Does anybody replace their heat shields after rebuilding the motor? Or just throw them away?

 

if your running the stock exhaust manifold i would run a sheild...will it work with out one yes but youll get more heat soke to your intake manifold. if your heat shield is messed up or the bolts snaped off you can always make one out of sheet metal cheaply

 

OK, thanks

 

Anyone who just throws them away has no sense working on cars.

The shields are there to prevent the huge amount of heat generated by the exhaust system from baking everything around it. Notice how the wiring harness crosses over the stock exhaust? And a few vacuum lines? And a heater hose? Guess what happens if the shields are missing.

 

Mazda engineering says heat sheild is the best.


You can also do some type of spray coating to prevent heat. Some say its ok others say no way.

You can also wrap your downpipe but that will cause cracks down the road.