In the past I have had headers JetHot coated. I know there are other coating companies out there that also provide this service claiming it reduces temps under the hood and increases flow. The price is quite a bit these days to get this done. Having a car that already has headers that aren't coated that were the same headers I once had on the same motor with similar if not identical mods, I honestly can't tell a difference heat wise, or flow wise that they are any different (except for appearence) than headers I have had previously that were coated.

Is having the headers coated really worth it? Or not? Looking for anyones opinion, but would really like the facts here if anyone has them. (facts coming from a non biased source, i.e. not from someone who will profit from you purchasing the coating)

 

I have Jet Hot coated Hookers L.T.s on my car and my little bro bought a car with Hooker L.T.s on his car that are not coated, we haven't noticed that much of a difference but I know he wishes they were coated. (Less heat, less prone to corrosion)

 

I just had mine redone....$280, was it worth it.....No probly not.

 

having outside done: not worth it

having inside and outside done: worth it

I opted not to get my hooker lt's coated because they came from summit with just the outside coated.

I found a local place that double coats them, inside and out, for $200.

for that price, I might get mine coated...

 

It definitely adds to the resale value of the headers. Along with the other benefits, I would say it is worth it.

 

Oh yeah, mine are coated inside and out. I forgot to mention that.

 

They look better than the manifols, but not as good as the coated ones. If your on a budget, dont waste your money, unless you have an engine dress up kit, or are planning on having it judged at a carshow or somethin

 

From my experience, they seem to have little to no effect on the actual temperatures under the hood as well as increasing flow. They do look nicer coated, but after enough time, the caoting seems to fade and look not so great anymore. I guess you could say that the non coated ones start looking worse earlier. But I highly doubt you would ever have to worry about corrosion with non coated headers to the extent that something would corrode through. You'd probably be on your 3rd motor by then I would guess.

Long story short, I think its nice to have (mostly appearance wise) but I'm starting to think its really not worth the hundreds of dollars it costs.

 

I think it kind of depends on what the headers are made out. If you have regular steel headers the coating just seems to flake off pretty quick and look bad. My SLP's are stainless steel and coated. They I bought them used 4 years ago and the coating is dull but still all there. My buddy had a set of SLP's as well and the coating on them never really flaked either.

 

My Macs are not coated and my car is driven daily and they still look very nice, better than some coated headers I've seen on daily drivers.

As far as performance, they need to be coated on both sides. If its just outside then you're overheating the steel.

If you want longevity, just pony up and get stainless. That said, I got 11 years out of a set of non coated hookers on my 70 SS and they were on the car when I bought it so I have no idea how old they really were.

 

Considering how much of a PITA to install i would defiinitely get coated ones.I paid big bucks years ago for blk painted and in less than ayear they were rusty and looked like s*** and when i sold them couldn,t give them away!On my 79Z i bought AK5000 and they are 10 yrs old and still have the coating.

 

As stated before, I'm sure it depends on the quality and type of metal used in the exact headers. The ones I will be getting will be Kooks, which are pretty high quality and shouldn't show signs of corrosion for more years than my motor will probably last.

If you go with a cheeper header, then it may be worth it to spend the extra $ and get the coating.

 

If you do get the headers coated, I would recommend having another source other than the header brand from which you are purchasing do the job. I have coated Hooker LT's and have not been very pleased with the quality of the finish nor how long it has lasted. These headers have only been on my car for about 4k of driving. During this time the car has been stored in a garage with a few instances of wet driving (it is currently stored for winter).

If you trully want coated headers, I would recommend buying the painted (black) headers and then sending them to a company that specializes in coating. The price won't be much different and the quality will likely be much better.

 

Aren't Kooks stainless? For their price they better be. If not lok at QTP's.

 

I believe you can get the Kooks in stainless, but their standard ones aren't.