Engine Bay Heatshield That Looks Good

[jdavis500]

My Gen3 Coupe is arriving next week and I am in the final build planning stages. Attended the build school last week and I learned so much. So worth the time and money. Scott and Charles were perfect. Patient with every question and extremely knowlegeable. So, I have seen lots of heatshield in engine bays that betrays the tidy, shiny compartment. Krinkled silver tape, irregular and dinged heatshield that doesn't match the powdercoat. I have seen a couple of black heatshields like Lavashield and Cobra cloth that would be more presentable than the previously described. I have considered double walls to create a gap, but going with a coyote and not sure if there is room. Any thoughts for an OCD, but functional heatshield appearance?

[GoDadGo]

I made some heat shield for my MK-4 and hid some insulation behind them by standing the panels off with some aluminum barrel spacers.

The material is the same grade and thickness that Factory Five Racing (T-6061 / .040") uses in all of their cars.

Once I fabricated them I used rouge with a buffer and then compound and they turned out okay.

You can see them in the attached update video:


https://youtu.be/_wnHDNgnNqs

[edwardb]

I have found insulation on the inside of the firewall, footboxes, etc. works just fine on the Roadsters I've built including the most recent Coyote build. I happen to use Lizard Skin products. But there are other materials (e.g. Dynamat, etc.) that also work. Zero heat issues on builds so far. Expecting to do the same thing on my upcoming Gen 3 Coupe build.

BTW, if you were at the build school last weekend then you probably saw my latest build. I was part of the group that visited at lunch time on Saturday. My Roadster was the first on the ramp where all the rest were parked.

[jdavis500]

I have found insulation on the inside of the firewall, footboxes, etc. works just fine on the Roadsters I've built including the most recent Coyote build. I happen to use Lizard Skin products. But there are other materials (e.g. Dynamat, etc.) that also work. Zero heat issues on builds so far. Expecting to do the same thing on my upcoming Gen 3 Coupe build.

BTW, if you were at the build school last weekend then you probably saw my latest build. I was part of the group that visited at lunch time on Saturday. My Roadster was the first on the ramp where all the rest were parked.

Can't believe that I missed that detail. I asked you several questions about your interior. I asked how you did the vinyl and you told me it was leather(if you remember). If I had known it were you, I would have had more questions about your pending Coupe build. Thank you for your input and thank you for coming out on Saturday. It was really helpful distraction from class. Your car looked fantastic too.

[jdavis500]

I made some heat shield for my MK-4 and hid some insulation behind them by standing the panels off with some aluminum barrel spacers.

The material is the same grade and thickness that Factory Five Racing (T-6061 / .040") uses in all of their cars.

Once I fabricated them I used rouge with a buffer and then compound and they turned out okay.

You can see them in the attached update video:


https://youtu.be/_wnHDNgnNqs

I checked out your vids and saw the polished panels. That looks like an attractive option.

[GoDadGo]

I checked out your vids and saw the polished panels. That looks like an attractive option.

Thanks, plus I'll be doing the Dynamat solution on the interior foot boxes as Edwardb had suggested.

[MPTech]

I installed Dynamat insulation on the inside of my footboxes, but also had some 1/16" polished stainless steel panels cut to fit the engine bay side and installed riv-nuts from the inside of the footboxes, to create about 3/8" standoffs. They work well and clean-up easily.

[ej95Cobra]

We also used stainless steel panels spaced 3/8" - 1/2" in the engine bay of our mk4. Looks similar to GoDadGo video. There is no heat issue inside the foot boxes. Double check your clearance as this may be a great option for you.

[Gumball]

My car has Dynamat and foil-backed 3/8" felt/jute carpet underlayment in the footboxes, the front wheel splash panels are vented, and the lower part of the headers (where the four pipes are together) is wrapped. I then made my own heat shields that cover the lower portion of the headers. All of this, combined with fresh air vents ducted to the footboxes has resulted in no issues with heat.

Vented splash panel:



Heat shield on header - covers the top and rear of this area on the headers, protecting things above (like brake master cylinders & lines) and the footbox fronts:

[2bking]

A heat shield works by reflecting heat thus black or dark colors will defeats the purpose unless the surface is polished. Polished aluminum or stainless works very well.

A spaced heat shield works by having a reflective surface on both sides of the shield and a air space between it and the protected area. The shinny back side prevents re-radiation of the shields temperature into the protected area and allows an air path to cool the shield and surface being protected. Putting insulation behind the shield defeats some of the advantages the shield offers. The air gap doesn't have to be very wide but sufficient for some air circulation behind it. Because our cars have lots of air circulation around the foot boxes, the gap can be as small as .25".

As edwardb says, a good insulation on the inside of the footbox and a layer of carpet keeps most of the exhaust heat out of the interior. If you have dark color sheet metal around the exhaust pipes, a heat shield will do a lot of good. I added polished shields on the outside of my foot boxes because I like the bling and was unsure of the need.

[mikeinatlanta]

Nothing draws me to a thread like someone wanting to be OCD. If you want the best, I mean really the best, then there is only one answer. Making these custom is some serious work and coin though. This photo is just an example.

heat_4.jpg

Myself, I'm using custom made carbon panels with syntactic core for insulation using 350 service temp resin. But then I'm not quite OCD.

[jdavis500]

Nothing draws me to a thread like someone wanting to be OCD. If you want the best, I mean really the best, then there is only one answer. Making these custom is some serious work and coin though. This photo is just an example.

heat_4.jpg

Myself, I'm using custom made carbon panels with syntactic core for insulation using 350 service temp resin. But then I'm not quite OCD.

Thanks for all the great ideas guys. Mike, your heat shield looks like a labor of love.