight and buy them for 1/4 the price and they work just as well since they're all made in the same Chinese factory.

The one nice thing about wrapped headers and exhausts is if you're working on a hot car, touching the header won't instantly melt your skin like bare metal does.

 

So after reading the comments and articles posted, I’m going to try some wrap. I ordered up the DEI Titanium wrap and a slew of stainless ties. I really don’t think keeping the extra heat from the headers out of the engine bay is a bad thing.

 

If this is your first time using header wrap, buy more header wrap than you think you'll need.

Also, when you cut the header wrap the ends will start to fray very quickly. Get a small bottle of super glue and you can put a bead of super glue across the width of the header wrap at the spot you want to cut it, let it dry (it only takes a few moments) and cut with scissors across the bead of super glue. It soaks in very quickly and makes a strip about 1/4" wide so you can cut right down the middle. The super glue will help keep the cut end from fraying to pieces. Or you can put a bead of super glue about a 1/4" from the end of the cut and fold over the end to seal off the fraying issue. Cutting the header wrap may ruin the scissors or shears you use since it is very abrasive with the super glue on it.

If you're sensitive to fiberglass fibers, wear a mask, long sleeve shirt and latex gloves, eye protection, etc to avoid potential issues. This stuff is nasty once you cut it.
Good luck with the project.

 

I hear it mentioned once in a while that wrap holds moisture and will accelerate rust on headers.

Can someone explain how wrap is going to hold moisture and accelerate rust.
Starting with some assumptions and a couple of facts to frame this discussion (to make sure we are on the same page).

Assumptions:
1. Most C5 owners store their C5s inside - not exposed to much if any rain that would somehow penetrate the hood fender gap and drip onto the headers.
2. Most C5 owners take the other car when it is a rainy day.

Facts:
3. Exhaust header temps reach well in excess of 500 degrees
4. Water turns to steam at 212 degrees F.
5. Most C5 headers offered are stainless steel - I have not seen any mild steel ones in a LONG time.

I am bringing this up to sort this issue out - because if true, it is a good reason to avoid wrap. If not true, it helps to get rid of a myth.

Thoughts?
Toys

 

Exhaust Header Heat Wraps - Do Not Use (centuryperformance.com)

Interesting read if you've got a few minutes.Found it while trying to decide if I wanted to wrap mine.

 

wrapping is a role PITA, and water will always find a way in. I've done it myself on several cars, had shops do it for me, and always regretted it.
I have stainless long tubes on my c5 for 15 years now, same set, no wrap, no coating, no issues.

 

Just get "boots" for your spark plug wires and you should be fine. $15.

 

do you even need them on the c5? I did this so long ago, but IIRC the COP/wires were not even close to the headers.
I did use boots in a zz6 motor I just put in my cherokee, the actually look nice (got red with black stitching) and work fantastic.

 

Yeah, I would at least get something to protect the spark plug wires, They are pretty close.

 

The goal is to keep the thermal energy flowing inside the pipes without abnormally overheating the pipes and lowering shed heat. Ceramic coating like Jet Hot (or similar) is your best bet for thermal management, looks and longevity of the system. It is not uncommon for headers to weaken and fail inside wrap. Heat gets trapped by the wrap and the metal goes through uneven/high heat cycles. Wrap also holds moisture and promotes rust and corrosion - lots of cars are daily driven and see rain, brine, etc. Also, over time the wrap looks like crap. If you're doing a nice set of headers, have them coated and they will increase performance and look great for years. They will also reduce shed under-hood heat compared to non-coated headers.

I have had high temp coatings installed on pistons and exhausts over the years - good stuff - do some research on ceramic coating and you will see some cool stuff.

 

Unless you're racing and constantly on redline I wouldn't bother. Under race conditions does make a big difference.

 

I doubt I’ll be racing all the time but I’d really like to attend a few track days here and there at a couple tracks close to KC.