Ok just picked it up

He said "lower intake gasket is leaking, and letting coolant in. if you dont fix it soon, coolant will continue to leak in and contaminate the oil"

I said ok thanks and left...

Called Ford dealer and asked, what's it cost to have lower intake gasket replaced

"To replace lower and upper, plus labor, is $554 OTD..."

And that's at the dealer so I dunno where the crap he got $1100 from.....

Anyway its sitting my my garage at the moment...

 

are you low on coolant

 

No Sir. I just walked out and checked, the reservoir is exactly where it should be and it looks nice and green, just like new.

 

One would think.....the coolant passages on your model only run on the back side and front side. So if there were any leaks it would more than likely only affect cylinders 1, 4, 5 or 8. Which it is not going to leak in all those areas. So an intake gasket leak would normally, in one area, only affect one cylinder or maybe 2. Don't get me wrong, if it is leaking then you don't want coolant washing down your cylinders or worse, causing a hydrolock situation. But I would investigate further. What did the mechanic do to determine there was coolant leaking into the cylinders? Maybe he just found coolant in the plug well... and not in the cylinders. I dunno. I would want more definite answers when your looking at a 500 dollar fix. Your truck is an 03 so you should have the revised composite intake, eliminating the earlier models that were known to crack around cylinder 1. Hmm.

Did ford look at it or did you get that quote by phone? You need to have someone else look at it. Even if it means a $60 diagnosis fee at ford. The leak may not be from the gasket, could be from a heater hose, manifold itself etc..

Also, the first mechanic completed the original plug change? What did the old plugs look like and is it running better now?

 

Ok, the first one to drop was #1... several months ago, had her read, code was misfire on #1, so replaced the COP and she's run fine ever since. Then Friday she started running rough again, missfire on #2, according to the computer at autozone. Replaced that COP and she ran fine for about 5 minutes...

I only talked to ford on the phone, was already late when I called.

He didn't replace anything, so I'm not sure if he started the job found the leak and then called or what... I didnt ask.

And you're right I'm most likely going to take it by Ford and drop the $60 to let them hook her up and see what's going on.

 

your heater hose isnt leaking above your cops?

did you try the engine starter fluid?

 

I looked all around that side w/ my flashlight and didnt see any coolant down on the motor or anywhere around that area.

No I dont have any here and didnt have time to stop on my way home. I'll try it tomorrow though if I can find some.

 

Took it to Ford this morning...

Diagnosis is in, Cracked Intake Manifold. So I guess all my bumper money will now be spent on an intake. I dunno why they guy yesterday wouldnt just say "Cracked Intake" he just kept saying leaky intake needs new lower gasket.........

 

Kind of interesting timing on this post. I have an air leak ( whistle) on my 01, also throwing codes for lean bank 1 and bank 2. I have replaced IAC, EGR, and PCV along with all associated plumbing. Still whistling and throwing codes. About the only thing I can think is either bad gaskets or cracked intake. I will probably be taking to dealer this week, and see what they can find. If it is gaskets, dealer quoted 600.00.

 

That sounds right. I was quoted $554 to replace both gaskets... And #1 and #2 missfire are the codes mine keeps throwing as well.

 

i would make sure that they show me where its leaking before they do any work. they could just be trying to get more money out of you buy selling you a new intake.

 

I'll be sure to ask when I stop by on the way home.

 

I thought 03 had the revised composite intake, which wasn't prone to leaking. Could be wrong though but I thought they fixed it. You should be able to see the leak...
If it were me, Id spend the $150 on a new intake, $60 on a gasket set and do it myself in about 2 hours. While it is off is a great time to change plugs and clean things up including the throttle body and elbow... Ford will simply change it without cleaning anything other than the mating surfaces.

 

If it could be done in 2 hours I have a feeling there wouldnt be the need for $800 in labor... b/c I know the parts cost of that $1200 can't be more than a few hundred.

If you can do the work in about 2 hours and garuntee it I'll be more than happy to pay you to do it. Too bad you live so far away.

 

I'm not exaggerating, but each person has their own speed. I don't know what Ford's "book" has pegged for time on the removal and replacement of gaskets and intake. But I know I could have it off in half hour, cleaned, up and ready for new gaskets in half hour, plugs changed, installed and running in 2 hours. Id be willing to bet someone not so mechanical could pull it off in 4-5 with a haynes manual. There's not much to it. Remove the intake, throttle linkage, egr components, iac wire clip, vacuum hoses, throttle body has 4 bolts, injectors, cop's zip tied out of the way, coolant/heater hoses unclip with ease, and the 11 bolts? holding the intake on. And it is off. Sounds like a lot but really isnt. If Ford quoted you around $500 for gasket replacement, that would put the labor around 2-3 hours in their book since that quote included gaskets ($60 from felpro). But I'm fast.

If you have a garage and the tools/time to do it, it is well worth the savings. If not... well, expensive.