| Author |
Message |
Verell Boaen (Verell)
Junior Member
Username: Verell
Post Number: 246
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, August 08, 2002 - 2:54 pm: | |
The 1st thing to look for is coolant or brown goo coming out of the drain holes on the bottom of the pump.
If you're at all mechanicly inclined, you can rebulid the water pump yourself. It's one of the easier service items. A rebuilding kit costs O($100). The entire project can be done in 4-8 hours depending on how much you have to clean the old case up & how quickly you work.
The only thing that can make a rebuilt infeasable is for the pump case to be cracked, or to get cracked during the rebuild.
A rebuilt pump should be just as good as a new pump as every part that can wear will be replaced.
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Steve Magnusson (91tr)
Member
Username: 91tr
Post Number: 897
Registered: 1-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, August 08, 2002 - 9:18 am: | |
Leonardo -- If the noise only occurs cold and goes away after a few minutes try some spray-type belt dressing on the V-belts (it's a simple/cheap/easy experiment).
I'd put the WP expected life at ~60K miles if you accumulate the mileage in less than 10~15 years with decent coolant/belt servicing (excepting things like the early small-bearing 308 WPs). More than 15~20 years is rough on a WP regardless of mileage so I'd put Lawerence's experience in the "typical" pile. Whether it's a new or rebuilt pump I think the chances of getting a "bad" one are the same. |
Lawrence Coppari (Lawrence)
Junior Member
Username: Lawrence
Post Number: 142
Registered: 4-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, August 08, 2002 - 7:41 am: | |
Don't know what typical life is but here is my experience. Car is '87 328. The mileage is 21K. When doing the service recently, I noticed coolant weeping from the drain holes at the bottom of the pump. So I replaced it with one I had purchased (rebuilt) in 1996. The rebuilt pump has about 100 miles on it now. The whole engine is quieter but that could be due to all new belts and rebuilt water pump.
I have owned the car since 1988. |
Leonardo Soccolich (Lens)
Junior Member
Username: Lens
Post Number: 201
Registered: 3-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, August 08, 2002 - 7:29 am: | |
What is the typical life expectancy for a water pump? Mine was replaced seven years and 9k miles ago. Last night, after a nice cruise, I noticed a metallic clacking noise coming from the inside of the engine, favoring the left side. It was not there when I left, and I do let the car warm up a bit first before driving off. It was also the first time in about two weeks that I had gone for a drive. I remember another thread talking about similar symptoms. What are the pros and cons of a new pump (assuming that is the problem) vs. a rebuilt one? My receipts show the previous owner paid about $1000 to replace the water pump. |