Packard Forum Index » Pre-War (1899-1942)

where does one send off the intake and exhaust manifold to get redone in porcelain or what ever it is

Yes, it's porcelain. If you get Hemmings Motor News you'll find several vendors. No recent personal experience but one that many have used is Prairie Auto Porcelain in Faribault, MN. Note that the process may warp the cast iron so after porcelainizing you may have to have the mating surfaces remachined - something you should discuss with any vendor you chose.

Some people have also been using ceramic coating (even though not authentic, it looks very similar), which coats both the inside and the outside of the manifolds.

Independence Porcelain Enamel did the intake and exhaust manifolds for my '37 120 in porcelain three months ago. They did an excellent job at a reasonable price. You can contact them at:

Jeff Gaylord
Independence Porcelain Enamel
703 South Cottage Ave
Independence, MO 64050

tel: (816)252-8180
email: jwgaylord@aol.com

The cars through 1932 are robust enough to endure the process without a lot of drama. After that the process is risky. I've seen manifolds break into pieces beyond any repair. Another problem is the porcelain flaking off refinished parts making it a waste of money (and a hazard because of the glass flying around when the motor is running).

One alternative is high temperature powder coat. It is not as shiny, but it will not destroy parts. Intake manifolds don't exhibit the same problems as the exhaust because they are not subject to erosion and oxygen invasion as are exhaust manifolds.

For awhile black chrome was the rage but fell out of favor because it could change color. I thought it was pretty good.

The clubs aren't deducting for porcelain anymore so I wouldn't bother trying it.

The high-temp powder coat is the ceramic coat I mentioned earlier.

For a car that's driven regularly porcelain on the exhaust will probably begin to fail in a year or two. I went with Jet-Hot or Jet-Coat the last time. No match to the gloss and color of the correct porcelain but a lot more permanent.

The powder coat stuff is a silicone based plastic. It will come off if you spill strong solvents on it. But it does hold up well. Porcelain is a ceramic.