Leaking antifreeze PLEASE HELP

[tiggerabbi]

Hi, I just started smelling antifreeze on my way home from work and when i looked to see where it was coming from i saw 2 streams coming from under the thermostat. Is that the intake manifold or is there a way to check the intake? Need help bad. I use my car for work.

[porscheman9101]

depending on the year and engine size the 4.6 v8s have a plastic manifold that cracks replacement is a must

[tiggerabbi]

Hi its a 96 withthe 4.6 w engine. Do you know if its still a recall? I cant find anything anymore about it? the dealer told me it was a lifetime recall in august when we purchased the car.

[way2old]

Here is a part of the updated recall information. It ysed to be 7 years or 100,000 miles and has been changed to 7 years nlimited mileage.


This program is being provided as a settlement to a class action lawsuit. The terms of the settlement extend the coverage of the all-composite intake manifold to 7 years from the original warranty start date of the vehicle, with no limit on the number of miles that the vehicle has been driven. Coverage is automatically transferred to subsequent owners.

[sheebeehuh]

Your car is too old to qualify for the recall (7 years). I had to repair to my '97 Grand Marquis and my Dad's '96 Cougar XR7. The site below has a lot of good info on the problem and detailed DIY instructions if you decide to tackle the job yourself...

http://www.autoclinix.com/Manifold.htm

It's not too hard to do and takes about 4 hours.

[porscheman9101]

dorman makes a aftermarket manifold for about $200.00 with the gaskets oem is much higher. many part stores carry that line

[sheebeehuh]

For what it's worth, I bought my mainfold for under $200 (including shipping) from the vendor advertising on the link above (http://www.autoclinix.com/Manifold.htm). My Dad bought his manifold at Autozone for $249+ tax because he was in a hurry and Autozone had the mainfold in stock. The 2 manifolds were identical (same manufacturer, etc.). Both had the built-on O-rings and did not require the external gasket like the OEM design. I've had mine in place for about 7K miles and it works great.

[tiggerabbi]

Thanks for the help. Only 2 places had the intake in stock and thankfully we called all the local parts stores and found that the last place we called (pep boys) had it for $220. My husband is replacing it saving the $300 + everyone wanted for labor only. 1 shop wanted $900 for part and labor we couldnt beleive it. It looks hard to do but its actually very easy just time consuming. Now we need to tackle the spark plugs on a bettle (how fun). Again thanks.