it's not stainless and was wondering if i can paint it with some high temp grill paint or something so it won't rust. my current one is 7 years old ( thats what they say ) and the flex section rusted away as well as parts of the pipe have holes. my cattback was coated and it"s still rust free also 7 years old except for welds starting to rust. thanks

 

Heat wrap possibly?

 

good question, anyone else?

 

Heat wrap might trap water on the pipe when it's not hot enough to burn it off. I would try high temp paint. You can always wrap it after paint.

 

Duplicolor 1200 degree F engine paint is the real deal....It does not peel nor flake under heat.....Be sure to clean the Ypipe as good as possible and coat pretty good....I did my pacesetter headers on my D21 b4 I ceramic coated them and the paint never ever peel for the 6 month it was on my headers...This is the real deal!

 

6 months?? i'd like to see it last longer than that. like maybe 2 -3 years. do they make high temp clear coat?

 

Good thing I didn't mark my y-pipe as sold to you

Only thing you can do is paint, wrap, and paint again. Might last, might not. Depends on how good of a job you do. Aluminized steel FTL.

 

sorry chris, i was digging into some threads and saw schmellyfart said it was 3 years old and he had a problem with fitting it on and had to bend it. not going to wrap it, probably going to paint it with clear. sounds like a headache with the dying/curing process though.

 

You can buy ceramic header spray paint at parts stores. I bought mine at advanced in a grey color.

 

Hey Max Rider - I'm right behind you on this mod. I found the Duplicolor High Temp clear to stick to aluminum better than VHT. Also VHT clear yellowed slightly when Duplicolor clear did not change. However, I have no experience with either on an exhaust system. I'm thinking about the Magnaflow High Flow cat to combine with a Y-Pipe.

 

When I first got my Maxima the owner before me had already installed the warpspped y pipe... I guess he grabbed the non stainless steel one and needless to say it was so heavily rusted that it has snapped before the flex pipe... thus the reason why he sold the car so cheap as he don't want to mess with it anymore... I had a local shop fix the issue with a new longer flex piece but after taking a closer look at it I was able to see how bad the rest of it was... it still lasted a long time but then it started to leak really bad from the actual y piece... If you live in the salt belt I would recommend getting the stainless steel y pipe... I replaced my non stainless steel y pipe with the stainless steel and now almost 3 years latter there isn't even the drop of rust on it... it still looks like the day I installed it. If i remember correctly it was only $50 more to get the stainless steel y pipe... salt pretty much will eat anything

 

Road Salt Map Below

http://www.wsdot.gov/NR/rdonlyres/DF...altcompmap.pdf

 

Wow the east is crazy.

 

The only thing that will stop the rust is a hot dip or zinc coating

 

Rust? Salt? What's that?

Just get what the others suggested at your local Autozone and I'm sure it will last 2-3 years. Don't forget to spray the flanges too.

I'll be expecting this thread to be bumped in 3 years with an update on how it's holding up.

 

well, lucky me the trans is also shuddering in reverse. i'm so f'ing pissed right now i could spit. goddamn this old girl, i love her and hate her at the same time.

 

Apparently you're new to doing this! Normal painted header are bare a$$ naked within 5 min after you start the engine.... Mine would've lasted more than 6 months But, I chose to Ceramic Coat them instead!!!! I know I explained that in my previous reply.....

 

And a picture of his car

 

 

I used DEI Hi-Temp Silicone Coating on my exhaust (and the engine here and there), it protects up to 1500 degrees and I gotta say seems to hold up very well so far after almost a year on the engine and half a year on the exhaust.

I laid on quite a heavy coat on the exhaust and there is no sign of rust or even rock chips. This DEI stuff actually bonds stronger in high heat.

That said, not sure how the aluminized steel will hold up no matter what you coat it with, when I had that stuff it was rusting like crazy. 304 steel is only way to go, I was determined to get a Cattman Y over Warpspeed for this very reason and very happy I did.

 

My 4th and 3rd Gen Catbacks are both painted (Aluminized Steel) and they're holding up great....No rust spots the 4th gen is going on 2 yrs and the 3rd gen is 3yrs+.....

 

What brand of paint did you use?

 

i think the warpspeed holding up for 7 years is a testament to the quality. it's not even all that bad to be honest. just bad enough that i can't stand the hiss anymore.

 

Hey Max Rider - Yesterday I ordered the WS Y pipe with Magnaflow High Flow Cat. The Highway Department here might sprinkle some salt/sand mix on bridges and overpasses if we have a big ice storm. Otherwise, I haven't seen anything that looks like salt on the roads around here since I moved back from Florida over 20 years ago. I'll treat the system with some high temp paint protection just for looks.

 

isn't warpspeed in ar?? heck, you could drive over and pick it up. good, the more that are ordered the faster he'll make them. ( mine first )

 

Yep.. WS is about 2 hours northwest of me..

 

Duplicolor 1200 degree engine paint....