Ceramic coat or not?
I didn't see anyone saying that low underhood temperature was important and then, in the same breath, that a metal intake was ok. I got an LS6 intake because it will be cooler, same reason I'm getting my headers coated. Every little bit helps, I figure, and coated headers are gonna be 300-400 degrees cooler. As for color, that's a personal preference.
Last edited by Intragration; Apr 18, 2007 at 12:47 PM.
Originally Posted by TheBlurLS1
It's funny to see all the preachers around here talk about how a metal intake manifold running 100* hotter than a composite doesn't make a difference, but people talk about "underhood temperatures" like they do.
Stainless turns a brown/gold after a while, but anybody who knows anything will realize they're stainless. Coated Kooks look just like Pacesetters. Coating WILL turn strange colors, and it will look like jacked up coating, not stainless.
If I WAS somehow convinced to coat my stainless, I'd do it flat black ceramic. I've seen several turbo kits done with it and they all look nice (on install).
Stainless turns a brown/gold after a while, but anybody who knows anything will realize they're stainless. Coated Kooks look just like Pacesetters. Coating WILL turn strange colors, and it will look like jacked up coating, not stainless.
If I WAS somehow convinced to coat my stainless, I'd do it flat black ceramic. I've seen several turbo kits done with it and they all look nice (on install).
Speed Inc. is coating my headers, and they said that yes, sometimes they will change a bit after time. Not so much color change, as less-lustrous. They showed me a set that had faded a bit, it was an all-weather DD though. I'm sure it has a lot to do with how your engine is set up too.
I don't understand what the big deal is though. If you want the benefits of coating, however miniscule they might be, and you don't mind paying for it, then go with coating. If you don't like how (pick one: stainless, coated, mild) headers look after they are seasoned, then stick with stock manifolds.
I don't understand what the big deal is though. If you want the benefits of coating, however miniscule they might be, and you don't mind paying for it, then go with coating. If you don't like how (pick one: stainless, coated, mild) headers look after they are seasoned, then stick with stock manifolds.
Last edited by Intragration; Apr 18, 2007 at 12:56 PM.
Originally Posted by CKZ
What coating have you seen change colors? I've spent a great deal of time in a sponsor's shop that does coating (FX Ceramic) and I've never seen the coatings change in color.
The most damage is usually down by the collector, but the coating can become flaky and scratch easy (during plug changes etc.). These scratches become very noticeable among the rest of the silver coating. I've had pacesetters, and they were great headers for the money, but the coating never really did it for me.
If you've got the dough, like the thought of running a little cooler under the hood, and like the way they look, don't let anyone stop you. It's all about personal preference. I didn't mean to come off so fiercely lopsided on the issue.
Your stock cast iron manifolds are great insulators and don't radiate much heat in the engine bay. Stainless headers on the other hand are much thinner and will let off a ton of heat in the engine bay...even compared to plain steel. That heat being radiated out also slows down exhaust flow which is a bad thing. The water flow is slowed down by all the water leaking out the holes. Think of an uncoated header like a garden hose with a million little holes in it. Coated headers have much higher exhaust velocity because there is no place for the heat to leak out...which puts the gas under higher presure and increased velocity. Also, all that hot air leaked out the headers is sucked right back on the engine by the intake.
I have a set of coated Kooks headers on one of our GTO's. We drove up to Baltimore to see my inlaws, and my father in law was asking questions about the car. To show him how well it worked, I touched the header on the car (which had only sat 10 minutes after a two hour drive). The coating had already cooled enough that I could rest my hand on the header. That is the kind of think that will really help when your hot lapping at the track.
In the end, do you absolutly need coating? Probaly not, expecially if money is an overriding concern. However, if you want to do things right, and get the most from an investment as big as stainless headers, coating is the way to go. We sell ALOT of headers, and 80% of the header we sell are coated. We have some great deals on coated headers if anyone is looking to save some money.
I have a set of coated Kooks headers on one of our GTO's. We drove up to Baltimore to see my inlaws, and my father in law was asking questions about the car. To show him how well it worked, I touched the header on the car (which had only sat 10 minutes after a two hour drive). The coating had already cooled enough that I could rest my hand on the header. That is the kind of think that will really help when your hot lapping at the track.
In the end, do you absolutly need coating? Probaly not, expecially if money is an overriding concern. However, if you want to do things right, and get the most from an investment as big as stainless headers, coating is the way to go. We sell ALOT of headers, and 80% of the header we sell are coated. We have some great deals on coated headers if anyone is looking to save some money.
