how hot can exhaust tips get?
 

450-475 hp and full 3" exhaust. Just wondering if I can get away with painting them( rustoleum) as part of my scheme. Thx, Mike

Use high temp paint you won't have a problem. Think bbq but color may be a factor. Engine paint would be fine as well. Summary...use the right paint.

I can't imagine exhaust tips would get any warmer than about 150 F. Hot enough to be uncomfortable to hold on to, but not hot enough to damage most any paint.

You should be fine with any type of good Enamel paint as they are tipically baked to improve the paints hardness anyway!

Can depend on how much fuel enrichment you're running. To give you some idea, OEMs will typically run <12:1 to protect the catalyst which can reach up to 900C (1652F).

Now a tailpipe is far away from where a catalyst would be, but that's still a lot of heat to cool before it exits. Normal enamel paint is good up to 200F. It'd probably be safe @ idle, but at full WOT I think you'd see higher than that. I would go with a high temp paint to be sure.

Regular high heat paint will work fine. I paint headers with it, and they survive, so tails will be no problem.

Use the POR 15 high temp paint and you'll never have to worry about it. I use this stuff on exhaust manifolds and after years of daily driving it still looks fresh.

https://www.jegs.com/i/Perma-Cool/77...IaArFJEALw_wcB

Also comes in silver and cast iron grey

I touched up the welds on my header collectors, mufflers and exhaust tips with Rustoleum Stainless Steel Gray and it holds up fine to the heat even though it is not heat rated.