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Wrap Exhaust with header wrap?

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Old Mar 13, 2024 | 07:26 AM
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Default Wrap Exhaust with header wrap?

Will be installing a new exhaust on our 18 Stingray. Since I'll be under the car installing the new exhaust, I was thinking about wrapping the complete exhaust system with header wrap to help cut down on heat into the cabin.
Has anyone wrapped the exhaust from the collect to the muffler with header wrap?
If you did, did it cutdown on heat in the cabin?
A lot of work for little gain?
Am I missing anything?
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Old Mar 13, 2024 | 10:22 AM
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You're better off putting a heat shield between the exhaust and what you want to insulate the heat from. Header wrap accelerates cracking of exhaust. If its stainless it doesn't need any wrap anyway as that material keeps the heat in the exhaust fairly well.
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Old Mar 13, 2024 | 12:31 PM
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I built an AC Cobra replica and used heat wrap on the headers and quickly found out that all it did was transfer the heat to another part of the exhaust system. So instead of the headers getting red hot like they are supposed to, the exhaust pipe under your seat gets red hot. In my case, since I had outside exhaust right under the doors, it made them almost too hot to exit over. I see no advantage to their use.
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Old Mar 13, 2024 | 01:23 PM
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Originally Posted by Red86Cfour
You're better off putting a heat shield between the exhaust and what you want to insulate the heat from. Header wrap accelerates cracking of exhaust. If its stainless it doesn't need any wrap anyway as that material keeps the heat in the exhaust fairly well.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ This ^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The same goes for these starter blankets ... you need to use a shield to reflect. heat

Dave
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Old Mar 13, 2024 | 09:00 PM
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Originally Posted by Red86Cfour
You're better off putting a heat shield between the exhaust and what you want to insulate the heat from. Header wrap accelerates cracking of exhaust. If its stainless it doesn't need any wrap anyway as that material keeps the heat in the exhaust fairly well.
A lot of work for very little gain.
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Old Nov 5, 2025 | 04:04 PM
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Just something else to cover here. Wraps will void most warranties.

Most exhaust and header companies will state no warranties on wrapped parts. Rust and metal fatigue are the prime concerns.

There are right ways to manage heat and wrong ways. Generally you want to shield the car not wrap unless you can’t shield.

Insulate the tunnel vs wrap the pipes is the right way.

Same in racing. Like for the driver you insulate the floor and even heat boots for the driver but you leave the pipes alone as you want to exchange to the air.

Now there are times you may not be able too or just have something poorly engineered you may need some wrap. But use care wrapping everything.

You see even on high end production card they insulate or shield not wrap.

But if your warranty is important don’t wrap. .
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Old Nov 5, 2025 | 09:09 PM
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If you want to reduce heat, ceramic coating is the way to go.
wrap is bad idea for a good pipe
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Old Nov 6, 2025 | 10:03 AM
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See what I did in this thread.
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...ng-x-pipe.html
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