1999 Town Car manifold issue again!

[riverguy]

Just bought an awesome 1999 Town Car Cartier from the original owner. It's got 98K miles, all services done by the dealer, just had the rear suspension completely overhauled. One curiosity is that the intake manifold issue has never been addressed. The original owner passed on and I bought the car from his widow, so no way of asking him about it, or why the dealer never mentioned it. So there does not appear to be a problem with it (visual inspection). The aluminum thermostat housing appears to have some surface corrosion, but after my 60-mile highway drive home, there is no evidence of a leak.
Could this just be one that will never fail, or should I tear into it and replace it just because?

 

[mark95man]

Just bought an awesome 1999 Town Car Cartier from the original owner. It's got 98K miles, all services done by the dealer, just had the rear suspension completely overhauled. One curiosity is that the intake manifold issue has never been addressed. The original owner passed on and I bought the car from his widow, so no way of asking him about it, or why the dealer never mentioned it. So there does not appear to be a problem with it (visual inspection). The aluminum thermostat housing appears to have some surface corrosion, but after my 60-mile highway drive home, there is no evidence of a leak.
Could this just be one that will never fail, or should I tear into it and replace it just because?

IF the first intake manifold crossover is plastic, it appears to be original to your car. If it's metal, then it was replaced. Original all plastic intake manifolds are a time bomb and will fail whenever. There's no warning or way of telling when the failure will take place. If you have the skill to replace the intake, the cost will be around $300 or less. A professional will charge around + or - $700 for the complete repair. I recommend replacement if it's all plastic.

 

[riverguy]

IF the first intake manifold crossover is plastic, it appears to be original to your car. If it's metal, then it was replaced. Original all plastic intake manifolds are a time bomb and will fail whenever. There's no warning or way of telling when the failure will take place. If you have the skill to replace the intake, the cost will be around $300 or less. A professional will charge around + or - $700 for the complete repair. I recommend replacement if it's all plastic.

That is clearly not what I wanted to hear! But it is what I expected to hear. It just amazes me that this owner who took care of EVERY detail - at the dealer who sold the car new - was never advised of the need to replace it. Moving right along, I see lots of these replacement manifolds for sale at very different prices. Is there one particular unit that is recommended by the Forum Gurus? That's the one I'll buy, and yes, I guess I'll do it myself. The fact that the back 1/3 of the manifold is tucked under the cowl makes it look a bit intimidating, but I'll manage!

 

[riverguy]

Any opinions on whether how APDTY 726289 manifold compares to the Dorman 615-178? Reviews on both are good, but I'd sure love to hear from some of you guys who have had experience with either or both!

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[mark95man]

Any opinions on whether how APDTY 726289 manifold compares to the Dorman 615-178? Reviews on both are good, but I'd sure love to hear from some of you guys who have had experience with either or both!

I purchased my 1996 Town Car Signature with Touring package new in Wayne, N.J. It was about five years old when mine failed at approximately 60,000 miles. The selling Dealership did the repair and Lincoln paid for it. They installed a new Motorcraft intake manifold.

I do NOT like anyone working on my vehicles because they screw it up! When I picked my car up, it developed a miss on the way home. I laughed as I knew what it was. When they removed the old intake, anti-freeze flowed into the spark plug wells which was not removed. I took my compressor, removed the plug's wires and blew air into the wells with anti-freeze spraying out. Once I finished with that , all was good.

End of my experience.

I hear on these forums, that the Dorman might have issues with the bolts & the rear heater hose fitting. WHILE you are replacing the intake manifold, replace the heater hose that runs under it----that's the best time to do that!

 

[riverguy]

Well, back to the original issue here. I've heard that the Cartier (1999) may have had a different manifold. Anyone know about this for sure? Thing is, I have thoroughly cleaned the manifold on my Town Car and it looks absolutely like new. The plastic is smooth and shiny with no indication of deterioration. The only area I cannot visually inspect, the bottom of the front coolant cross-tube, feels smooth and clean just like the rest of it when I run a finger across it. All of the photos I've seen of failed manifolds, show obvious surface deterioration and small fissures and cracks around the spot that actually failed. Although I am a strong supporter of preventive maintenance, I'm still thinking if it ain't broke, don't fix it on this one. The car has an easy 98K miles on it and has had every possible service done to it by the selling dealer, except for the manifold replacement.

Comments, please?

 

[TownCars1]

The 1999 Cartier has a transversely mounted V12 engine mounted under the spare tire in the trunk driving the front wheels with a dummy V8 in the front, so it does not have the manifold issues of other 1999 Town Cars.

You were smart to buy the Cartier.

 

[riverguy]

The 1999 Cartier has a transversely mounted V12 engine mounted under the spare tire in the trunk driving the front wheels with a dummy V8 in the front, so it does not have the manifold issues of other 1999 Town Cars.

You were smart to buy the Cartier.

Hey thanks for the tip! When I found out that the engine was a fake, I removed it completely, installed a plywood floor across the frame rails, and now have another trunk. I had to cut two coils off of the front springs, though, to get the nose back down to where it looks normal again. It steers a lot easier now, too!

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[rlowride]

take a pic of it... maybe i missed something... The original was all plastic, if the thermo housing is aluminum.. across the front, then that is the upgraded manifold. Only the front section is aluminum.