GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!! (Plastic Intake Woes)

LOL , my beagle does the same thing w/ my stang.

FivePointStang said:

haha, oh yeah..... he cant get enough of that antifreeze smell that erupts when you pop my hood

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just don't let him lick any!
I love your dog man.
The crack is proly on the inside of the thermo housing, no turning back on that

why don't people replace their intake manifolds before waiting for something to happen? don't think its a matter of if it will crack, but when.

When mine cracked, I could not see the crack from the outside. After removing it, I could see a small crack running where the thermostat goes. So you may or may not see the crack from the outside. If it's leaking coolant, it's cracked. Gotta love Ford!

Is that just the plastic lower intake manifold? If so I have one taking up space after my KB install. It's the aluminum crossover one. I'm not sure what they are worth if anything but if that's what you need shoot me a PM.

i just swapped mine. be careful when you are taking the thermostat housing off, mine got rusted cuz of the water that was leaking and broke. i had to drill em out and install a heli coil for both bolts.

MY current dog likes to get into what you are doing too. He is cool.

My old dog, was in the garage once and their were birds in a nest above my car. Well he wanted to get up there so he just clawed on my door to get closer and scratched it all up. I was so pist, but what are you gonna do, it's you dog. Luckly the scratches rubbed out with some compound and my wheel. They were just on the clear.

FivePointStang said:

Heres one of my Beagle trying to help me figure it out



I dont see any cracks in the intake itself, should I be able to see it without a complete teardown?

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That's great!

Time for a new intake manifold

FivePointStang said:

Ok, so now the great debate is whether to tackle this project myself or not. I have a nice big heated garage and I could borrow my dads old truck until its fixed.

Armed with just a Haynes manual and assorted tools, does anyone know of an online write up of this swap? Ive done searches on several different Mustang sites, so dont razz me about not using the SEARCH feature.


For those who have done the swap, what else did you need besides the obvious intake lower? (Gaskets,etc.)

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Before you replace the intake manifold, if you don't see where the coolant is leaking from a crack around the thermostat housing then remove the two bolts holding the thermostat housing down and inspect the gasket. If the thermostat gasket is torn or the housing isn't seated right when it's bolted on it could result in a leak in that area.

From one amateur to another :

First time around, plan for at least one whole weekend. May be two. That is if you don't break any parts in the process. I often break something during a big job like this causing delays.

Be very careful when you remove injectors. As my shop manual says: "remove all injectors and fuel rails as one assembly" Also, double check all o-rings on fuel injectors. First time I did it on '95GT, I clipped dried out o-ring during install causing fuel leak
May be replace all 16 of them to be on the safe side. They are cheap.

When I removed intake on my '00GT, I found aluminum head surface around the coolant ports corroded forming nasty pits. It took me a little while to carefully clean the pits with small screw driver and dremel. Afterworlds, I filled them with RTV gasket material before installing new gaskets Apparently, this is very common issue.

I found that I am the most successful when I carefully follow instructions, step by step. No short-cuts

i knocked mine out in about 2 hours when i had little mechanical knowlage about the mod motors.. i was feelin pretty proud of myself untill i cranked her over. BANG! BANG! BAM!, tap tap tap tap tap tap..... my mechanic buddy found a screw jammed into the head right next to the spark plug.. i was looking for that lost bolt lol... i recomend sucking the intake ports with a shop vac before anything goes back on the motor.. and take your time like i didnt it cost me 1500 for a new motor for a stupid mistake

forum155pl said:

i knocked mine out in about 2 hours when i had little mechanical knowlage about the mod motors.. i was feelin pretty proud of myself untill i cranked her over. BANG! BANG! BAM!, tap tap tap tap tap tap..... my mechanic buddy found a screw jammed into the head right next to the spark plug.. i was looking for that lost bolt lol... i recomend sucking the intake ports with a shop vac before anything goes back on the motor.. and take your time like i didnt it cost me 1500 for a new motor for a stupid mistake

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Misery likes company....I had the same thing happen to me. One of the sleeves from the intake manifold fell into an intake port. I wound up having to remove the head, install a new valve guide and intake valve. Anyone doing this fix should DEFINITELY get a flashlight and look in each of the ports to ensure nothing fell in there.

I put the procedure I used in text format. I started with a procedure that someone else posted for a 98 which also included replacement of the coolant tube in the engine valley. This procedure should give you an idea of what all it entails. I agree with the other posters. Take your time and do it right otherwise it'll wind up costing you a lot more (like it did me).

1999-2001 Mustang - KIT- 1R3Z-9424-AAA
1W7Z-9424-AA Intake Manifold (1)
1R3Z-10153-AA Alternator Brace (1)
W708309-S437 Water Outlet Connection Bolts (2)
YL3Z-9439-BA Intake Manifold Gasket (2)
F1VY-8255-AA O-Ring For Thermostat (1)
2R33-12B637-AD Wiring Harness (1)
SK 1W7E-9E473-BA Instruction Sheet (1)

Bought 180 degree thermostat (stock is 192 degree) from AutoZone
Bought thermostat O-ring for $5.00 from AutoZone

1.Relieve fuel system pressure
a.In the trunk, unplug the inertia switch electrical connector from the bottom of the fuel pump switch
b.Start the engine and allow it to run until it stops. This make take a few seconds or up to 10 minutes.
c.The fuel system pressure is now relieved.
d.Reconnect the connector to the bottom of the fuel pump switch.
e.If the inertia switch was “popped” on the fuel pump switch then push the reset button on the top of the fuel pump switch.

