So I just bought Ebay headers for my 03 lancer. I read around the forums that they have a higher tendency to crack, so i went around looking for information on header wrap and stumbled upon this;

http://www.centuryperformance.com/ex...e-spg-138.html

Pretty much it's saying that it will trap the heat in the headers and prevent it from cooling down, and that it will cause them to oxidize (rust).

My plan when my headers arrived was to paint them with high temp paint then wrap them and cover it with silicon spray. Should i still do this? Any suggestions to make Ebay headers last as long as possible?

Thanks!

 

all aftermarket headers will go from shiny to burnt look after awhile. i dont see how a header can break unless their is blunt stress like it gets hit in a crash or somthing. cant say forsure the only other thing i can think of for the use of the header is sound absorbing, if thats possible ....

 

Oxidation a heat induced reaction in part but you also need other elements, including oxygen (hence the term oxidation). To get rust, you also need water and salt. The purpose of header wrap is to trap the heat in. This does serves two purposes. First, it reduces the amount of heat in the engine bay thereby reducing heat soak. Second, hotter exhaust gases move faster. For a turbo car, this can help spool. This can cause cracks due to the high heat. This is particularly true of low quality products, like those available for cheap on Ebay, and at the welds on exhaust products because the metal is thinner, among other things.

For your application, I wouldn't bother. The gains are minimal anyways so why waste the money on wrap.

 

don't paint your headers, i did and the paint vaporized within seconds of starting the car, now they look like ****...

 

I wouldnt paint them and as amby said. Wrapping them isnt worth it. All your asking for by wrapping cheap headers is cracking due to the high heat. (they like to crack at the flange)

 

but with the money you save on buying cheap headers you can buy a portable mig welder!

 

Lol, Thanks for your responses. I guess i will leave them as is and hope for the best =)

 

lots of people here have used ebay headers with little or no issues...good luck