Is it common for our manifolds to crack? I have a 96 5.0 and the passenger side seems to be leaking. I can put my hand by cylinder 3 and feel air coming out. This year does not have an external EGR pipe, or some other piping that could leak, correct? I am new to the Explorers and might be overlooking something.

I sprayed some penetrating oil on all the bolts thinking I am going to have to pull the manifold, but I am not confident I will be successful. This vehicle had been sitting for 3 years after being in a wreck (passenger side) and there is rust. It spent some life in the northeast.

Seeing as it was in a wreck, it could have damaged the manifold during that, I suppose. Just want to make sure I am not missing something simple here before I start breaking bolts!

Thanks,
Don

Did you check to see if there is a gasket in that area? It could be bad. Maybe the bolts are loose?

Hi Don
Yes-cracked headers are common.Welding them is a no-go, unless you like to remove and weld often.
Since you are a member here, you qualify for a 20 percent discount on these

http://www.torquemonsterheaders.com/

Or, you can sometimes find "cast" manifolds on ebay--

Welcome to the forum-

I appreciate the welcome.

The gaskets "seem" to look OK and the bolts are tight. I checked out Ebay and saw the cast manifolds, but they are listed for the "P" heads. Don't those heads have different port locations? I seem to remember there being something funky with those. Also, I noticed on the ebay pics that there appears to be an EGR bung. Hmmmm...

Those torque monster headers look nice! I need to figure out what all this truck is going to need before laying out that kinda cash though. I am finding one thing after another on this thing.

Thank you,
Don