Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Rusty exhaust manifold

Hi TMers.. Any ideas on how to improve the appearance of rusty ex. manifolds. I remember spraying them eith high temp. paint in the 70's - it wasn't that successful.! Is the paint any better now or is a more permanent solution to fit s/s manifolds. If so who produces a replacement for the GDI unit. SteveH and Harry

I suppose the expensive solution is to remove the manifold, have it media blasted inside and out and then ceramic coated in black.

Probably cheaper to buy a new manifold!

But to be honest, why do it? The manifolds develop patina from age and use... in my view they are not supposed to look as if they came out of the factory on a well used car.

Hi Peter. Thanks for your suggestion. As to why, I guess rusty manifolds are unsightly ,spoil the look of the engine bay. Jaguar manifolds were always stove enamelled ( although it didn't last) for this very reason. Competition manifolds are usually s/s and the appearance when blued is definitely preferable to rusty iron.

Librands do a stainless manifold and cat for the GDI engine which it claims increases power and torque. The last cost I have was £1265.00

When did the factory revert to mild steel manifolds? My duratec had stainless from new?

I suspect this might be a stainless manifold. They gain patina and discolour around the welds. It can look rusty and maybe there's some iron oxide involved. The flat plate which bolts to the head in particular seems to show rust but it might just be discoloured. Silver high temp paint over the discolouration is what I used on my Duratec.

Cheers guys. Further investigation needed on my part. Will do an in depth appraisal on the manifold tomorrow. I don't think it is stainless- although I only gave it a quick look yesterday (when cleaning the engine bay) and I assumed it was cast because it looked so not in keeping with the general appearance of the underbonnet. It is an eyesore to which your eyes are immediately drawn. Thanks again. SteveH and Harry

Mine was stainless from factory but as Dave W says can look dull and 'rusty' around the welds. I buffed mine a bit at least on the bends with a fine scotch brite which helped. Ceramic coating would be the way to go and would also help with under bonnet temps too.

Haven't bothered with the AH as it's pretty much hidden but on my MG I used a aerosol high temp paint which did last ok.

Free flow manifolds - Librands ?

This was my 2012 Duratec manifold. You can see the painted plate against the head, and the blown over 4 into 1 section.