I have a 1997 Cougar XR7 with a 4.6 liter V8. Around July 1, 2001, the intake manifold on the car cracked causing it to overheat. I had the car fixed, not knowing there was a recall on these intake manifolds. In March of 2004, I found the recall letter sent to me by Lincoln Mercury. I contacted the service manager, tim coats, at what was then ruston Ford (I knew him as he did most of my vehicle's warranty work when he was at the Lincoln Mercury dealership in monroe, la.). I told him about the letter and I still had all my receipts. He sent everything in to Lincoln Mercury and I was reimbursed. The recall was good for 7 years, unlimited mileage beginning in February 1998. Last February, I was told my car was leaking antifreeze. As it was repeatedly pressure tested, and did not loose pressure, we could not find the source. Finally, in June of last year, that intake manifold cracked. Both intakes that cracked lasted approximately 70,000 miles and/or 4 years. I contacted the Lincoln Mercury dealer in minden where I got the part and was told that the warranty had expired and there was nothing Lincoln Mercury would do. I have since called Lincoln Mercury customer service 3 times and they have told me there is no current recall on the car and due to the mileage, there is nothing they will do. So, I replaced this intake with one from O'reilly auto parts. I have know found out this one is cracked and leaking. O'reilly will warranty the part, but I have to submit the bill for labor with the defective part and hope they will reimburse. Each time this happens, the labor runs around $250 - $300. Then, it has to have new plugs and wires as they get wet. All I know is there is a serious problem. This will be the fourth intake manifold in 9 years, the car has 175,000 miles on it and I have to keep it until the first of next year. I no longer feel safe as you never know when the intake is going to crack. The VIN # is [xxx].

- Monroe, LA, USA

1997 Mercury Cougar developed a cracked manifold.** answer required***. a recall was issued for 1996 and 1997 Mercury Cougar but the consumer's vehicle was not included due to VIN.

- Hillsborough, NJ, USA

For no reason at all antifreeze started leaking from the plastic intake manifold in my 1997 Cougar with a 4.6L motor. I searched the web and learned that this is a common problem and Ford extended the warranty on some plastic intake manifolds. Found all info I could and copied it for the local Mercury dealer to repair under warranty. Dropped it off for service, only to get a call that my VIN was not one that was awarded the extended 7 year warranty, even though the length of time we owned this Cougar fit the time criteria. Im really disappointed in Ford that they are not covering all of their plastic junk manifolds. I called the 800 number for complaints, but the man said I am sorry I can not help you, but I will type your info in our database. So I am no spending $900 to repair a car with 82K miles on it for something I would not have expected to have trouble with. To prove that they know there is a problem, they now replace the original manifold with a new part number, and design. They admit it was a bad deal, but still will not help me. I told them that while they were typing my complaint, also type that this is my last Ford, and also my families last Ford. It's a sad testament for the usa workers. Henry Ford would not be pleased. Thank you, [xxx]. information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Brunswick, OH, USA

The low coolant warninging light came on and the smell of antifreeze came into the vehicle compartment. The temperature gauge moved to the highest setting. Copious smoke escaped from under the hood of the vehicle. The forward tube of the plastic intake manifold showed a rupture about four inches long on the front of the intake manifold. Reapair cost was $1455, including replacement of the spark plugs, which had been soaked in antifreeze. The Texas comission on environmental quality issued a warning to me by letter that a concerned citizen had reported my vehicle was seen emitting excessive smoke and that if I did not take action to repair the vehicle, they would charge me with a violation. The vehicle has been repaired with a new Ford intake manifold that has the forward tube made out of aluminum and the rest plastic. Ford refuses to issue a recall on this model saying that human life has not been endangered.

- Houston, TX, USA