anybody using aluminum down pipes
I have one, I built it out of 11ga. Not finished with my build yet though but not very far from firing it up. I have 2 friends that have them made out of aluminum and have no issues so I decided to go that route this time. I would think an aluminum DP would stay cooler being that it takes twice the heat to weld aluminum because it dissipates heat so fast. My old DP I built out of 304SS and being 4" it ran so cool that the first 10" was the only part that even slightly changed colors.
Yeah but look at the actual dp and notice that it barely glows and only about 4" of it. It may be making EGT's that high but that's on the engine to turbine side. My friends that are already running aluminum DP's have them on X275 cars making over 1300WHP I'm sure they would melt one before I or you would and they haven't so far. I'm obviously not afraid of that happening because I've already built my DP out of aluminum lol.
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I have a 5" aluminum downpipe on mine that Huron built for me with my hotside. My car isn't finished yet so no actual results with it but I am more than confident that I will have zero issues with it. It's a weekend car that will see multiple trips to the track
Matt
Matt
TECH Enthusiast
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 617
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From: Okmulgee, OK
Quite a few people do obviously, but yes the do melt. I read an article about LMR's Firebird melting the downpipes and having to repair them before a race, use a thicker gauge aluminum for the first 6"-8" or so and then go to the thinner stuff.
What filler do you use on Titanium? I know silicon bronze does most all exotic metals but I've never got the chance to play around with it, do you have to backpurge Ti?
I didn't go aluminum as I've got vids of my exhaust glowing like the vids above. The low timing and high egts on my street car trying to hook big power on the street or on street tires on the track IMO is way harder than a x275 car does to a downpipe.
I run an aluminum down pipe on my car. It's 4" and made from 11ga for the first foot or so and then goes to 16ga. No sharp bends in the first foot just a 45* to route it towards the fender opening. I had it ceramic coated, no wrap and it's been fine. It's about 40" long with a bumper exit and it will get hot enough to melt the bumper cover when it sucks in at the top end of the track but that's about it. I'm sure my EGTs would be pretty high I'm running non-intercooled with E85 and 12* of timing at the top end.
For any kind of street car, aluminum will not hold up. Thats what we tell peoples wanting to run that setup anyways. It's just too hit or miss. I would recommend some length or stainless or mild, then go into the aluminum. But, to give you an idea, 11 gauge aluminum in comparison to a 16 gauge or .065 wall thickness piece of comparable stainless.
The 5" SS 90 weighs in @8.9lbs
The 5" AL 90 11ga weighs 4.4lbs.
I run mild steel, then aluminum. I have no problems,...I run a thinner 16 gauge aluminum,..pretty far back down stream so, heat doesn't seem to be an issue currently.
The 5" SS 90 weighs in @8.9lbs
The 5" AL 90 11ga weighs 4.4lbs.
I run mild steel, then aluminum. I have no problems,...I run a thinner 16 gauge aluminum,..pretty far back down stream so, heat doesn't seem to be an issue currently.