Warped Vents


B O N Y

MODERATOR & FGT OWNER
Mark IV Lifetime
Sep 5, 2005
12,110
Fresno, Ca.
Our prior experience with wrapping exhaust will shorten the life of the exhaust. Wrapping exhaust creates more corrosion and heat in the exhaust system than non wrapped exhaust. my 2 cents

Some of our most respected members would disagree with you about creating more heat...
 

MAD IN NC

Proud Owner/ BOD blah bla
Mark IV Lifetime
Feb 14, 2006
4,219
North Carolina
This debate is long standing and way beyond this forum Daniel....

Depending on what you are doing - wraping in a closed engine compartment can shorten the life of your pipes (ala Mustangs, Camaro's and others) but my personal view is the FGT has much better airflow to mitigate the issues that many other header wraps experience in other cars - just my un proven .02 cents...
 
Aug 25, 2006
4,436
Dare I say anything....... absolutely
I have been thermal wrapping exhaust for over 30 years and I remain very well aware of the pitfalls over the years most of which had to do with the materials being wrapped rather than the process itself however in some applications thermal wrapping an exhaust could lead to premature failure; premature as defined by the person creating an arbitrary life cycle for the component

Now having shared this thermal wrapping the cat back systems that are typically used on the Ford GT; meaning the AccuFab, Stillen, IDA, as well as any other simply flow through tube setup will only benefit from it being wrapped.

The reasons are many however the primary being the significantly reduce engine bay temperatures.

Now as for thermal wrapping a muffler such as a Ford Racing aka Borla or ?? I can only speculate because this I have never done and IMO there are two significant issues to consider;

One being the thermal operating range that the can was designed to operate in; for example if the can does not have significant hedge room allowing for higher operating temperatures then thermal wrapping a can could cause cosmetic distortion. The next thing is the condensation/distillation process. If you thermal wrap a can then it will condensate within faster as such if you are prone to short trips rather than those during which she is brought up to full operating temperature then the likelihood of residual moisture remaining within is high.

If I were asked if I would thermal wrap a can I would likely say no however if asked whether I would encourage thermal wrapping one of the open cat back pipes that I mentioned above; absolutely

Takes care

Shadowman
 

MAD IN NC

Proud Owner/ BOD blah bla
Mark IV Lifetime
Feb 14, 2006
4,219
North Carolina
Dare I say anything....... absolutely
I have been thermal wrapping exhaust for over 30 years and I remain very well aware of the pitfalls over the years most of which had to do with the materials being wrapped rather than the process itself however in some applications thermal wrapping an exhaust could lead to premature failure; premature as defined by the person creating an arbitrary life cycle for the component

Now having shared this thermal wrapping the cat back systems that are typically used on the Ford GT; meaning the AccuFab, Stillen, IDA, as well as any other simply flow through tube setup will only benefit from it being wrapped.

The reasons are many however the primary being the significantly reduce engine bay temperatures.

Now as for thermal wrapping a muffler such as a Ford Racing aka Borla or ?? I can only speculate because this I have never done and IMO there are two significant issues to consider;

One being the thermal operating range that the can was designed to operate in; for example if the can does not have significant hedge room allowing for higher operating temperatures then thermal wrapping a can could cause cosmetic distortion. The next thing is the condensation/distillation process. If you thermal wrap a can then it will condensate within faster as such if you are prone to short trips rather than those during which she is brought up to full operating temperature then the likelihood of residual moisture remaining within is high.

If I were asked if I would thermal wrap a can I would likely say no however if asked whether I would encourage thermal wrapping one of the open cat back pipes that I mentioned above; absolutely

Takes care

Shadowman


Thanks Bill +1 again!
 

Hammer

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Sep 10, 2006
222
San Diego, CA
Great post, and informative as always, Shadowman.
 

AZGT

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Dec 20, 2005
1,354
Scottsdale, AZ.
Here we go. Wanted to get a picture up to let you all know there is progress.

This is the prototype. Just a quick cleanup to check for fit, so the "wavy" edge in the picture won't be there in final form (they actually look better than the picture). Finally have the machine shop for the finishing / cleanup (flashing removal, cutting the sides for straightness, tapping for studs, etc).

Just waiting on the final bid for powder coating to set a price.

They are cast A356 aluminum (which means NO WARP - EVER). Will come either bare aluminum (in case someone wants to paint them) or powder coated black to match the rear facia grills.

As soon as they are set to go into the first production run, I will start a new thread to see who is interested in a pair.

I will tell you now, that whatever the price, they will be $25.00 less to paid forum members (the benefits of membership). So if not a "real member", sign up now to save the bucks.
 

