[DanEC]

I would go with the ceramic coating. It's not immune to road rash and it will scratch but it's much better than paint. Does ERA provide coating inside and out? That can lower surface temperatures enough to be worthwhile - but it's not a preventive cure for being branded if you rest flesh against it momentarily. Also, if the road rash starts to get unsightly after several years, you can still paint over it with VHT paint and it will last longer just because a high % of the surface underneath is still ceramic protected and sealed.

I also like the slightly eggshell finish of the black ceramic coating as compared to VHT paint which is very flat.

I have undercar exhaust that I fabbed up myself so I sourced out the ceramic coating separate from ERA. I think it's a good option. I did have some issues with the slip joints because my pipes were coated inside and out. I had to carefully remove the coating on the mating surfaces with sandpaper and then I lubed them up with the Walker exhaust sealer that ERA recommends to slide them together. Easier said than done.