titanium exhaust pros and cons...

StephenB

StephenB

New member
I am currently having a unique stainless custom header made for my RX8 and I have the ability to also get a titanium exhaust from that point back. I am not sure if it's a good idea or not. Does titanium last long? Is it durable? Can it withstand a lot of heat from a rotary? Does it allow more heat to escape and heat components like the transmission and diff more?

If anyone has any knowledge on this please share.

Thanks,
Stephen
 
Haha, I am getting this from a friend so luckily cost isn't going to be an issue. I honestly have no clue what it would sell for. Maybe it isn't titanium and it's another metal... do titanium exhaust even exist?

Stephen
 
:shrug: No idea. Only experience I have is with gas turbines, which use nickel alloys for high-temperature applications... - GA
 
Supposedly changes exhaust tone...may help with a rotary.

If you are feeling flush, you might want to spec out Inconel.

Either way, fabrication is a challenge.
 
joeg said:
Supposedly changes exhaust tone...may help with a rotary.

If you are feeling flush, you might want to spec out Inconel.

Either way, fabrication is a challenge.
Click to expand...

Thanks,

Don't care about tone since it's a racecar. I am more worried about durability over several years, I don't want to replace this thing in a few months... Also worried about heating up the transmission and diff. currently I use exhaust wrap but I have no clue if you can do wrap on this. The only real benifit I see so far is possibly weight.?.

a quick google search found this:
1. Titanium is a nonpoisonous and biologically inert metal.
2. Steel is stronger, but has a more fatigue life than titanium.
3. Steel can shatter, whereas titanium can withstand high and low temperatures.
4. Steel is magnetic and corrosive when compared to titanium that is nonmagnetic and anti corrosive.
5. Steel is preferred when strength is needed in a hard material, and titanium is preferred where a lightweight and strong material is required
Read more: Difference Between Steel and Titanium | Difference Between | Steel vs Titanium http://www.differencebetween.net/object/difference-between-steel-and-titanium/#ixzz38sGtSr3p

I figure you can't beleive everything on the internet so I posted here... oh wait your all still on the internet :)

Stephen
 
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Yes it Titanium exhaust is a thing. It's been a few years since I had to look into this but weight is lower than equivalent strength steel. Also heat transfer of Ti is lower than steel which should help keep more heat in the exhaust and therefore keep the velocity up for better flow/scavenging. Operating temperatures are slightly higher than stainless as well.

The real high end guys (F1 for example) were using high nickel alloys (such as the inconel referenced above). Or at least they were last decade when I talked to them, for all I know the new engine rules and turbos have forced a change to something even more exotic. My belief was the inconel was preferred over titanium due to durability issues but keep in mind those headers aren't much thicker than an index card.
 
I have a titanium wedding ring, machined by an aerospace shop outside of Seattle from scrap left over from a NOAA ultra-deep submersible.

Ti tends to propagate cracks more easily that Fe alloys, so after some experimentation by F1 teams for suspension parts, it was rapidly phased out. However, its stability at high temperatures makes it pretty popular in high-heat applications like rocket or jet engine parts. We used to see pieces of thin-walled Ti tubing at Boeing's surplus store Kent, WA that looked about the right size for exhaust systems but when we went looking for advice about how to fabricate it, we got shut down. Assuming you can get the parts built, it seems like it would be awesome. It also doesn't rot like steel.

K
 
a titanium header is a VERY good idea. If you can get one made, jump on this wonderful opportunity!!
If your exhaust system is not a suspension stop or gets whacked when you're off course, and you need to loose weight, then it's a good plan.
If you need to ballast, titanium exhaust would be a toss-up, but a very cool one!
(steel exh=low weight)
 
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pfcs said:
a titanium header is a VERY good idea. If you can get one made, jump on this wonderful opportunity!!
If your exhaust system is not a suspension stop or gets whacked when you're off course, and you need to loose weight, then it's a good plan.
If you need to ballast, titanium exhaust would be a toss-up, but a very cool one!
(steel exh=low weight)
Click to expand...
not necessarily. high egt's can make ti headers brittle and they will fail quickly. better used for lower exhaust tubes, but the stuff is a real bitch to fabricate.
 
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