Thermal Wrap

[clcsocal]

Getting ready to install my test pipe and wondering about the benefits of doing a thermal wrap. I'm brand new to turbos and not looking foreward the getting the cat out of my CVT 1.8T. Want to do the wrap prior if there is benefit. Any advice?

[mtbrider]

Reducing underhood temperatures. It is definitely worth it. On my car I have everything wrapped, the hot side of the turbo, manifold, and DP.

[mike-2ptzero]

Just so you know, wrap can cause the metal to crack sooner since the wrap tends to trap moisture between the wrap and metal pipe. It is better to go with a ceramic coating.

[AudiA4_20T]

Reducing underhood temperatures. It is definitely worth it. On my car I have everything wrapped, the hot side of the turbo, manifold, and DP.

you would reduce underhood temps...

[jrau13]

Just so you know, wrap can cause the metal to crack sooner since the wrap tends to trap moisture between the wrap and metal pipe. It is better to go with a ceramic coating.

I've heard that before so I think ill go with the ceramic coating. Mike do you know of a good place to get this done is socal for my testpipe, when I get it?

[mike-2ptzero]

I've heard that before so I think ill go with the ceramic coating. Mike do you know of a good place to get this done is socal for my testpipe, when I get it?

There should be a few good places in socal to get it done. I know my friend got his manifold done for his Evo so i can ask them, pretty sure its in the riverside area.

[oildrpr]

I've heard that before so I think ill go with the ceramic coating. Mike do you know of a good place to get this done is socal for my testpipe, when I get it?

Josh... test pipe install party??? lol. i'm thinkin of gettin one too...

[jrau13]

Yeah I wanna get one in the next month or so. No rush really but let me know.

[[IX]]

1 year Tp wrap, just do it real tight
http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/1...icture_058.jpg
http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/1...ture_043.2.jpg

[oildrpr]

i'm lookin for a test pipe that inside a cats body.. so it looks like a cat convertor, but it's a test pipe.. just in case my hood gets popped and looked into by the boys in blue.. so as soon as i find one, at a decent price. i'm on it :)

[jrau13]

Fast Intentions may be able to do that for ya. If so let me know.

[clcsocal]

Nice pics. What brand and supplier.

[mike-2ptzero]

i'm lookin for a test pipe that inside a cats body.. so it looks like a cat convertor, but it's a test pipe.. just in case my hood gets popped and looked into by the boys in blue.. so as soon as i find one, at a decent price. i'm on it :)

Just find a old cat that is bad and have it gutted, then just have someone install a pipe inside of it so its just a straight flow thru.

[F16HTON]

i'm lookin for a test pipe that inside a cats body.. so it looks like a cat convertor, but it's a test pipe.. just in case my hood gets popped and looked into by the boys in blue.. so as soon as i find one, at a decent price. i'm on it :)

You can remove the heat shield off of your OEm can and put it on your test pipe.

[oildrpr]

yah, it doesn't seem to be easy to find a used cat tho.. i think i saw one on ebay, but i was still undecided i guess.. lol.

i have my new exhaust coming in this week (AWE), i'm all set to go with Stage 1+ (either Revo or GIAC), and i'm just thinkin i should do the test pipe at the same time.....

[clcsocal]

Well the job is done. The thermal wrap was a breeze, except that I didn't buy enough and had to do it in two pieces. My local parts house sold the wrap by the foot and they told me 6 feet would do it for the B6. It takes nearly 10 feet to do a good wrap.

The install was pure hell. No actually the install was easy, about a half hour . . . . after 6 hours of hell trying to get the cat out. If you do this job, plan on having to cut the lower bolts, where the cat meets the excaust, off with a Dremal. The bolts are extremely un-accessable and after trying every trick from every web site(PB Blaster, impact wrenches, etc.), I ended up cutting. They were basically welded together with rust and heat. The lower O2 sensor made it extra complicated, and I couldn't get it out until the cat was cut free.

