So my megan racing headers came today, and I have read a few conflicting things. I know that the after market headers don't used the stock heat shield, so theres gonna be some hot metal in close proximity to plastic so I was thinking about using some header wrap to help with this, but I have also heard that trapping the heat that would normally be dissipated inside the headers can damage them, so my question is, is it a pick your poison sort of thing or will I be alright with the heat wrap? :question:

i think people have done the heat wrap without any problems at all.
i have the strup and have no wrap or cover at all, and no problems so far. then again, i have an auto, so if you have a stick, it might be a bit different for you (since the cables have historically been an issue for manual folks).

i have the 5spd manual , dc headers - ceramic coated, no heat shield, no header wrap, no issues with heat...

yeah, unfortunately the megan headers aren't ceramic coated

I have had experience with muscle cars, and I have seen many a wrapped header, and never heard of any heat related problems. Im sure that allot of that is manufacturer related, but I have seen headers glowing red and they never warped. Ask Megan what they recommend. If they say wrapping them is not an issue, problem solved.

i have the mmw header w/ no kind of heat protecting thing around it... and my car's a 5 speed. no problems. yet.

i have the megan header on my manual box and have no issues...im going to wrap it soon so that it helps keep the engine cooler..

Just a comment on header wrap. As much as header wrap would help to keep stuff around it cooler, & in the event that something dropped on the header, it wouldn't burst into flames instantly, it actually serves a performance benefit. Header wrap allows the heat to be trapped in the header allowing the exhaust gases to flow faster through the header, which is always good. Think of it like this way, what makes a hot air balloon rise faster, hot air or cold air? Well I guess the answer is in the question.

on cheap(er) headers the header wrap will usually cause them to crack
it crystalizes the steel or something like that
I found this out a few years back when i had a crack that i went to go get welded up
my buddy (a mechinic sine the 60's) told me he couldn't fix it :(

Max