Ceramic coating can be considered as space age technology which has been utilised in Formula 1 for years in an effort to reduce heat transfer around the exhaust and turbo systems. This has pushed away from traditional textiles based heat management, but could that be a process which is slowly being reversed? Ceramic coating is an irreversible process in which will electrically bond the ceramic particles to the exhaust system. This is achieved by using a special process using specialist equipment. As you can expect, this is a costly application, with prices ranging between £750-£2000 per exhaust system, depending on the grade of ceramics you chose, the complexity of your system, as well as the company that you chose to perform the work.
So, the real question is, does ceramic coating an exhaust actually work? Let’s dive into some numbers of our findings, and compare this to unprotected pieces. We will also compare this to pieces using other forms of heat management, such as the do it yourself products in which are found here at Funk Motorsport. Textiles based Heat protection can come in many forms, and many of these are found off the shelf. Today we will look at our exhaust wraps, as well as our exhaust blankets, which are made from the same construction as our turbo blankets. These are both options in which Laser Tools racing took on in the 2020 BTCC season, helping to take them to become the BTCC Champions!
We looked at their Infinity Q50 title winner and broke down some of the heat protection components used and performed some testing to showcase how effective all of the above solutions are. This experiment took place 1 day prior to the cars leaving for the 2020 season finale – where they ultimately clinched the BTCC crown. It is to note, that from the manufacturer, the exhaust manifold is ceramic coated, and so it makes a great basis to grab some figures from. This car also runs a Mk.3 Funk Motorsport Turbo Blanket and a Funk Motorsport downpipe blanket (created using the same materials and construction as our turbo blanket). We also ran a similar experiment using an older chassis to conduct the exhaust wrap efficiency part of the experiment. Let us break down the results.
With the car warm and with an off track EGT (Exhaust Gas Temperature) of 592 Degrees C let us look at the temperature reductions in which each of the heat management devices has achieved.
- Ceramic coated manifold – External temperature 475 Degrees C (112 Degrees C Reduction)
- Titanium Lava Rock Exhaust wrap – External Temperature 180 Degrees C (412 Degrees C Reduction)
- Exhaust Downpipe Blanket – External Temperature 61 Degrees C (531 Degrees C Reduction)
I am sure you will be asking, “where does all this heat go?”
Surely the extra build-up of heat is bad for the turbo/exhaust system?
This is a common misconception. A heat insulation blanket, turbo blanket or exhaust wrap actually provide less heat strain on components by reducing heat soak opportunities, meaning that the chance of failure is lower. The heat energy stays stored within the gas, hotter gases accelerate far better than cooler gases, and so allowing that energy to expel itself out of the exhaust system itself. No additional heat energy is retained by the component itself.
Win all around! Lower engine bay temperatures, less heat soak, lower intake temperatures, more reliable performance and faster spool up! Win, win, win!
The numbers demonstrated above certainly speak for themselves. With Funk Motorsport Exhaust wrap costing just £57.50 but reducing the temperature by over 50%, a custom exhaust blanket (or a Mk3. Funk Motorsport Turbo Blanket) seeing the majority of the heat transfer being eliminated for around £140. This truly does showcase value. We will let you make your own mind up as to where your money is best spent.
If you need any advice surrounding the heat management within your project, please get in touch! We are always happy to take the time to discuss your individual requirements to ensure you have the information and products at hand to protect your high performance vehicle.
See the full video here, to see some more of the work in which we did for the 2020 Infiniti Q50 BTCC Title winner:
Funk Motorsport – The Heat Management Specialists.
PERFORMANCE. PROTECTION. RELIABILITY.