Exhaust pipes turn colors like blue and gold when they are exposed to excessive heat. Whether you are concerned about the headers on your car or your motorcycle you can take several different steps to reduce the possibility of discoloring due to heat. Discoloring does not cause any structural damage to the exhaust pipes or headers. The only drawback is aesthetic.
Turn your engine for optimum performance. If the timing or air/fuel mixture is incorrect the engine usually gets too much air in the combustion chamber. This can cause an increase in engine temperatures. The increase causes the pipes to turn a bluish color. The easiest way to prevent bluing is to make sure your engine runs at the proper temperature.
Install ceramic-coated headers. The use of ceramic reduces the temperature of the headers and helps to prevent the headers form turning colors. Although ceramic will not turn blue, the shiny ceramic coating will dull slightly.
Use exhaust covers called heat shields. This is very common on motorcycles. A heat shield is a chrome cover that covers the exhaust header. Since the cover does not come in contact with the engine, it stays much cooler than the header. This gives you a long-lasting chrome finish on your headers.
Use a compound like Blue-Job Chrome polish, Dyno Kote or Kreem blue shield on your headers. This will help reduce the effects of pipe bluing to a point. However, the compound eventually rubs off and you must reapply it.
