Hi I am new to your site, and could use some advice. I have a slightly limited mechanical backround. I have a 1997 F 150 4 X4 Supercab, 4.6 L. 57,000 miles. I have an exhaust leak at the flange of driver's side exhaust manifold (where it starts to drop down to converter, close to the engine).- the flanges are not bolted together, Apparently the 2 bolts are totally rusted off. I don't believe that I have any other leaks at the moment. HOWEVER-- both manifolds and bolts are extremely rusty. My local repair shop said that anything he touches will break, and does not want to tackle such a job. He referred me to the local muffler shop. Again-- no luck. So off to the dealer we go !!! I was told that all bolts are rusted severely, both manifolds need replacement, and possibly the rest of the exhaust too!!! $$ $$$ $$$$ 1,770 cost estimate to repair !!!!!!!

WOW !!! Now I plan on asking a bunch of questions asap, as I did not personally get to speak to the service rep yet.

The 1 st local repair shop said that they see alot of rusty manifolds on the Fords. Their opinion is that this problem should not occur in a vehicle with my model year and miles. The mechanic actually said that he's owned 30 + vehicles in his lifetime, without ever having a bad exhaust manifold. The Ford service rep supposedly ran a search for recalls/ service bulliten, with nothing coming up. Of course, I am way out of warranty.

Should this problem have occurred ? Is this normal wear and tear ? Am I getting ripped off ? What do I do next ? Obviously the flanges need to be bolted back together (or can they ?), but what about the rest of this stuff ????? Do I suck it up and pay ?? I need my truck back on the road !!!

HELP PLEASE !!!!!

Thanks a million,

Eric

 

Well I can sympathise with you on the rust problem. I purchased my 2000 in sept. I have no idea how many cars I have owned but I restore all kinds of old cars for a hobby and I have some now that are 30+ years old that I found sitting in fields for 10-15 years and they still have less rust under the hood than my 2000 does. There is not a place that is not rusted or corroded including the frame rails on my truck, the tranny line hoses if I were to have to remove them for any reason. I would just have to cut those off and replace them because they would crumble at the touch of a wrench along with many other fastners and fittings under the hood. I thought it was just my truck too as it came from Ohio and I thought maybe the salt they spread on the roads there and lack of attention under the hood by the PO may have been the culprit.

But before I spent that much to replace with a factory exhaust, if that is what you end up haveing to do, I would look at aftermarket systems. After market all the way back for equal or less money and gain the performance as well. A good quality Cat and muffler system can be got for less than $400 and a set of headers for about the same or less. Then couple of hundred if you want a mechanic to fight with the rusted manifold bolts which a few of them will likely break off in the head when try to remove them. So might be worth the money for a mechanic to take that headache. So for less than $1000 out of pocket you could have a new Medium to high performance exhaust system, atleast better than stock!

 

I have the same issue, two broken manifold bolts on the right side. I am taking it to the local dealer this week.
I was told by a former "dealer" mechanic that a trick of the trade if you have broken/rusted bolts was to spray with a rust penetrating lubricant (wd40,etc) and use an engraving tool. Hold the engraving tool on the bolt and the vibration will move the lubricant thru the threads. Let it set for 24 hrs or so and the bolts should come out fairly easily. I have not seen this done this was info passed on to me.
Good Luck.

 

WD40 isn't a penetrant. Use PB Blaster.

 

etopoff69

How did you make out? What did you end up doing? I to have the same problem and have been trying to decide what to do.

I would like to do aftermarket exhaust but cannot find an aftermarket manifold that will bolt on that I can then run into a new exhaust. All the websites I looked at only have the cats and muffler.

Mike

 

you know what I mean!

 

Hi-- thanks to all who responded.

I first forgot to tell you what happened over the phone with the Ford Dealer when I balked at the price-- Somehow it dropped to $ 1390-- almost 400 savings. I believe that this was the "woman" automatic 25 % mark-up, as they originally spoke with my wife for the repair estimate. And/ or a combination that I was pulling my truck out of there.

I got the heck out of there fast !!!!

My original mechanic, who I live a little farther from, but made a HUGE !!!! mistake by not calling right away. He didn't even balk at the repair. Did say, however, when all was said and done that this was the worst he has ever seen for a not so old truck !!!! I guess you learn the hard way to stick with the honest mechanic. First of all, nothing wrong with the right side (FORD wanted to REPLACE BOTH manifolds !!) The left did have 3 broken studs and was leaking, but turned out to NOT be warped (as FORD stated). Mechanic worked for hours on 12/23 and 24. I got the truck back at noon 12/24. He could not extract 1 broken stud. Put on new gasket and sealer around the 1 remaining stud. Repaired flange and put on new o2 tube that was rotted off. He even said that if it leaks ( he gives 12 mon 12 k warranty), he will give me full credit for labor, as they would have to remove the head to get out the stud (OUCH) !!!! He is confident though, that everything is ok. I've been driving and also took 180 mile each way trip over the holidays with no issue.

**** What is the deal with these dealers ? I should have told that rep to *^&*&* off !!!! It's funny how he told me that BOTH manifolds were bad, leaking, and needed replacement. He was very evasive when I started questioning the work that needed to be done. My cousin is a mechanic in Ohio. He apparently subscribes to a system that shows all service bullitens/ recall/ hidden recalls on a vehicle. I need to call him. If this is something that FORD lied to me about-- The dealer is going to get an earfull.

What a shame that like the first poster PSS MAG related to:--- I am baffeled that my "Built Ford Tough" is falling apart !!! Hey if it had 150,000 miles and was 10-15 yrs old, I guess it would be entitled to some major repairs, maybe.

Sorry to ramble on. Hopefully I'm fixed and definitely done with the dealer!! ( and my truck lasts a little longer)

 

The total bill was $532. Almost all of it labor.

 

And I hope you gave that good man a $50 or $100 tip for busting his **** on Christmas eve in order to get you your truck.

 

To Rocky--

yes, this man is a saint, I count my blessings to have him as a mechanic. I actually have offered $$ SEVERAL times over the years, because I know that he always goes above and beyond. He absolutely refuses to take a dime.

LESSON LEARNED-- always remain loyal if you have an excellent mechanic. They are hard to find.

 

now you know why we call them "Stealerships"!!!!