I notice coolant seeping out of the water pump housing through this hole...
I notice coolant seeping out of the water pump housing through this hole http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/attachments/308-328-sponsored-yellow-compass-group/1496310d1333564129-water-pump-rebuild-dsc_4042.jpg Picture taken from 3x8 water pump rebuild thread, follow the index finger line, the hole is next to the grate. While I gather it is not supposed to do that, what is the hole for, does a plug belong in there, what is the fix? Thanks a lot in advance braq
The fix is a new water pump. That is a weep hole Your pump is going bad..... https://www.flowkoolerwaterpumps.com/info/common_waterpump_failures.html
Thanks Bill, after studying the picture, makes perfect sense now ;-) I like to rebuild things to understand better how they work, is there currently a kit for the water pump available? On the eurospares, superperformance, ricambi etc I can only find complete housings, cheers braq
I once observed a grease zirc fitting in there, but as responded above, it is meant to run out if seals go bad. I used Algar for my last seals, but paid an industrial shop to do the job.
. There are new impeller designs that are more efficient than the old one. I know of at least 3 different designs, one with different material. Check the youtube videos.
No new impellor is needed for good cooling. The latest seal is needed for reliability and sometimes requires a slight modification.
Is the Superformance uprated pump worth the considerable extra cost? Who makes the "best" OEM type of pump with the highest quality seals, straightest shaft, etc.? I think superformance is pretty good and would not make an uprated part without some added quality.
Do you mean Water pump 121255 @ 85 GBP versus 30810005 @ 349.50? Cheers, braq PS: looks like for shipping to the US, values under USD 200 are free of duty and taxes (but I may have picked that up wrong)
Yes, they show two pumps, one referred to as uprated, and the price difference is very substantial. I know from other experiences with eg. a Saab that all water pumps are not equal, the quality is all over the map, and I want a well made item for my Mondial. So I like the idea of an uprated item, just don't know what is means and if anyone else has bought this and had a long service life.
After reading through quite some post regarding pump failures I have a gut feeling that for the most failure cases it is actually the seal and that may be actually from: i) rather unregular use (car sits for much longer time and then is run only for the little fun trip around your house versus regular and prolonged use of a typical DD) ii) winter typically means sitting still for months iii) rather high RPM, the gearing of the belt from the crankshaft has to allow for enough flow in most unfavorable cooling situation sitting at standstill in a traffic jam, an then up to the redline (that is 7000ish RPM) So what if the usage pattern is just a tough challenge for seals in itself and one would be better off in replacing (the standard) pump in intervals and could not get any benefit from the uprated (because it is mechanically (bearing?) different but still faces the same seal challenge?). Cheers braq
Correct if it is old rubber. New rubber has longer life. If you have an unclean system the seal ring will just wear out sooner. So with old cars it is always good to do a flush. Unless one drives weekly on tracks, the car is little exposed to 7000 RPM. I mean, I suppose one does not drive away like a racer at every traffic light and highway So it comes down on normal wear. It takes approx. 30,000 miles before a sealing gets tricky. Correct. Water pumps are always a nice debate my experience: In 3 years time I had 3 pumps that went bad... First one was the OEM version (old rubber and a worn seal ring) and decided to replace it with the 200 USD one. That one lasted a bit more then a year and the sealing broke. Then I got an uprated one.. that one lasted for 6 months. Did a rebuild of the OEM one and that one is still mounted for almost 2 years and 15K on it. I bought an original rebuild kit for 50 USD and 20 USD on SKF bearings. Or get this one.. that is the only one that does the job correctly, but it has a price like all good stuff ferrari 308 performance parts Ps. if you decide to rebuild the OEM one. Look on the pump for the number. Sometimes one has a 3.2 waterpump on an earlier model or visa versa. They all fit.
I did check out the forza part, looks like a first class item, but his pulley is 4 inches verses my stock 3" and the pullies are not interchangeable from the oem unit to this one. Aside from a different non stock belt requirement, I am not sure the change in pulley speed is a good idea, albeit forza notes it reduces cavitation. Since I have no cooling issues with the stock set up I am hesitant to vary. But it certainly does avoid the weak bearing and seal problem on the oem setup, so I may try it out but am still researching the best stock alternative.
Wrap up; ordered the complete pump from superperformance, Chloe is a charm to deal with. Thanks to all your help and some 5 minutes reading through the procedure in the 3x8 section with excellent photos, I was able to perform the whole operation in less than an hour, it would have taken me twice as long without the excellent guidance found here. Everything back together and looks good after a very enjoyable test ride in the sunset. FYI; looks like packages below 200 USD are not subject to duty and tax in the US, it was just the parts and 15 quid for the shipping. Cheers Paul
