Is Performance Ceramic coating worth it?

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Is Performance Ceramic coating worth it? Well, lets first talk about what ceramic coating is before we see if it is worth it. Ceramic coating is a very thin coating that gets put on the surface of the part. Applying the coating on the surface, the surface will be able to resist very high heat, limiting the transfer of heat into the components. This does not mean the heat does not get through.

If you take a piece of aluminium and heat it up with a blow torch you will get to a point that the aluminium will go soft and melt through. If you have a ceramic coating on that same surface you will be able to apply that same heat and it will not melt the aluminium. The aluminium will get hot but not to the point that it will soften up and melt through.

This will just provide a good barrier for the heat.

What are ceramic coatings good for?

Exhaust Manifold or tube headers

Ceramic coatings can be applied on the inside and outside surfaces of exhaust manifolds and tube headers. Having the coating on the inside of the header will help to keep the heat in. This way the energy stays in the gas making the collector works even better. The faster the gas moves through the header joining points(Collector) the better scavenging occurs in the other tubes. Usually, over time the material of headers gets thinner from corrosion. Ceramic coating helps prevent corrosion as well. This means the headers will last a lot longer than without the coating. The external coating is more of an aesthetic feature. The coating will not fade out even after a few heat cycles. So if you have a project car and like to show off your clean engine bay this is for you.

Turbo housings

This will reduce overall engine bay temps and make the turbo housing last longer because of the reduction in corrosion.

Piston Heads

By ceramic coating the top of your pistons you make the piston more efficient. Less of detonation energy gets transferred into the material of the piston. More energy goes in pushing the piston down meaning more power to the crank. The ceramic coating also helps to stop the accumulation of carbon on top of the piston.

Cylinder Heads

Ceramic coating, the combustion chambers and exhaust ports of the cylinder head, less heat gets transferred into the cooling system. This means more energy to spool up a turbo or make a collector work better.

Intake Manifolds

Ceramic coating the intake manifold helps with getting colder air to your cylinders. The manifold will not heat up as much as a normal manifold so it can’t introduce heat into the intake air stream.

How is the ceramic coating applied?

Applying the ceramic coating to any components the parts need to be free of any oils. Parts will get washed with a good degreaser and then dried. They mask off the area of the part that must not be coated. This is if you are coating your pistons or cylinder heads. Sandblasting the surfaces create a good bonding surface for the coating.

The parts get rewashed to get rid of any residue left by the sandblasting. Once the parts have dried, the coated gets sprayed on evenly onto the surface that needs to be coated. The parts go into an oven and get baked for a set time. With exhaust headers, they get polished after this phase to give you the durable chrome-like finish.

So is it worth doing ceramic coating on parts.

If you like a clean look in your engine bay then I would say yes. Ceramic coating exhaust manifold, turbo manifold, or tube headers is a must. It does not just look good but it will reduce your engine bay temps dramatically. The less heat you have in your engine bay the more potential for good power.

Ceramic coating internals of engines that are a bit of a different scenario. I will not say this is for everyone. It all depends on what your plan is for your build. I would say if you are busy with a high horsepower build then it may be something you want to have a look at.

Ceramic coating is not cheap, but it may be what your builds need to make it better!

Is Performance Ceramic coating worth it?

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