Anyone here have any real life testimonials in favor of or against header wrap? I plan on wrapping my headers with DEI wrap and then 'sealing' them with high-temp ceramic paint...

Any thoughts on this?

 

I've "heard tale" of getting some oil or other fluids on them and them catching fire because of the wrap... with as leaky as LT1's are, I dunno if I am willing to risk it!

-Michael

 

ummmm, i dunno, never heard that. They are made from fiberglass and say that they withstand temps up to 2000*...I guess it might be possible in some freak accident though

 

They make the headers rust extremely quickly compared to normal. I have also heard the fire story.

 

They are a fire hazzard.Also it will rot your headers out fast,it hold in heat that makes them brittle and moisture.

 

Yes they will retain moisture. I've heard of guys taking they're headers off only to break them into a million peices because the fiberglass was holding the shape.

With today's ceramic coatings, heat wrap is kind of obselete.

 

Any wrap like that will hold moisture against the pipes. Since most headers are mild steel you have water+steel+heat=rapid rust. You wouldn't believe how quickly steel can perforate in the right conditions.

 

but has anyone ever used them? I've heard stuff too, but the stories always start I heard from a friend of a friend that his buddy used it and this happened...that's why I was wondering if anyone has had first-hand experience with wrapping...

 

You have to ask yourself, how many people do you see not using it and using ceramic coatings as an alternative?

 

Yeah, but that wouldn't be fair really, alot of guys are also worried about how thier engine compartment looks, and Ceramic Coating by far looks better than header wrap.

Honestly I would get ceramic coating but at 1/5th of the price header wrap is more economical.

The headers aren't there permanently, I plan on getting different ones in the future. They are 1 5/8" Edelbrock TES shorties, made from 16 gauge mild steel. I plan on getting 1 3/4" LT's later on, and probably ceramic coated ones at that.

For now all I was wondering was pros and cons of this wrap so I know about how long it will shorten (if at all) the life of these headers, and if it will or wont provide extra HP, even if it is just a few.

 

Race car mechanics do not care how "showy" their engine compartments look like.

I talked to the guys who race the Ferrari 550 Maranello in the ALMS... $100 for their white ceramic coating on their headers... its like $75 for the black coating.

http://fastdetails.com/alms/pics/03Seb0274.jpg

On that car too.

 

I've used header wraps in several applications in the past. I doubt that it increased horsepower to any significant level. They did a fantastic job of keeping underhood heat down to a minimum. Other than that, it destroyed every header I used it on (like mentioned before, the extreme heat destroys the header from the inside out). I don't think header wrap is worth the aggravation for such a little return.

 

so if I wrap them, how long do you think the lifespan would be? 1-2 years?

Will the high temp ceramic paint help to prevent water from seeping into the wrap when I drive through puddles and such?

 

I was never able to get more than about 6-8 months out the headers before they cracked. Remember. it all depends on the material that is used in header construction. Some seem to last longer than others.

 

There are plenty of guys on here that look for a cheap alternative.

The wrap will hold moisture over winter as well.

The fire hazard and rust acceleration properties make people choose ceramic coating.

But why don't you be the guinea pig and tell us how it goes.