2.Disconnect cable from the negative battery terminal (8mm)

3.Remove serpentine belt (place 1/4” drive extension in tension pulley and turn clockwise)

4.Remove air inlet tube
a.Unplug the connector at the MAF (mass air flow sensor)
b.Unplug the connector at the IAT (intake air temp sensor) located directly upstream from the MAF
c.Unlatch the connector holding the air inlet tube to the air cleaner housing
d.Loosen the hose clamp holding the air inlet tube to the throttle bottle
e.Disconnect the two PCV (positive crankcase ventilation) tubes coming off of the air inlet tube
i.Disconnect the one from the intake plenum
ii.Disconnect the one from the drivers side valve cover and turn the elbow down to prevent anything (fuel or coolant) from going down it
f.Remove the air inlet tube. The rubber might be stuck on the throttle body opening, gently nudge it off.

5.Remove the alternator
a.Disconnect the 2 electrical connections at the back of the alternator. The nut under the red cap is 11mm.
b.Remove the 2 lower alternator mounting bolts (10mm)
c.Remove the 2 upper alternator mounting bolts (10mm)
d.Remove the 2 bolts connecting the alternator bracket to the intake manifold (10mm)

6.Remove the bolts retaining the alternator bracket to the intake manifold

7.Remove the intake plenum
a.Remove the 2 electrical connectors (2) from the plenum (p-side)
i.Throttle positioner
ii.Idle speed control solenoid
b.Remove red vacuum line from the plenum, EGR, d-side fuel rail, and bracket at back of manifold (green line should be on top)
c.Remove PCV connection from front of plenum and swing the hose out of the way
d.Unbolt the bracket holding the accelerator cable and speed control cable (10mm)
e.Remove accelerator cable, speed control cable, and spring from the throttle body
f.Remove EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) bolts from d-side of plenum (10mm, longer bolt on right)
g.Disconnect the hose from the back of the plenum
h.Remove the 5 bolts holding down the plenum (10mm)
i.Remove the plenum/throttle body

8.Remove electrical connections from the fuel injectors and ignition coils

9.Disconnect ignition wire brackets, boots, and wires and set them out of the way

10.Disconnect the electrical connectors from the Coolant Temperature Sending (CTS) unit (front of p-side of manifold)

11.Unbolt the fuel rails themselves. These are held in with 2-8mm bolts each. You will need a deep socket to reach the nut itself though. (HINT: Beware of fuel spill!!! There is still a little fuel in the lines)

12.When you go to remove the fuel rail and its rubber white lines, the injectors will seem stuck. They are just held in by o-rings, and will “snap” out of place.

13.Remove the injectors and place into the new intake manifold

14.Move the fuel rails up and back out of the way.

15.Drain coolant. Place a bucket under the radiator drain fitting located at the lower corner (p-side) of the radiator. Loosen the fitting, use a 3/8 hose to direct the coolant into the bucket.

16.Remove the thermostat housing bolts (10mm). Move the hose and thermostat housing out of the way.

17.Take the thermostat out and place in a clean safe place. Replace the o-ring with a new one.

18.Unbolt the intake manifold. It is held on with 9-10mm bolts. Remove manifold and place to the side.

19.Remove the intake manifold gaskets. Clean the surfaces thoroughly. Do not scrape aggressively or you’ll scrape up the surface.

20.One area of concern is with the sealing of the intake to head. Inspect the areas of sealing, and if there is any concern, use some RTV gasket maker in those spots.

21.Take the passenger side CTS and apply new Teflon tape to the threads. Replace it into the threaded spot on the intake manifold.

22. Install the new intake manifold gaskets. Both sides are identical. Make sure the tabs face down.

**** VISUALLY INSPECT EACH INTAKE AND EXHAUST PORT WITH A FLASHLIGHT TO MAKE SURE NOTHING FELL IN THEM
**** OTHERWISE, YOU'LL BE FIXING OR REPLACING A HEAD SOON AFTER BUTTONING EVERYTHING BACK UP

23. Install the new intake manifold. Torque specs are 22-31lb-ft of torque. There is a specific sequence, so refer to a repair manual (like Hayes) for the diagram showing the sequence.

24. From here on out, its pretty much reverse of what was done above. Here’s a few tips:
a.Put a dab of oil on the injector o-rings before re-installation. This will help make sure a solid seal is created.
b.When starting the car back up with the coolant back in the motor, and everything tightened up, it will run rough for a couple minutes. This is completely normal and will go away when the computer gets its parameters straight.
c. Don't forget to RTV the coolant port on the back of the driver side head. When I did the front passenger side head I assumed I was done because the front driver side head was a perfect match to the gasket. I forgot that these heads are interchangable between the pass side to the driver side.