Was the intake manifold painted in the blue metallic color to match the engine block when it left the factory?

In looking at pics of various 1st gen Firebirds, some have the manifold painted to match the block, others don't. Which is correct?

Thanks!

Yes.

Thanks for clarifying!

The only ones you see unpainted are the aluminum aftermarket...usually Edelbrocks. Indeed cast iron manifolds are correctly painted, and largely because factory cast iron NEEDS to be painted. If they are not, they will look like your cast iron exhasut manifolds in very short time...pure rust...

Got it. Being a novice, that prompts my next question. Would there be any harm in painting a cast aluminum aftermarket manifold?

no

Thanks Bjorn!

There was actually an unpainted Pontiac intake, that being the 1969-1970 RAIV. Not sure if perhaps that's what you were seeing in pics, but most likely you were probably seeing aftermarket intakes left bare aluminum.

I've always painted my aluminum intakes Pontiac Metallic Blue (or another Pontiac blue, depending on the year).

Thanks for the feedback StealthBird. I appreciate it.

No problem and it will make it look more correct if that's what you are going after.

You may have an issue with the paint as it may flake off, aluminum is a soft metal and requires special paint to adhere too, we use to paint aluminum pipe and it would peel off in 6 months, I'd investagate it some more first, before spraying it with and engine enamel. Could be why they didn't paint them.

Good point on looking into the proper paint for adhesion to the aluminum manifold.

keydet86, you can just use regular Pontiac Metallic Blue engine paint on an aluminum manifold. I've been spraying intakes for 30+ years and never saw one peel the paint. Aluminum is a natural heat sink, so the paint won't flake off like it would on steel.

I painted a set of Edelbrock aluminum heads 15 years ago, and to this day the paint has never peeled, burned, or discolored, even over the center exhaust ports. They still look like new after all these years, which I've always been happy with!

As to why the factory did not paint RAIV intakes, that was purely a marketing thing. They wanted everyone to notice their new hi-perf aluminum RAIV intake, which was their first factory aluminum intake since the old 1963 SD421 days. Other manufacturers, like Chevrolet and Chrysler, began using aluminum intakes, and they left them natural aluminum too as it added to the "racer" image of their engines. Afterall, what good is having a hi-perf aluminum intake when no one knows it's there?

When Pontiac, like all the Detroit manufacturers, began to focus on emissions and economy in 1971, Pontiac painted their 1971-1972 455 H.O. intakes blue to lessen the "racer" aspect of their cars.

StealthBird, thanks again for the guidance/clarification on the intake manifold paint. Also, thanks for the historical insight on the RAIV and 455 H.O. intake manifolds. Pretty interesting!