So iv'e almost finished doing my intake manifold sanding out all the pitting of the cast aluminum and polishing it to a mirror shine. Im debating on whether or not to clear coat it with some satin clear header clear coat. If i leave it as is i can periodically polish it when it gets dirty but i obviously wont be able to if i clear coat it though clear coat may protect it better and keep the shine up im worried of later having possible peeling or colour change/hazyness of the clear coat. I think clear coat would be a good option protection wise and to prevent pitting and corrosion but i guess im wondering how well or how long the clear coat will hold up. Any thoughts or opinions?

 

Why are you putting so much money into such a old car ac_max92?

 

Please tell me that's an inside joke or something.

 

As far as the clear coat goes, don't go using anything not formulated for high temperatures. Look for a multi part clear. You may be able to get the job done with a 3 gallon compressor and touch up gun if you want to do it yourself. A rattle can will not cut it. That's about all I can say, I don't know what types of clear coat would hold up to the temps, but don't expect it to be cheap.

 

Seriously Ontario insurance is a joke.. Getting something this old likely will require appraisal before insurance will cover it (likely only liability), tons of money going into restoring body (canada = winter salt etc) and more..

If it were to get involved in a accident & you are found not at fault good luck getting even $600 for it.......

 

Yeah well at least you can play hockey outside for free.

 

George. Im sure it's probably the same in the U.S I don't think Canada or Ontario for that matter is any different. No matter where you are im sure any insurance company is not going to want to give you a return on an investment of a car that old without an appraisal and even then you don't get back what you put in. I suppose I do it because while others may not be fond of 3rd gens i am and find them more and more unique as you dont see many at all here and in the shape that mine is in and its a hobby. Atleast the cars paid for and i don't have a $400-$500 a month car payment. As for the intake its been done by myself so only cost is materials. Anyway back to the topic I started this thread about thanks for the advise Hectic. I do have an hvlp gun and a compressor but I did pick up a rattle can of clear made for headers to withstand the heat but you may be right. The finish may not turn out as well with the rattle can but I'm not 100%.

 

There are several options out there nowadays for genuine automotive quality rattle can clear coats. They come with a dimple on the bottom that you press and it releases the hardener and you shake it up. Of course it's no good then after a few hours so you want to make sure you use it on everything you want to.

I'd say you don't need anything special for the IM. I doubt it gets much hotter than, say, your hood in the middle of a summer day. Not sure about you guys up there, but down here that'll burn your skin right off if you accidentally lean against it.

If you already have header-specific clear coat just use that though. No need to get all fancy

 

Thanks James, I probably will just use the satin clear header paint i have if i do i'll just have to keep my fingers crossed and hope it turns out well after all the sanding and polishing work that i've put in

 

the issues that always her about the clear is that it tends to yellow over time.

 

hi what does this have to do with his question about clear coat on his intake manifold?

oh that's right..nothing.

keep it up...you're on the path of bans-ville.

 

That was one of my biggest concerns actually but i also figured the body of a car doesn't seem to yellow over years of extreme heat from direct sun but something was telling me there could be a chance the clear could yellow over time and if it did it's alot of work to strip it with the possibility of damaging the polished aluminum finish. hhmmm i guess it's a catch 22 damned if you do damned if you don't. I figured if i leave it bare it can be polished again unlike if it's clear coated but can also be prone to pitting, corrosion, scratches or gouges and if it's cleared it could yellow. If i remember DanNY you polished yours aswell. How long has it been and how has it been holding up? Do you find you have to polish it frequently to keep it looking nice after all that work assuming it hasn't been clear coated?

 

If your investing money and time into your car. You should go the official route and powder coat it and be done. Then you dont have to worry about paint fading or cracking under heat over along period of time.

 

 

Powder coat or ceramic coat? I've polished the intake to a practically mirror like finish so i want to be careful what route to use when "clear" coating it.

 

you're almost there...

 

powder...if you polished it...definitely powder.

 

So within the next week or two im finally gonna get this intake coated. I know some have suggested i powder coat it but i may have to ceramic coat it after thinking about it im not sure that it can be powder coated being the intake is aluminum and if im not mistaken powder coating is an electro magnetic process and the intake manifold is aluminum.

 

I wouldn't clear it. Bye bye mirror finish.

 

So after all said and done im having the intake put on the way it is without the clear coat and polish it as necessary. I also didn't coat the headers that are going on it. I know the headers can get hot so im wondering if i should have ceramic coated them or if it would really be a big deal. If coated they too would probably loose the stainless steel look to them.Hopefully by not coating them they don't run too hot to the point where it would affect much.