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shelbyelite

PERMANENTLY BANNED
May 10, 2007
1
:thumbsup
 

fjpikul

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
Jan 4, 2006
11,704
Belleville, IL
Do you sell to AZ-OH's?
 

Gulf GT

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Feb 9, 2006
1,539
California
Our prior experience with wrapping exhaust will shorten the life of the exhaust. Wrapping exhaust creates more corrosion and heat in the exhaust system than non wrapped exhaust. my 2 cents

I have seen this many times, and a drawback of exhaust pipe wrapping. There is no way I would wrap the headers on my FGT. Should the joints start to fail from corrosion years from now, I might not be able to get another original FGT Racing header set up. I only ceramic coat, and only ceramic coat with someone that knows what they are doing. Besides, I just love that vintage bundle racing pipe look, and wrapping them would be like putting more clothes on a beautiful woman. She looks damn fine in tight fitting silk underwear, but not flannel pajamas!
 

AZGT

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Dec 20, 2005
1,354
Scottsdale, AZ.
Do you sell to AZ-OH's?


In your case, I will :biggrin
 

B O N Y

MODERATOR & FGT OWNER
Mark IV Lifetime
Sep 5, 2005
12,110
Fresno, Ca.
I will tell you now, that whatever the price, they will be $25.00 less to paid forum members (the benefits of membership). So if not a "real member", sign up now to save the bucks.

GOOD FOR YOU LARRY... I have been waiting for someone to say that.
 

427Aggie

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Aug 18, 2005
885
Frisco, Tx
Wait wait wait...you meant to say 25 off for all members and that the moderators will pick up the difference right :biggrin

Sorry Bony had to do it..I get so few chances.

Larry I greatly appreciate all you have done to get a solution for this issue. I will take 2 sets when they are ready..I need to paint mine so no powder.

matt
 

B O N Y

MODERATOR & FGT OWNER
Mark IV Lifetime
Sep 5, 2005
12,110
Fresno, Ca.
Dats so bad...
but according to Doc Frank your correct...
the diff and his bar tabs :)
 

AZGT

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Dec 20, 2005
1,354
Scottsdale, AZ.
Quick update.

Still making progress. We did a good clean up on the prototype. Took some time and made some very small changes so that it looks good and is a nice fit. Came out great. Side by side you can see the differences between the stock and replacement, but other than side by side you won't notice.

We made a couple of tweaks to the mold (following our changes) to help with a better fit right off the bat. So we now cast a couple of more "trials" and check fit. If they work like they should (please, please, please), we are off to production.

I am pleased with them.
 

JBG

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
Aug 25, 2006
312
Scottsdale
Quick update.

Still making progress. We did a good clean up on the prototype. Took some time and made some very small changes so that it looks good and is a nice fit. Came out great. Side by side you can see the differences between the stock and replacement, but other than side by side you won't notice.

We made a couple of tweaks to the mold (following our changes) to help with a better fit right off the bat. So we now cast a couple of more "trials" and check fit. If they work like they should (please, please, please), we are off to production.

I am pleased with them.

They look great :thumbsup Looking forward to having a set.
 

GT Tech

Ford GT Team Alumni
Aug 13, 2006
678
Kingman, Arizona
Had a chance to see Larry's prototype Too. They look so good, that even though I'm GT-less, I want a pair for the wall. :thumbsup:thumbsup
 

Pantera1

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Feb 12, 2008
281
Iowa
I know it's been a while since you posted this response but I was wondering if these aluminum vents worked out? They would be a much better material for these vents. thanks...Pantera1
 

AZGT

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Dec 20, 2005
1,354
Scottsdale, AZ.
Thanks for checking.

The model was modified to make the small tweaks we needed for a clean, initial fit. It is now back to the caster. Should have the "double check" batch of 4 within the new 2-3 days. If after the clean-up machinging they are a go, we start the run.

Keep your fingers crossed. I think we are very close to availability.
 

AZGT

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Dec 20, 2005
1,354
Scottsdale, AZ.
Closer.

Have the next casting. Off to the machine shop for clean up and fit check.

Looking good.
 

AZGT

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Dec 20, 2005
1,354
Scottsdale, AZ.
Just to keep you all posted. we are still going.

Took the next prototype to the machine shop so they could set up their jig for the final machining. Well, a "big" customer needed something done, so I got pushed down in priority. Obviously I am not a big customer to them - got I hate needing to depend on other people.

Anyway, I am supposed to check this Wednesday. I told them just to crank it out since this one was just for goodness of fit and alignment of the studs. If it fits, production wll start on the first batch. That production should take a couple of weeks which should then put me back in line (time wise) to get some work done.

They are coming - I just hope sooner rather than later. They ARE coming. I need them for my cars at the least, so rest assured.