00stang37

i was doing a tune up on my car today and when i was taking out the plugs i found out the the drivers side hols had a good amount of what i was told was antifreeze but a mechanic i took it to. he thinks it is the intake manifold. the was a good amount of fluid in there, when i took out the wrench it was dripping with the fluid. how should i go about with the manifold settlement? should i have them do it at ford or get an aftermarket manifold and have them reimburse me? and would they also cover the cost of the plugs? the plugs were shot and before i cleaned out the sockets and changed the plugs it was bucking really bad if i gave more than 1/2 throtle in any gear/rpm. not really sure what is the best way to go about this. any help would be great. thanks, jim

jmmorgan82

from what I have heard recently, the settlement period is done. I'd try going up to a ford dealership and talk to them about the settlement. I've heard of 750 dollar checks or so, and you can replace it yourself for about 200 bucks.

Wild6

The settlement period is all done. If you want send me your VIN number and I can check for sure. FYI you can get the complete kit from Northern for $219.00 that includes all the gaskets, t-stat, and updated alternator brackets. Cost (dealer cost) from Ford for the kit is $260 and that is before dealer markup.

00stang37

i talked to ford today and they said that they will fix it under the recall. im bringing it monday and it should be done by tuesday if they need to order the parts. should i try to have them give me the $750 settlement check of just have them fix it and be done with it. also my car is still bucking with anything over half-throtle and today it it feels like the engine is really being held back. it gets a sound like a fat can on a civic almost and its comming from the the engine bay and it feels like it wants to go but it barely accelerates. at some rpms in certain gears it will act normal but for the most part it feels messed up. any idea if ford should cover to fix that if i can link it to the manifold dumping coolant into the heads?

also how can you tell if the clutch is slipping and needs to be replaced, i need a new TOB and im not sure if i should wait to replace that when i put in the king cobra clutch thanks for the help. jim

Wild6

Well I'd be very surprised if your still covered by the program but what the heck, if they said they'd do it let them go ahead. I work in Ford service so let me give you an idea what happens. First off if the extended coverage program is still open your only option is to have it repaired at a Ford dealer. If the program is open there is only one way to get money for it and that is to have a valid original receipt showing the detailed repair that was done prior to the date the program was first launched or that the repair was made on a Sunday or legal holiday. Anything other than that and Ford will not send you money back. Simply asking for $750.00 to fix it yourself will also not happen. Again the only option for you if the program is still open is to have a Ford dealership replace the manifold.

As for the running problem Ford will pay for what is know as "related damage" when a Ford cover part fails. In the case of extended coverage programs prior approval to do so is required for certain type of related damage such as spark plugs. Spark plugs are considered a wear item and are covered under no warranty in some cases and would be hard to get approval for. Hard, not impossible. It all depends on who the dealership gets at Ford and how the information is presented. By the way I'd still be curious to see your VIN number and see if the program is still actually valid. I haven't seen one covered in nearly two years. A word of advice, sign nothing that will make you liable for any charges should the dealership have made a mistake on your coverage. If they did then Ford will charge them back and they have no recourse to charge you. (in most states anyway)