Blued Exhaust Headers on a 2004RT

[DKR]

What would cause a 2004 RT with only 4300 miles to have really blued exhaust headers? (especially on the left side) Sorry I do not have a picture to share with you all but this is a bike that I might be considering buying and it's been the only BMW I've seen so far with blued exhaust headers as they leave the cylinder. I would normally suspect a timing i.e. spark not running fully advanced and the cylinder heating up and possibly scorching a valve as a result. The bike is in Michigan so I have not seen or heard it run, just going by pictures here.

[T__]

What would cause a 2004 RT with only 4300 miles to have really blued exhaust headers? (especially on the left side) Sorry I do not have a picture to share with you all but this is a bike that I might be considering buying and it's been the only BMW I've seen so far with blued exhaust headers as they leave the cylinder. I would normally suspect a timing i.e. spark not running fully advanced and the cylinder heating up and possibly scorching a valve as a result. The bike is in Michigan so I have not seen or heard it run, just going by pictures here.

 

DKR, what causes the bluing? HEAT,, plain & simple exhaust heat.. Perfectly normal on a motorcycle with a single wall non shielded exhaust pipe..

 

No different with the Harley’s they just cover the inner single wall pipe with a nice chrome plated cover..

 

Most older & some newer BMW’s (like the 1150) have a stainless steel exhaust system so if not ridden hard or for long distances can turn a funky brown but will usually blue (or purple) at the front pipe to head exit area if ridden fast & long enough.. At least all my BMW’s have blued after a good hard freeway runout..

 

Sometimes adding a fuel controller can change the color slightly or make the pipes a deeper blue looking (does the bike have a Techlusion fuel controller on it?)

 

 

Twisty

 

 

 

[upflying]

BTW, it may appear other bikes don't have blued pipes because their exhaust systems are double-walled (Japanese models) or have cosmetic chrome shields over the header (Harley Davidson) so you can't see the bluing.

All BMW's do this, not to worry.

[DKR]

I do not know if it has a Techlusion fuel controller on it, I will ask the seller, thanks for your input and good advice!

Damon

[RTs4me]

Exhausts are always either brown or blue!

 

The stainless headers turn brown. The chrome headers turn various shades of blue, depending on how hard the bike has been run or how hot it's been. TADT. Don't worry about it.

[kiwiaudio]

If you don't care for that look, the pipes can be ceramic coated as a lot of guys have done here.

Mine were done about 9 years ago and you can tell they need done again. Still at that age, the look is preferrable to the blueing.

These will still glow red as they all do, but return to this color.

 

 

[simon999]

i have found that by using ''SOLVOL AUTOSOL '' brand Metal Polish will remove most of the blue, or you can also try 'WONDERWHEELS'' alloy wheel cleaner....dont know if they are available in the USA though....

[karlheinz]

i have found that by using ''SOLVOL AUTOSOL '' brand Metal Polish will remove most of the blue, or you can also try 'WONDERWHEELS'' alloy wheel cleaner....dont know if they are available in the USA though....

After polishing the blue off doesn't it just come back after a while?

[CT_Rider]

What would cause a 2004 RT with only 4300 miles to have really blued exhaust headers?

 

Looks kinda good, doesn't it? Wait 'til they turn crud brown. Now that's a look.

[waylap]

My 2004 RT has nicely blued headers! I wasn't keen on it at first either, then I realized they're pretty much all like that unless it's just a conversation piece in the garage.

[karlheinz]

Some people rap asbestos cloth around them.They think that's cool.

[knight88]

For those polishing your exhaust pipes I think you have too much time on your hands

[Mr. Frank]

As others have noted, that's very normal. Based upon unscientific sampling at rallies, I've noticed that the 2004 models are bluer than earlier years which are more gold. Maybe the dual spark has an effect on exhaust gas temperature.

[waylap]

I found out when I did my first TB sync that the 04 RT headers get piping hot immedietley upon starting the engine. Duh. I don't know why I never knew that, I guess because it runs so cool while riding it or even idling at a traffic back-up while sitting on it.

I started it to get it up to normal temp for the TB sync and decided to re-install the cylinder head protectors in the meantime. There's one bolt right up there next to the header that I tightened and then heard a sizzling sound with that sweet sweet smell of fresh bacon.

[hardbargin]

i saw the same bike you are referring to and it surely caught my eye! i have the samr model w/ 9,300 miles and mine looks no way as deep a blue as that one w/ only 4,000 some miles on it. i would suspect it sat running hot for some time. i would hesitate to purchase for that reason only. not trying to tell you one way or the other but from my experience on my bike i own it has yet to progress to that stage.

[waylap]

Just look above the headers at the shark fins to see if they've melted. Usually means it was sitting still with the engine running too much.

[SAAB93driver]

I can't speak on the bike in question but all 3 of my oilheads - 96 R850R, '99 R1100RS and current R1150RS had blued pipes to some degree by the time I got home from the dealer and continued to blue over time. My survey at rallies shows I am not alone. I've grown to kind of like the "Mad Max" look of it but if you have the cash you can get them ceramic coated to look virtually like polished aluminum and they won't blue.