New to me '98 XLT 5L. Manifold choice help

[Nate_V8]

Hi there, it has been awhile since I've been on but I just picked up a '98 XLT 5L AWD with 135k km on it, absolutely no rust and in good condition.

Only problems it has is the rear brake pads are broken and has a passenger side manifold leak. It could only need a gasket but it is pretty damn loud for a gasket so I assume it needs a manifold. I checked the garage I go to and they quoted $480 for the passenger side manifold, (apparently the driverside would have been $218?).

Is there a certain brand I should get? I was going to go to the local parts store and a ford dealer to check prices. I read somewhere that there may be revised manifolds that are better than the originals?

Before you ask I didn't check the build date, I just picked it up yesterday and left it at the garage. I don't think there is any difference in price between the P and non P.

Thank you

Nathan

 

[SoHK_alumni]

Wow!

Both ATP and Dorman make replacement manifolds, well under USD $100 from RockAuto.

The cast manifolds are less prone to cracking and flow better as well, but availability is less than the tubular ones.

A wise move is to have the flanges trued on the replacement, one reason they crack is from stresses on the tubes from the flanges not correctly aligned.

I will say the inside exhaust down pipe bolt is truly a challenge to get to and remove but I'm still thinking $480 is way high for the part and labor.

 

[fixt]

I just went through this (again).
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=441828

Rock Auto shows both welded tubular manifolds and cast manifolds for your vehicle. Don't know which it has, maybe 1998 was a transition year.
My original Ford manifold broke between cylinders #2 and #3 . The Dorman replacement cracked down the collector between 2 and 3 after 5 years. The replacement under warranty was just installed after having the flange trued at a machine shop for an additional cost of $45 fiat dollars. The replacement part was about .045 out of spec. The welded tubular do not come ready to bolt on.
I had originally ordered an ATP replacement and it appeared substandard to the Dorman part. Neither flange was flat to within .010 required by the Dorman install sheet, no install sheet came with the ATP manifold.
If it has welded tubular manifolds you will need a couple(?) longer exhaust manifold bolts for the cast manifolds, though I'm not sure exactly how many as I haven't done this yet.

If it had not been under warranty I would have gone with cast manifolds on both sides. About the same cost for both as one tubular welded manifold. There's always the pain of install, though. For that inside collector bolt SoHK_Alumni referred to, a 19mm short socket, 3/8 universal joint and 3/8 30" extension was instrumental for reaching it from the bottom.

 

[Nate_V8]

Thanks for the replies.

I live in Quebec so with our dollar being so terrible and shipping/customs I don't know how much it would be to order from rock auto. Also that was $480 canadian just for the manifold/gaskets, not labour to install.

I will call my parts place tomorrow and ask for the brands they have.

I've never heard about flanges being trued. I've never had a problem like this with any of the mustangs I've owned. Is this common practice for SUVs/trucks? Would any garage perform this or would I need to go to an exhaust shop?

Are the tubular and cast available for all 5L explorers? '98 is the transition year for the P heads. I thought I noticed 4 manifolds available so I figured 2 are for the non P and 2 are for the P. I haven't look at the build date yet (I'll do that tomorrow) but regardless I should get cast ny the sounds of it

 

[fixt]

Being a transition year, I got no clue which one you might have.
Mine is a 1996 with GT40 heads and an internal EGR valve, no EGR tube.
As far as I can tell most or all of the new manifolds are made to fit either.
With the internal EGR for the GT40 heads a cap is provided for replacement.
The plug angle is different between the two heads and using cast manifolds in place of tubular welded means you need a couple longer manifold bolts and also you will need to angle the plug wires down away from the cast manifold so the wires don't get burned. That's about all I know about it from researching.

As far as truing the flanges, an auto machine shop that trues heads should be able to do it on their sanding table machine. It looks like a giant belt sander. It can't be done on a milling machine as there's no real way to fixture the thing for milling. It might be economical to build a special fixture if you had a couple hundred manifolds to do.
I would guess the cast are pretty true; none of the welded manifolds I received from ATP or Dorman were close. Just check it with a good straight edge and feeler gauges; that will get you close enough to determine if it needs truing or not.

 

[5.0Kevin]

A 1998 should be P heads with the external ERG, I think the transition in 98 was just from one style of manifold to another BUT both bolt up and fit the same (EGR issues aside) - for my 97 at least.

A couple years ago I swapped manifolds on my 97. Exact same as Fixt, my originals had a crack, pretty common. I wanted to go with the "from 02/98" ones because they seem more solid and *may* flow *slightly* better. I had to order for a 98, but they bolted up just fine for me. Looking back at my Rock Auto order, I purchased DORMAN 674329 {#XL2Z9430CA} and DORMAN 674334 {#XL2Z9431CA} Even with the exchange rate and fees to ship to Canada, it was still the best deal I could find. No regrets with the purchase.

Few issues I ran in to:
- you need two longer bolts, one per each side due to a muuuch thicker bolt hole on a couple ports (grade 8 bolts from Canadian Tire)
- one of those longer bolts was for the dipstick mount which I didn't mount (or spend much time trying to fix)
- already had spark plug heat shield boots, but if you don't I would highly recommend. Also a good time to change plugs.
- I broke my EGR tube because the manifold nut was rusted on, I wished I had ordered a replacement at the time

Otherwise, the job is very doable in your driveway. Spray the bolts several times days in advance, and be prepare to wrestle the manifolds in. Like SoHK_Alumni said, those inside collector bolts are a pain - many extensions and knuckle joints needed.

 

[Nate_V8]

I have an 03/98 so I have the revised ones (from 02/98 or to 02/98 are the part specifications)

I just purchased a Dorman cast manifold. Most places wanted 160-190 for the cast, one only had the tubular for $240. I was able to get mine for $109 which is pretty good seeing the rock auto wanted $73 CAN, so add in shipping and having to wait I think it was a good buy.
I called the ford dealership they told me they don't sell the manifolds anymore? I guess it is just dorman and atp. I can't work on the truck here at my apartment unfortunately so I am at the mercy of a garage. They said 3-400 depeding on how it goes ($80 an hour labour here)