My 93 XJ40's under bonnet (very british is the word bonnet eh?) insulation blanket is hanging down and kinda ratty, so I'm considering removing it. The car is summer driven and I don't see any real reason for the underhood blanket which depending on who you talk to either intended for insulation, or as a fire barrier which I don't see having much effect unless it's purpose is to melt all over the engine and smother the fire. Is there any real performance issue preventing the removal of this scruffy thing?

 

Thanks. I think it'd look better without it.

 

Only concern i would have is engine heat affecting the paintwork on the hood. My engine blanket/heat shield (S type R 2005) appears to have shrunk, so im going to see about getting it replaced under the warranty. Perhaps you can get a cheap replacement, junk yard etc but why risk your paint being affected by removing the blanket.

 

Good point, I'm going to look into this a bit further, perhaps applying an insulating coating, maybe something from the aerospace industry, kind of an insulating, non flammable, sound deadening spray application. But to e honest, I'm not sure the engine bay generates enough heat to damage the paint. Considerthe heat from the sun on a very hot day while driving, can't even touch the hood. So my main concern is keeping the heat in during cold weather, which I don't plan on doing as I'm putting the car away over our long cold winters.

 

Add the suns heat and the heat that your engine produces and your talking even more heat! I'd try out the whole coating at least...