i went down to my ford dealer and had them do a multi-point inspection. according to them i need a new intake manifold because its leaking coolant. the cost is $1400 bucks. ya right. i was wondering if there was anyone in the area that could help me do it myself? i have never worked on an engine before and though the process doesn't look that crazy, im still a newb and would be completely lost if i had any problems.

 

Swapping out an intake is somewhat easy, but a pain in the ***, and dealer work is expensive. If your not worried about a warranty, and I'm assuming your in the San Fernando Valley, take it to 60 Minute Tune on Balboa north of the 118. They have never steered me or my friends wrong before. They are always pretty busy (a good sign), but don't waist time. I just took my Aunts 1980 Vette there, for a tune before a smog and they said it didn't need it (no charge), and they were right. It passed the first time. Anyway, get a second opinion on the intake price. Dealers are always pricey.

 

Im in chatsworth. I was really thinking about tackling myself with some help but i need to find someone that knows what they are doing and i also need some feedback on some parts. americanmuscle.com has a couple intake mani's for my car, but i want to know the difference between this one: http://www.americanmuscle.com/typhoo...904-satin.html
and this one: http://www.americanmuscle.com/typhoo...-polished.html

is it just the finish??

 

Yep. They are both a Typhoon type. One is just polished. All the tech specs on the site are identical for both manifolds. As far as help swapping it out, I can't help you there. Sorry. But I can offer up a little advise. Have it done by a shop that can offer a 30 or 60 day warranty. If anything is going to go wrong it will happen within that time. And if you have a friend help and it doesn't go smoothly, well things can get sticky. Especially if its your daily driver. My $.02.