Delberts Wallet Posted April 9, 2002 Share Posted April 9, 2002 I've had to take my 4-1 exhaust off to get to my starter motot which has given up the ghost. While its off I decided that I should wrap the primaries to help protect the new (well, reconditioned) starter. Does anyone have any hints and tips on doing this. Thanks Gareth Who Dares Twins bum.gif bum.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHRIS CLARK Posted April 9, 2002 Share Posted April 9, 2002 Shame to cover up those lovely shiny pipes now eh? If you use exhaust wrap, remeber to wear gloves (nasty stuff that wrap) and 'tie' off the loose ends with jubilee clips. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Howe Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 Read the instructions on the box, they give a cutting length ratio and suggest dampening the material prior to fitting. AS Chris suggests, jubilee clips at each end. Also, when the tape is dried, sray it with the appropriate heat protecting paint. The paint will prevent the tape from fraying, which is why I would recommend taking this course of action, as the tape has very little anti-fray strength of its owns. When refitting the pipes, do not drag one against the other... it does not like such treatment. Well worth doing, IMHO JH Edited by - John Howe on 10 Apr 2002 03:23:16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Perry Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 Try to be as tidy as possible. I have done this several times and I have found that the tidier you do it, the longer it lasts. Can fully endorse John Howes, commenets about soaking it first and spraying with heat paint after. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
domster Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 I did this to save the starter motor etc. Easy to do, although you have to spray it to seal it, which can be tricky. Takes a little while to do. Not sure of any performance benefits - some reckon it helps speed up exhaust gasses, but other say it could be bad for the engine by keeping heat in the pipes near the exhaust valves, so make your own mind up about it. The funniest thing is when you run the car with the wrap on for the first time... make sure you are not in stationary traffic... the wrap smokes like a chimney for at least 15 mins - it pours out of the bonnet vents like you have a forest fire down below. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ECR Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 I use stainless lockwire to secure the ends of the wrap. It is: Cheaper (as long as you have access to some "twist" pliers) Lighter Nearly invisible when sprayed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delberts Wallet Posted April 10, 2002 Author Share Posted April 10, 2002 Chris I've not polished the bit that sits under the wrap....forward thinking wink.gif All Thanks for the advice. Which heat paint do you recommend? I was hoping to leave once of the primaries on as its difficult to get off. But I guess I've got to take it off if I'm going to spray it. Gareth Who Dares Twins bum.gif bum.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Martyr Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 Nobody mentioned that you will get a lok of alarming steam and smoke and smells when you first run the engine and heat the wrap up for the first time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Brother Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 The funniest thing is when you run the car with the wrap on for the first time... make sure you are not in stationary traffic... the wrap smokes like a chimney for at least 15 mins - it pours out of the bonnet vents like you have a forest fire down below. Yes they did teeth.gif Steve www.Se7en-Up.co.uk id=green> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Brother Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 So do the "Knowledgeable" amongst us recommend the use of exhaust wrap? Does it improve performance? Does it damage anything? I have heard loads of rumours about things (valves) overheating and other parts catching fire/melting due to higher temperatures generated within the exhaust.......any truth Steve www.Se7en-Up.co.uk id=green> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 like you have a forest fire down below Wouldn't that be a bush fire? blush.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danwhiley Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 I've got a new AP-22 performance meter sitting at home, a track day booked for this weekend, and testing at Stowe Circuit a couple of weeks later. Between both I intend to wrap the manifold and will report back if it's made any difference whatsoever... Wish me luck. And thanks to whoever said not to go tot he toilet without washing hands first - I'll bear that in mind. Dan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ECR Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 I fitted exhaust wrap to protect the alternator (VX 16V) and remove heat from the passenger footwell which it does quite well. I could discern no performance gain whatsoever (nor did I expect to). It does make the hurried track day repair a LOT easier and quicker. You can touch the wrap within seconds of stopping wheras touching the bare pipe would spell disaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Perry Posted April 10, 2002 Share Posted April 10, 2002 I only fitted mine to reduce underbonnet heat and to reduce the risk of fire in case of accident. Performance improvements seem very hard to quantify. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Pearce Posted April 11, 2002 Share Posted April 11, 2002 And thanks to whoever said not to go tot he toilet without washing hands first I thought the advice was - "'tie' off the loose ends with jubilee clips" eek.gif Ray Pearce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delberts Wallet Posted April 12, 2002 Author Share Posted April 12, 2002 Sorry guys but still would like to know what to spray the wrap with once it on as I intend to do it tomorrow. Cheers Gareth Who Dares Twins bum.gif bum.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ECR Posted April 12, 2002 Share Posted April 12, 2002 HT Silicone Coating Page 212 Demon Tweeks 01978 664466 £8.22 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluebottle Posted April 12, 2002 Share Posted April 12, 2002 This is part of a response from Mark Fisher (of Fisher Sportscars) about wrapping.... "Exhaust wrap works well if used properly. Beware of exposing even small areas of any part of the exhaust system. The radiated heat from even the tiniest portion will be far greater than any part of an unwrapped system. The act of wrapping retains the enormous heat of the cylinder head gasses so beware of melting the support bobbins and also any mounting that can transfer heat to the chassis. "GRP, when heated sufficiently, will release vapours that have a low flash point. If a large area is hot enough a big fire will start. .......so be warned...?!?!?!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelspeed Posted April 12, 2002 Share Posted April 12, 2002 As posted, the spray is made by the people who make the wrap so when you buy one the other should be there too. The Fisher stuff is because on this particular breed of Se7en the silencer is inlcuded in some kind of fibreglass box section. People had wrapped the manifold which caused the silencer to run much hotter and the surrounding fibreglass got too hot. On a Caterham where the body is aluminium and the silencer box is in the open air this is not an issue. There are a lot of Caterhams running quite happily with wrapped exhausts. I'm confident that you won't find significant (or even detectable) power gains but the benefits of reduced heat on alternators and / or starters makes it a worthwhile mod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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