is it safe to spray paint a short ram intake or would the fumes **** **** up?

 

shouldent be a problem i mean it doesnt get hot so the paint wouldent crack and i highly doubt fumes would do anything but if u were worried just take it off and spray then dry it before replacing it

what kinda car

 

in my opinion i dont think the paint would last long. it would eventually chip off. i dont know i may be wrong

 

99 civic si
and this would be the intake

i want it black but idk what to do with the bassmap
the old owner ran in threw the breather hole
i might cut a hole or just cut that little thing for the breather off and run it through there

 

nothin wil..happen

 

haha do it and find out.

 

Nothing will happen I spray painted mine black.

 

i've done it before, i sprayed some heat block spray paint on my SRI. Not sure if it actually worked haha but the paint didn't fade. Make sure to buy high temp paint.

 

I'm assuming you're talking an air intake and not the intake manifold?

Why would it matter if you used high temp paint? the air intake doesn't even get hot. To properly paint aluminum you need to sandblast it first and/or use a wash primer in order for the paint to stick.

Also I dont have a clue what the fumes would have to do with anything unless you were attempting to paint it while it's on the car. Why Anyone would even attempt to do this I have no idea.

 

Would be okay! Just make sure you use high temp paint and hight temp primer. This way that it won't flake. Best to just get it powder coated.

 

Why are people saying the air intake doesn't get hot...

Your engine produces a lot of heat, and the intake is attached to it and rests beside it at all times. All aftermarket intakes are made of some kind of metal (aluminum in most cases). All metal has some sort of capacity to hold heat.

No, it won't severely burn your hand when you touch it, but the potential is still there to hold heat. Using high-heat paint may not be necessary, but probably recommended for anything under your hood.

 

Hmmm...by that logic if I (not that I am or want to) wanted to paint my OEM plastic air intake, I should use hi temp paint? oh wait we're talking about COLD air intakes I guess it wouldn't apply...

 

Nothing is gonna happen. Take if off. Paint it. Put it back on once it dries.

Intake doesn't get hot.

 

A cold-air intake isn't called that because it remains cold. It is called that because it takes air that is not in the engine bay (and therefore not "hot" from the engine) for more efficient combustion inside the engine. You sound like a moron, no offense.

I explained in my post that metal has the potential for heat capacity. I did not say the same about your plastic air intake. Don't put words in my mouth.

 

The outside of an intake can get pretty warm. An engine bay could easily get over a hundred degrees and that temperature will warm the intake piping.

I would believe that aluminum would heat up and retain heat more than plastic... but as for high temperature paint, it would make sense. But most likely is not necessary.

I'm sure a real hp saver and the best looking thing would to just rap it in tin foil, than spray paint that, than add more tin foil, and continue the process.

 

First off, I don't need an explanation on how a internal combustion engine works I think you're reading too much into my post, I guess sarcasm doesn't translate into text... anywho I know a cold air intake isn't "cold" but what I meant was that it isn't hot enough to justify using a hi temp paint. All I was saying was that it doesn't have a high temperature like headers do.

No ****, any material has the potential for heat capacity if exposed to heat. It just depends on the material and the amount of heat.

 

Good thing I didn't give you one.

Then next time, for your own good, it may be wise to actually SAY what you "meant". Where I'm from, humans haven't evolved into mind-readers yet. My sincerest apologies. Besides, I never said it was necessary to use high-temperature paint. I said I would recommend it for anything under your hood.

Obviously. So your wise-crack about your OEM plastic intake piping was for what exactly...?

 

OK, speaking from experience...i hadnt done the same exact thing but close enough, on my first car i painted the rubber elbow eventually it chipped off and into the combustion chamber and my car became very hesitant to take off in gear smoothly. I had to start revving it up really high before i could even take off in first. I lost alot of torque in each gear, so just second think it. I know it's not the elbow but just as easy the part of the painted intake that the elbow goes over could chip and fly into intake mani into your combustion chamber. idk, just my theory.

 

Just don't paint it when the car is on.

 

dude u should be good just get hi heat paint just to be safe though its only about a dollar more

 

Exactly. People are stubborn though, and they believe that their engine bays stay cool...

 

yea high temp. paint will work

 

Actually I said exactly what I meant, I was using sarcasm in order to prove a point. Now I know humans haven't evolved to read minds yet but I thought their cerebrums had the capacity to grasp certain concepts. I guess sarcasm might be a little too much to get you head around...

Obviously when an object is labeled "cold" it's done so for a reason. Now in comparison to other parts in an engine, it is cold. When you recommended high temp paint I was was making the point that it wasn't necessary for the fact that cold air intakes never get hot enough to affect paint.

It has always been my understanding that high temp paint was used for parts that are constantly exposed to temperatures above 500 degrees Fahrenheit. Such paint would be useful in parts such as headers, brakes, maybe even valve covers but NOT cold air intakes.

Now in order to highlight my point I (sarcastically) mentioned that if I were to paint my PLASTIC air intake would I have to use high temp paint. Obviously if that part of the engine bay was so hot do you think Honda engineers would have used plastic (a material that would melt or at the very least warp under high temps) for that part?

 

I'm not going to bother replying to this. I'm not getting into an argument with you.

I agree that in most circumstances, only very-high heat applications make it necessary for high-heat paint. However, as some members have pointed out, the heat is high enough to cause regular paint to chip.

There are many types of plastics. They contain different amounts of mostly the same ingredients to form different properties. Some are firm, some are hard and dense, etc. The plastic that makes a yogurt-cup obviously wouldn't be Hondas primary choice, for obvious reasons. But at the same time, there are plastics that can withstand that amount of heat easily...resisting melting or warping. I'm sorry I didn't understand your sarcasm, but it just doesn't make sense to me.

 

This is really stupid, you both make valid points. Just paint it with either. Just do it right, prep, prime, and coats.

But I also feel that painting it black will draw in more heat?? Opposed to a reflective finish???