It was all worth it in the end. There is noticably more power, and it revs to red line much quicker.

Now all I have to do is figure out how to pass CA smog in two years.

[supamannn99]

just put the cat back on :D


that's what im gonna do

[A4natomical]

Well the job is done. The thermal wrap was a breeze, except that I didn't buy enough and had to do it in two pieces. My local parts house sold the wrap by the foot and they told me 6 feet would do it for the B6. It takes nearly 10 feet to do a good wrap.

The install was pure hell. No actually the install was easy, about a half hour . . . . after 6 hours of hell trying to get the cat out. If you do this job, plan on having to cut the lower bolts, where the cat meets the excaust, off with a Dremal. The bolts are extremely un-accessable and after trying every trick from every web site(PB Blaster, impact wrenches, etc.), I ended up cutting. They were basically welded together with rust and heat. The lower O2 sensor made it extra complicated, and I couldn't get it out until the cat was cut free.

It was all worth it in the end. There is noticably more power, and it revs to red line much quicker.

Now all I have to do is figure out how to pass CA smog in two years.

same here. the cat was sooo stubborn. its took a few soak downs with PB blaster and some 5 hours(w/breaks) worth of good wacks w/ a hammer on top of a 3 foot socket extension until it finally broke loose (as i was shouting in joy). cutting would probably have been a little easier but i could quite fit the dremel up in there. oh well. i have a year left until smog testing. better enjoy every bit of it.

[oildrpr]

hmm.. so did it unbolt from the turbo pretty easily?? i'm getting a new exhaust, with a downpipe.. so if i run a TP too, i can just bolt that together before i put it into the ride... may make it easier...

also, when you do a TP, do you use Defoulers? i may go with Revo st 1+... but i dont want any CE lights, obviously..

and throw some pics up of the mangled cat.. and oh yah, if you're not going to keep your cat. i will take it! :)

[A4natomical]

hmm.. so did it unbolt from the turbo pretty easily?? i'm getting a new exhaust, with a downpipe.. so if i run a TP too, i can just bolt that together before i put it into the ride... may make it easier...

also, when you do a TP, do you use Defoulers? i may go with Revo st 1+... but i dont want any CE lights, obviously..

and throw some pics up of the mangled cat.. and oh yah, if you're not going to keep your cat. i will take it! :)

unbolting from the turbo wasnt bad at all. 1 bolt is a tight fit but nothing an extension cant take care of. i didnt use defoulers, my codes were permanently cleared. the cat itself wasnt really mangled, just the old bolts/screws.

[S4 in_lowplaces]

another advantage to this is keeping exhaust gasses hot and movin through there.

[clcsocal]

I was pretty stoked for a day because my CE light didn't come on, but yesterday it finally did. Still runs great, I just need to get back into Eurocode and get it cleared. I thought about selling the cat, but should keep it if I can't find a way around smog. I have been told there is a smog test shop in Van Nuys that will submit a pass, but I have no idea it is true, or more importantly, what it will cost. I would be willing to pay well to avoid putting that cat back on.

I was suprized it didn't make my exhaust note change much. I was hoping for a little deeper tone. Have any of you cut out your resonator and gone straight pipe? I did it on my VR6 and loved it, but I still had the cat on. I'm wondering what the combination is like. I don't want it too loud or rattly.

[Papachristou]

i was amazed at how much it lowered my EGTs and how much quicker the EGTs returned to normal. It used to take 5-8 minutes for my egts to return to about 400, after installing the test pipe, as long as i drive easy, its back to 400-425 inside of a minute or two

[VMRSport]

Thermal wrap, if done improperly, could cause uneven heating of the test pipe. Might not be a big deal to some, but it could happen.

I've also seen people use a thermal coat, to try and keep the heat from escaping into the engine bay as much as possible.

If you check out our test pipe, we use a heat shield that has a similar look/design as the OEM car, but ours is designed to help keep the heat in, and prevent it from soaking into the rest of the engine bay.