Do you know why people want to wrap their exhausts? What are the benefits and drawbacks of it? What are the steps to follow if you want to wrap your bike’s exhaust pipe? Believe me, I will help you to figure out feasible solutions to all those questions.
The exhaust tubes are usually hot which can carelessly harm your skin and clothes. If you wrap your bike’s exhaust pipe with a protective shield and want to make your journey safer, you should look into a few things about wrapping as it has both pros and cons. Some people even think that wrapping can thrust the power substantially, but in reality, it’s not as simple as that. I’ll also delineate the step-by-step process of wrapping an exhaust so that you can do it in your way.
Things to Think before Wrapping the Exhaust
Before wrapping your bike’s exhaust pipes, perhaps you have lots of misconception and misleading information. Now I’m going to discuss some of them.
Firstly, it’s very important to know that wrapping an exhaust is most possibly not a good idea to improve your bike’s overall performance. To be more precise, it actually works too marginally in motorbikes, though wrapping exhausts can make a huge difference in power in heavy vehicles like trucks or cars. By wrapping those, engine temperature is reduced which eventually empowers the vehicle.
Secondly, exhaust system wrapping is undoubtedly a cumbersome program. In order to do it accurately, you need to alienate your bike and dispel your pipes. Moreover, as it aggravates heat, the exhaust pipes may get impaired. Therefore, you may need a certain budget plan to replace the entire exhaust system.
Last, but not the least, from an aesthetic view, every bike is a piece of art and craft. It’s a matter of realization and it differs from person to person. So, if you have a gorgeous bike, you must bear in mind that wrapped exhaust may reduce your bike’s artistic look.
Overall, as can be seen, these are not disadvantages, rather they are for your proper acknowledgement. Immediately, I’ll start describing the process of wrapping your bike’s exhaust. After that I’ll discuss the possible advantages and drawbacks of it as well.
Complete Guideline of Wrapping an Exhaust Pipe
Step 1: Removing the Exhaust Pipe
By using the wrench of appropriate size, you have to remove your exhaust pipe from the engine. In this step, a large sized nut driver can be required to remove the nuts attached with it.
Step 2: Clean the Muffler Pipe
Now, take some lukewarm soapy water along with a soft towel. Then, rinse the manifold area circumstantially. When the pipe is cleaned, leave it for around 30 minutes to make it dry before moving to the next step.
Step 3: Clamp the Muffler at Place
In this step, you have to clamp the muffler pipe into the correct place using a tight clamp. Now, make sure that the pipe is perfectly settled and positioned so that you don’t need to move the pipe much while wrapping.
Step 4: Paint the Pipe with Primer
Here, spray a can of heat reverberating paint primer on to the muffler pipe area where you want to install the exhaust wrap. Now, give it some time to be dried before moving towards the further process.
Step 5: Imbibe the Exhaust Wrap
Before initiating the process of installation, you should imbibe the exhaust wrap into water from around 15 to 20 minutes. It will not only make it substantially more flexible and simpler, but also, it will permit the wrap to hold the metal surface of the muffler pipe in a better way.
Step 6: Installation of Exhaust Wrap
Now, it’s high time to start wrapping. You should initialize a gradual wrapping process of your exhaust folding over the outer surface of the pipe. While wrapping, it’s important to make sure that there are no air bubbles, or any loose wrapping. Here, you can use stainless steel hose clamps or some polished ones to make it look better. Thereafter, prior to reinstalling the exhaust on the bike, leave it to air dry for nearly 15 minutes again.
Step 7: Reattaching the Muffler Pipe
Finally, attach the muffler to your bike’s engine. Then, try to start the engine and fire it up for a couple of minutes. The heat passing through the exhaust line will rapidly dry the wrapping which ultimately leads to binding with the muffler pipe tight.
The Pros and Cons to Motorcycle Exhaust Wrap
In the beginning of this article, I grossly talked about the advantages and disadvantages of exhaust wrap. But, do the disadvantages exist in reality? Well. If I go on listing the both, they can look like the following:
Pros
- Subsiding engine temperature
The first and foremost merit of an exhaust wrapping is, it dwindles the engine temperature exponentially. The more you can take away the excessive heat from the engine, the engine performance will surely be better and faster.
If you don’t have wrapping on your exhaust pipes, the internal heat produced inside the pipes moves back to the engine and makes it hotter. Thus, the overall performance and efficiency are compromised.
