It seems that one of the injection mold points on the side of the manifold closest to the steering pump blew out. leaving a 3/8s hole there. i have temporarily repaired it using some Permitex and some cardboard, but i do not know how long that will last. has any one else heard of this happening? a new intake man. would run me $277. way ridicules for a piece of blown plastic if you ask me.

 

You and I must be the only two unlucky ones on this forum with this problem. Just had this same thing happen on my 2002 Ranger - idle suddenly went out of control from 2500 to 300, and at 300 it shook like it had a racing camshaft in it. Threw a lean burning "Check Engine" light. Acted from the start like some kind of a computer or ferocious vacuum leak. Dealer put an oxy sensor in it which was definitely bad. It helped some, but still had a real problem. Tech called it right, said he thought there was an intake manifold leak even though nothing happened when sprayed w/flammable solvent. Got it off and sure enough a 1/2" dia plastic plug at the end of the shaft that carries the rotating vane in each cylinder intake - had pushed out opening it up to the outside air. Same thing as you; it was well hidden behind all the other engine stuff. Epoxy glue and many hundreds of dollars later the problem was fixed. Techs and service manager at the dealership had never seen this happen before. Been a good truck in general but simple problems have been a killer on this vehicle. I lost a perfectly good clutch last year when the $100 hydraulic slave cylinder blew and poured hydraulic fluid all down onto the disk. Bigtime money for a pretty basic failure.

 

Hmmm, guess I was right when my first thought upon 1st seeing a plastic intake manifold years ago was "wonder how long till it starts falling apart on it's own?" Plastic + underhood heat = disaster waiting to happen, in my opinion.
That's some newfangled math for ya, right there.......

 

I had the same prob. there is no good patch for it just go ahead and bite the bullet and change the manifold. I did it in 1 morning with basic tools. The hardest part is getting it loose from all the cable bundles Ford attaches to the manifold.Easy as pie to reinstall because of the built in O rings.

 

Without seeing it, cannot say for sure, but if the patch is in a repairable location, that epoxy is incredibly tough. You can use that stuff to alter the size and shape of the intake ports, and even after hundreds of thousands of miles, it won't come loose.

Personally, I prefer the plastic intake manifold, they are lighter and smoother. Not to say they don't have their problems, but unless you are going to port a metal one, the plastic one flows more freely.

 

I wouldn't count on the cardboard lasting, but you can make a longer lasting patch out of similar plastic from another manifold or even use sheet metal. The engine doesn't much care how it looks, as long as it seals properly, and doesn't allow extra air to flow. If you can make a patch that will stay in place, you can find an adhesive or filled epoxy that will last as long as the manifold. Most people wouldn't try, and they end up spending the hundreds rather than the $4-5 for the epoxy and a little time. Your choice.
tom

 

The thing about patching that location is that a plug in that location will disable the intake runner control valve. the hole is the location of a pivot bushing that falls out.

 

Coat the control valve shaft with a minimal amount of silicon oil. Wipe clean. Position the shaft in its normal position and support it. Pack around the shaft with Devcon filled epoxy or JB Weld. Either product will act as a bushing, or you can find a metal bushing to fit the pivot shaft, and then embed that in the Devcon or the JB Weld. Probably stronger than stock.
The silicon oil will keep the epoxy from binding to the shaft. Again, its $5 worth of epoxy and some time vs ~$280. Either that or I am full of smoke...
tom

 

trekalltop: you should be able to make a small plastic patch from 1/8" plastic and seal it up with some good epoxy. It would need to be some of the "new age" plastic so it would handle the engine heat and not melt. I've seen some repairs like that last a long time (years) without problems and it saves you the cost of a new manifold. Your cardboard patch might last a little while but not for long. Be sure to clean off all the Permatex real well before you apply the epoxy. Needs to be clean and dry, no oily residue. You can scuff up the patch area on the manifold with fine sand paper to help the epoxy stick better, and the same with the patch piece. You could obtain a piece of plastic like I mentioned from a local junk yard, from the engine bay of a newer car or truck that has engine covers or battery covers that are made from that type of plastic and it may not cost much.

 

My 2002 Ranger did the same thing 60,000 miles ago. Didn't want to spend the money for the new one so I took the round slug out of an electrical box and J B Welded it on. Been running great at 155,000 miles

 

Thanks, y'all for posting this here. My Ranger did the same thing as ReglarNavy's a couple days ago -- between stoplights -- and I was getting ready to yank the manifold and inspect it when my redneck ingenuity lit up like a neon sign.

I cut a piece of foam garage floor mat (the kind you stand on for long hours) and stuffed it in the gap between the manifold and the power steering pump mounting. Cranked it up... purrs like a bobcat.

I did manage to get into that little gap a patch made of a flat circular piece of plastic and JB-Weld. We'll see how that works.

 

Temp fix all you want but in the end, the end pivot point is worn so are the rest. It's just buying you a little time is all. Had the same problem last year on a company truck. Eventually the runner will start sticking and not function properly. Sad thing is it would be so easy to make a repair kit, but then Ford couldn't sell the intakes for so much.