Aftermarket Intake Manifold
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Teching In
Joined: Dec 2004
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From: Athens, GA
Aftermarket Intake Manifold I have a 95 LT1 Trans Am, A4, with basic mods like the Tbb, cai, 1le elbow, etc. However, I am sick and tired of my intake manifold, my dad is a professional mechanic, so it was not like we didn't know what we are doing, but we have had to fix the intake manifold leak 2 times on my car. We did the dimple trick, with the import sealer, then the leak started again. We have used domestic sealer the first time for no avail. I believe the intake manifold itself is warped, and no longer sits flush. I don't want to fix this again as after another 10 - 12 months it has started to leak again. I am looking at the possibility of buying an after market intake manifold, instead of just buying another from GM. Does Holley or anyone else make intake manifolds that are set up for fuel injection? Every one I have seen has been set up for carburetors. I would appreciate it if someone could post some links with some aftermarket ones, or give me some info, if they have an aftermarket intake manifold on theirs. Thanks.
Joined: Nov 2001
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From: LT1 land...the "409" of the 90s!
I have one Question. How long you letting the Sealant set up before starting the car?
I have had good luck with Ultra black and a 24 hour sitting time.
If you start it to early it just sucks the sealant into the engine and you have a leak
Changing the intake to another will not fix the issue. It is a well know very common problem. I have my first one fixed under warranty with 17K miles...
I have had good luck with Ultra black and a 24 hour sitting time.
If you start it to early it just sucks the sealant into the engine and you have a leak
Changing the intake to another will not fix the issue. It is a well know very common problem. I have my first one fixed under warranty with 17K miles...
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Dec 2004
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From: Athens, GA
The first time I did it the sealant sat for 36 hours, the next time 48 hours. We made sure it was good and dry. And TwoFast, the reason I am looking to switch to another, b/c several people on the net have said that the aluminum intakes sometimes will actually warp and not seal. The car has 115k miles, so I definitely see it as a possibility. I mean, its not like after we do it it's leaking 3 days later, it lasts for about 10-12 months, then the leak starts again. It's a daily driver too. I'm just sick of dealing with it, and was hoping of someway to permanently fix the problem, so in a year, i won't have to pull it off again. Oh, and talking about heat being the culprit, last time we fixed it, we put heat tape back there around the pipe next to the intake manifold to keep it a little cooler back there, but still no luck.
You claim to be that knowledgable but then think heat tape on the pipe will help when that pipe goes into the intake and the hot exhaust gasses flow through the intake. I would call this a known issue with this engine but not a common problem certainly not to the level you have experianced I have to wonder about the quality of the repair.
If the intake is warped a machine shop could machine it true again for a lot less than the custom work you are going to need because there are no readily available intakes. If there were they would be the same aluminum you are blaming for the warping problem you believe you have.
If the intake is warped a machine shop could machine it true again for a lot less than the custom work you are going to need because there are no readily available intakes. If there were they would be the same aluminum you are blaming for the warping problem you believe you have.
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Yeah Heat Tape on the EGR tube is a no no because it will actually retain heat. My car has 145k on it and it's leak free like I mentioned. Not to be rude but I've got one word for you; Loctite.. Grab some blue loctite and do the intake manifolds bolts. Tigthen them down to spec and forget about them. Otherwise without loctite you're going to need to retorque the bolts every so often of you're going to develop leaks.
Matt
Matt
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Teching In
Joined: Dec 2004
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From: Athens, GA
Well, the Heat tape idea was an idea cited from a magazine article 10 months ago on the net, about the intake manifold leak. Each bolt was tightened in order and torqued to specs according to the GM Service Manual for 1995 F Bodies. A month or two later they were retorqued to keep the specs. Not to be rude, 96 Caprice, but my father went to school for years, to build engines, and owned his own machine shop, and currently works for GM. My question is about aftermarket intake manifolds, I would like information regarding this not questions about quality of the fix. By the way, I'm not making up this crazy hypothesis, on the net, there are many people claiming to have this leak, saying that their intake manifolds were warped, then swapped them out, and fixed the problem. I just curious if they're were aftermarket options besides factory. And by the way, we did use loctite.
In fact, here is a link for a guy who fixed his intake manifold, who also put heat tape on his pipe as well...
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Downs/4013/ol.html
In fact, here is a link for a guy who fixed his intake manifold, who also put heat tape on his pipe as well...
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Downs/4013/ol.html
Last edited by ILoveMyLT1; May 23, 2005 at 08:31 PM.