- For exceptional look
Secondly, if you can fit the wrappings outside the exhaust perfectly, it can amplify the look of your motorcycle multiple times. As the pipes get consistently heated, it may be discolored or light-toned. There is no one who doesn’t want his vehicle to look exceptional and unique. Exhaust wrap will help you greatly in this regard.
- Feet and clothe protection
This point is very crucial as far as your physical safety is concerned. While driving, it’s highly possible to get in touch with the exceedingly hot exhaust pipes inattentively which may perilously affect your feet or ankles or your shoes. Exhaust wrap can play a role of a protective measure in the circumstances.
- Easy installation
Too easy to install is one of the significant merits of all, I think. Using the step-by-step guide mentioned above, you solely can install the exhaust wraps in your own garage with great ease and comfort. Furthermore, you can complete the task within even an hour. That’s why bikers who are pro are drastically interested to have an exhaust wrap on their motorcycle.
Cons
Now, it’s time to take a look at the other side of the coin. As wrapping an exhaust has some positive aspects, naturally it will have some negativities too. Let’s have a check.
- Rusting issues
By any means, if you leave your bike idly for a couple of days, there is a high possibility that you’ll see a growing rust on the exhausts due to water. Regular riding is capable of preventing the rust since it will diffuse the water.
So, unless you are a regular or professional biker, it may irritate and harass you by making you start the engine after a regular interval. It will help to pass the water away under the wraps.
- Smoke and smell problem
Another disadvantage is, soon after installing and using exhaust wrap, you may experience a smoky ambience along with a pretty bad smell. Though it is very normal, most likely you will not feel cozy. And, here initially you don’t have anything to stop it except leaving it for a few hours. Then, automatically the problem will be dissolved.
- Curtailing the aesthetic look of your bike
Every motorcycle rider purchases or collects his bike from the showroom by scrutinizing it from every aspect. Grandiloquent outlook and aesthetic structure play a decisive role here. So, when you clutter in wrapping your exhaust, in most cases, it looks odd as well as bad. Hence, you need to be extra careful while doing this.
- No way to overturn completely
This point is not as significant as the other ones. Still, there is validity. Once you wrap your motorcycle exhaust pipes, you cannot rule out your decision apparently. To explicate, if you unwrap the exhausts, after the curing process, it will leave a thin determinant mark on the pipes which are something permanent. So, think twice before the installation so that you don’t need to regret later.
The Cost of Wrapping an Exhaust
As the installation process is pretty easy, the entire cost of wrapping your exhaust pipes is little compared to other changes on your bike. That means, at a low cost, you can have the opportunity to change your motorcycle cosmetically. This will add marks when you will make a decision whether you will wrap your exhausts or not.
Do you know how much does it cost to wrap a motorcycle exhaust? Specifically, if you wrap with fiber glasses, they are available at $20 per 50 feet. Depending on how tight look you want, you need to buy that many rolls. Personally, I will suggest purchasing 2 rolls. In order to have a thicker look, you may collect and wrap more.
You’ll likewise require impeccable zip ties. Stainless steel zip ties will provide you the best service here. You can generally get a pack which will be all that could possibly be needed for this project, and you can have it at around $5 at a nearby repair store or automobile parts store. One optional thing is, if you intend to spray on your exhausts with silicone before wrapping, it will cost you $15 more. As a whole, a perfect completion of this task shouldn’t cost you more than $60, I guess.
What Is The Best Exhaust Wrap For A Bike?
Regardless of whether to utilize exhaust wrap on your bike is a separate matter of discussion itself. Keeping that apart, many keep thinking about whether fiberglass wraps or titanium wraps are better. I found them both to work in a very similar way. However, the fiberglass wraps are somewhat less costly, so that is the thing that I typically go with.
I much of the time use wraps like the EZ Auto Wrap. This is a fiberglass wrap that I’ve utilized commonly and have discovered that it works incredible with my bike.
In essence, considering all these things, it is vividly apparent that there can be reasons not to wrap your exhaust, but in my opinion, there are more valid points to wrap it. In short, the merits simply outperform the demerits.
I hope, after reading this article, taking a decision regarding exhaust wrapping would become a bit easier for you. If you find this article useful, please feel free to share on your social media platforms. Also, if you have any questions, leave them in the comment box below.
