To coat or Not ??
FYI
Last edited by Ted B; Feb 8, 2007 at 12:55 PM.
I think Swain is one of the best but the cost is high. It will definitely help keep underhood temps down. Under certain circumstances I think coatings can help substantially. On a road course (20 minute wide open session) things get REAL hot. Keeping underhood temps down can defintitely improve performance. Especially considering most Evo's running around have an open air element. For a street driven car that might see the occassional full throttle blast for a minute or two at a time I don't think it is as necessary to have coated parts. For those that road race or autox I think it can be a valuable investment..less so for autox'ers...although temps and heat can get high.
I sent in my O2 housing to get coated because the flanges started to rust when it was on my VIII....So once I pulled it off the VIII to tranfer to the IX I sent it to get coated to make the housing last as long as possible and keep underhood temps down at the same time. Im also installing a ported & coated mani and hotside too....
Ted B-
What is your experience with coatings like Swain Tech? I've seen it on MANY race cars, even WRC cars and they seem to think it's worth it. Have you only used the "paint" type of coatings. Swain's stuff is much thicker and you can definately tell it's ceramic, not paint.
What is your experience with coatings like Swain Tech? I've seen it on MANY race cars, even WRC cars and they seem to think it's worth it. Have you only used the "paint" type of coatings. Swain's stuff is much thicker and you can definately tell it's ceramic, not paint.
I do have first-hand experience with Swain Tech's coating, and there is no question in my mind whatsoever that it is easily the most effective coating where real thermal protection is concerned, for reasons which should seem quite clear to anyone familiar with it.
My only lingering concern to those who want to apply a coating to the exhaust manifold is that exposing a red-hot manifold directly to water tends to reduce long-term durability.
My only lingering concern to those who want to apply a coating to the exhaust manifold is that exposing a red-hot manifold directly to water tends to reduce long-term durability.
It seems that a port and swaintech coating to the stock exhaust mani AND replacing the stock heatshield would yield the best results AND have some long term durability since the heatshield is replaced. Comments?
