I want to help a friend in Johannesburg who needs a spare for his Grand Voyager. Scrap collectors stole his inlet manifold while the car was in for repairs and he’s having trouble finding a trustworthy replacement. The vehicle is a 2002 Grand Voyager 3.3L Limited V6 7 seater imported from the USA.

I used to own and maintain a 1986 Land Rover 90 so I’m confident to buy a second-hand manifold and courier it out to him but since this is going to cost him what amounts to a large amount of his own cash. I want to be absolutely certain that I’m buying the right part.

My questions:

How much change was there in engine specs over the years? In other words, must I be absolutely certain to get the manifold for that engine (I have engine and VIN numbers) or would just any 3.3 V6 manifold do the job?

Which leads to the next question:

Can anybody recommend a reliable breaker, preferably in the Manchester area? I would rather inspect the manifold before parting with his cash.

Many thanks!

You should poke around on http://www.car-part.com/ – either to check cross-compatibility or to just order from one of the breakers directly. They might not ship to Joburg but you could ship via shipit.to or something.

Weren’t some of them made in Austria and some in the US? Meaning – a European spec that you might find in the UK would be different from a US spec like your friend has? I could be wrong.

Try Pistonheads.