Trivial question manifold guard

How many don't bother to replace this once off - it seems to serve no mechanical purpose like they used to when feeding warm air to the carburettor - or does it serve a valuable purpose??

its got a little picture saying "no touchy touchy" so leave that sh#* alone john :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:


looks to be a heat shield to stop you touching the manifold or maybe just a thin piece of metal acting as a "sign" to indicate for you not to touch the manifold.

flat surface for cooking bacon on

It could serve many purposes.

It may be a simple guard to stop you burning your hand, however there's likely more to it than that.
It may reduce under-bonnet temperature by deflecting heat from the exhaust. This could help prolong component life and therefore improve reliability.
It may reduce the build-up of material such as leaves and straw on the exhaust, reducing the chance of a fire.
It may be something as abstract as keeping oil off the manifold if you leave the filler cap off (note the shape of the area surrounding the oil filler, designed to divert spillage away from the manifold).

The same guard is present on FWD cars which use the same engine, where the manifold is the most forward part of the engine, so it may just be a carry-over from that will little significance to the Jimny.

It's unlikely you'd notice any probelms with it removed, but it's there for a reason.

Busta wrote: It's unlikely you'd notice any probelms with it removed, but it's there for a reason.

Just about every time I have removed it from my other Suzukis I have found a cracked manifold. I was wondering if it created heat build up or something leading to the cracking. On two of my previous Vitaras, a 1990 and a 1992, once I had rerouted the air intake to a bonnet scoop I took the shield off. They were normally aspirated but the thing had served a purpose sending hot air to the intake valve on the filter housing. Same with my SJ but there I had the K&N air filter on top of the carb. As you say, in all cases I never noticed any difference with the cover gone.

It's unlikely that the manifold cracked due to heat build up on the outside. Consider how much hotter it is inside! If anything, heat build up on the outside would reduce the chance of cracking as the temperature difference would be less.

As long as there are no components directly above it I really don't think it will matter. If you add things above it - like the Jimnybits Battery tray goes over it to some extent, you may well want it on, but otherwise, if the studs rust and it starts to vibrate - put it in the bin!

I think we all know not to touch a hot engine manifold and if not you'll soon learn!

Kirkynut