Guys,
I have read the 2007 post over at mercurycougar.net about W Code intakes, but it did not seem to resolve one way or the other. I see highly restored cars with both painted and bare and see very experienced folks declaring definitively for both painted and bare.
Surely this is resolvable? What do the untouched survivors and original owners tell us? My intake appears to be OEM painted Ford Blue.
Mike
Factory was Painted.
Of the 88 GT-Es I’ve personally seen, perhaps 6 are known to be original (untouched in terms of such changes) and the evidence is that they all came painted blue from the factory. Also, the process at the engine plant is well known – all engines were assembled to long block configuration and then painted and either shipped to the plant for production installation, or to service parts for distribution through the parts system. I personally like the look of them unpainted and changed several of mine to reflect that. Technically, from a concours judging perspective, it would be incorrect unless painted blue.