1981 INTAKE COLOR

[GENE]

What is the original color of the intake maifold on a 1981, is it blue or Silver?

 

[Tom Bryant]

It's bare aluminum.

 

[gsimpson9981]

It's bare aluminum.

I think that's right (bare aluminum). Most had blue overspray on the edges next to the valve covers. Bare aluminum, especially after it's been glass beaded, is really porus, and will stain with oil,gas, even vapors. One possibility is to have it glass beaded, then paint with dupli-color high temp cast blast aluminum paint. This looks very close to unpainted aluminum, and will be esasier to keep clean

 

[zachh]

mine, until I painted it was never touched. It was solid blue. (1979 vet)

 

[Peer81]

mine, until I painted it was never touched. It was solid blue. (1979 vet)

Thats because the L81 had a aluminium intake and the 79 didn't i think.

Groeten Peter.

 

[Sensei]

Actually, I am pretty sure that GM actually painted the aluminum intake silver. Why? I can only guess. Maybe to avoid oxidation. Whatever the case, gsimpson is right, they usually had some blue overspray. God bless, Sensei

 

[Yoda]

Thats because the L81 had a aluminium intake and the 79 didn't i think.

Groeten Peter.

Correct for information, the 1980 LG4 also had the Aluminum intake, that was the CA emissions 305 CID (it also had the ECM)..

Bud

 

[rL82s]

Just a comment: I am the original owner of a 1980 L82, the intake manifold is aluminum and was and still is painted silver. If my memory serves me correctly the '81 L81 had the same paint scheme as my L82. Black finned aluminum rocker covers, silver painted intake and Corporate GM blue for the rest of the engine.