The Best Paint for Motorcycle Exhausts

In this article, we will be recommending the best paints for motorcycle exhausts.

When it comes to customizing your motorcycle’s exhaust, painting it immediately comes to mind. But motorcycle exhaust paint needs to be more resilient to heat than regular paint. 

In fact, there are paints made specifically for motorcycles exhausts, engines, and other surfaces that tend to get hot. 

Our top pick is PJ1’s Engine and Case Paint. It offers a shiny black look so you can match your aftermarket exhaust to a black engine cover. 

The finish can hold up to extremely high temperatures and does not scratch as quickly as other options. 

We’ve been working on motorcycles for over a decade and have come across plenty of motorcycle exhaust paints. Our experience benefits us as we have been able to test all of these options in the long term. 

Keep reading for more of our thoughts on the best paints for your motorcycle exhaust.

PJ1’s Engine and Case Paint provides a cool black look for your exhaust or motorcycle engine. It uses a unique formula that helps it become tougher as you ride your bike, and we like the smooth finish that is less prone to scratching.

PJ1’s paint for motorcycle exhausts surprised us with its heavy-duty design. It is designed to withstand just over 500 F or around 260 C. So if you want to customize your motorcycle exhaust, this paint can hold up to extremely high exhaust temperatures.

500 F is more than enough for the muffler, mid-pipe, and even the header pipes on all but the most high-performance motorcycles. PJ1 claims that this paint is suitable for all 4-stroke and 2-stroke bikes.

We think it might not be ideal for use with header pipes on some 2-stroke bikes. These tend to get hotter than average and could cause the paint to degrade or fall apart over time. Still, we are confident that this engine and case paint will do just fine for most use cases.

In fact, you can use it on the exhaust, the engine cases, the cylinders, and the heads without worrying about the paint fading or cracking over time.

Applying the paint is quick and easy. PJ1 boasts a short, one-step process, and we can attest to the same. It comes in aerosol form, so all you need to do is spray a prepared surface, and voila! You’ve got a completely blacked-out motorcycle exhaust.

You may want to do multiple coats to get the desired results. But the paint itself is a deep and glossy black. Personally, we prefer a chrome motorcycle exhaust, but we have to admit that the gloss black of this paint almost changed that!

The finish is smooth and glossy, with a distinct sheen that looks absolutely stunning. PJ1’s paint is heat-treated, so it actually cures with the heat of regular motorcycle riding. This adds to the durability and life of the paint.

Speaking of durability, you won’t have to worry about paint chips, scratches, etc. This paint has a thick outer layer that refuses to scratch no matter what! We painted our dirt bike’s exhaust and took it off roading. Even mud, rocks, and a pretty nasty spill weren’t enough to scratch the paint.

And when we got back home, clearing away all that gunk and mud was pretty easy. All we needed was some soap and water to get the paint back to its former glory.

This motorcycle exhaust paint from JEGS may be a budget-friendly option. Still, it holds up to extremely high temperatures and offers a durable surface coating. The aluminum finish also looks absolutely fantastic.

We like this affordable motorcycle exhaust paint quite a bit. It opts for an aluminum finish that may not be as stylish as gloss black but still holds its own. The color has a matte finish that looks exactly like aluminum and doesn’t fade or dull over time.

In fact, this is one of the most durable motorcycle exhaust paints we’ve tested. The finish is scratch-resistant and does not chip or peel. JEGS says their paint creates a porcelain-like bond with metal at very high temperatures, enabling better durability.

As for the heat resistance, this affordable paint for motorcycle exhausts gives even higher-priced options a run for their money. It is rated to withstand up to 1200 F or around 650 C.

So feel free to paint your motorcycle exhaust’s mufflers, mid-pipes, header pipes, engine casings, and cylinder heads.

It comes in aerosol form and is pretty easy to apply. We found preparing the exhaust’s surface beforehand with some light sanding worked wonders for the final result. You might be tempted to use a primer, but JEGS warns against this. We tested it both with primer and without, and we can report that sans primer is the way to go.

The paint needs about 2 hours to fully cure. JEGS recommends it should be done at 400 F or around 200 C. So you can expect a couple hours of riding the bike to fully cure the paint.

As for the color, we think it looks pretty nice. And because it’s aluminum, it helps hide any scratches, dings, and discoloration you may have on your aluminum exhaust. Just be sure it is the same shade as the paint, and you should be good.

As for real-world performance, we were impressed by how well this paint holds up to abuse. It does not chip or scratch easily, so the ‘porcelain-like bond’ seems to be doing its job. Our test bike was used both on-road and off. The paint is unfazed by small stones, road grime, mud, and water.

VHT’s Flameproof paint for motorcycle exhausts can withstand the hottest temperatures. It sports a standard black color that adds a modern touch to older vehicles. It is also quite durable and doesn’t fade over the course of thousands of heat cycles.

Get this one if you want the absolute best paint for your motorcycle exhaust. It may be a bit pricier, but it’s well worth it, in our opinion. The flat black color profile gives your motorcycle exhaust a powder-coated look.

It fits right in with most engine designs and gives your bike that stealthy black look. Really, the only problem we have with this motorcycle exhaust paint, and flat black paints in general, is that they tend to make every bit of dust stand out. So expect to have a harder time keeping your exhausts clean with this paint.

One area where this motorcycle exhaust paint excels is heat resistance. It is rated to withstand an unprecedented 1300 F to 2000 F or around 700 C to 1000 C! In simple terms, you can use this paint on just about every surface on your motorcycle.

Mufflers, mid-pipes, header pipes, cylinder heads, engine cases, you name it, this paint will work with them. Hell, we tude, you might be able to paint the exhaust gasses thems with the right attitudeelves!

Disclaimer: Bikes Future is not responsible for any injury or bodily harm incurred while trying to paint gasses.

As for durability, you won’t have to put up with any flaky paint, discoloration, peeling, or anything of the sort. If you take your bike off-road a lot, don’t worry about getting the paint scratched. It has a unique abrasion-resistant formulation that does not scratch as easily.

Like other motorcycle exhaust paints meant to withstand extremely high temperatures, this one will also need time to cure and fully bond to the metal. However, you can do the curing process on or off the bike. So feel free to apply the paint and ride the bike as you normally would.

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