MADMIKE0888 Posted March 30, 2012 Report Posted March 30, 2012 Hey guys i'm doing a water pump change this weekend and was wondering if anybody has any tips or anything to help it go smooth. Even tell me how long it should take. Thanks Quote
MARTYW Posted March 30, 2012 Report Posted March 30, 2012 (edited) It is no problem. If you dont have e fans, you will need a large wrench or large adjustable wrench to break the fan loose. They make a specialty tool for this, but a wrench will work fine if you have one large enough. Also, do this BEFORE you take the belt off. The belt holds tension on fan the pulley, so it holds it in place while you loosen the fan. Dont forget also your thermostat is located in the pump housing, so if you need to replace it or need a new gasket, that is a consideration. Inspect all of your hoses and your serpentine belt. Besides that, it is an easy install. Maybe a couple hours max. Hope this helps. Good luck! Edited March 30, 2012 by MARTYW (see edit history) Quote
LilEz02 Posted March 30, 2012 Report Posted March 30, 2012 good info there. never thought about leaving the belt on to break fan loose. nice! Quote
MARTYW Posted March 30, 2012 Report Posted March 30, 2012 good info there. never thought about leaving the belt on to break fan loose. nice! Thanks. I learned this one the hard way. Took the belt off, then had to reinstall it to break the fan loose! LOL! I HATE doing things twice!!! Quote
MADMIKE0888 Posted March 30, 2012 Author Report Posted March 30, 2012 Yea! Thank you I would of taken the belt off first also. Thanks for your help Quote
MARTYW Posted March 30, 2012 Report Posted March 30, 2012 Glad I could help. I put one on mine about a month ago. Quote
MADMIKE0888 Posted March 30, 2012 Author Report Posted March 30, 2012 Glad I could help. I put one on mine about a month ago. Did you occasionally get a puddle of dexcool under yours? Mine leaves a puddle about every other day. Quote
MARTYW Posted March 30, 2012 Report Posted March 30, 2012 Did you occasionally get a puddle of dexcool under yours? Mine leaves a puddle about every other day. No, mine didnt leak, the bearing went down in the pump and was making a horrible noise. Quote
T-Bag Posted March 30, 2012 Report Posted March 30, 2012 (edited) Gonna have to purge system, these are the copied/pasted words from Mr. P's "How-To" 1. Close the radiator drain valve (under the front bumper, driver's side); 2. Refill the engine with coolant - the SS cooling system refil capacity is 12 to 15-quarts (3 to 3.75-gals), and as a general rule you want at least a 50/50 mix of anti-freeze and water in the engine, if you live in colder climates you will want less water and more anti-freeze, the correct amounts will be charted on the back of the anti-freeze bottle; the chemistry doesn't have to be exact, give-or-take a half-pint is close-enough. Do not fill beyond the "FILL COLD" mark on the fill/overflow tank. (In my SS, I ended-up adding 5 quarts of anti-freeze plus 5 quarts of water.) *Optional Step* - add a product to your anti-freeze called 'Water Wetter', highly recommended in ALL cooling systems, not too expensive and drastically improves the efficiency of the coolant. You will find this at speed shops or mail order houses (Summit Racing, Jeg's and the like). THE FOLLOWING COOLING SYSTEM PURGE PROCESS IS CRITICAL, if you do not purge all the air from inside the engine you will have 'hot spots' or uncooled areas caused by these trapped air pockets in your engine heads, and aluminum heads will not tolerate this localized overheating, they will warp. 3. Start the engine and let it idle, immediately inspect for leaks (if you think you spot a leak, turn off the engine before it gets too hot to work on!) After one minute of idling, put the cap back on the fill/overflow tank; 4. Get the thermostat to open by warming it to operating temperature; you will know that the thermostat has opened because the lower radiator hose (and radiator) will suddenly go from room temperature to almost scalding hot, and you can check for this by touch as the engine warms up. You can help the process along by gently increasing the RPM from idle to 3000-RPM over 30-second intervals. AFTER the new thermostat has opened turn off the engine (the lower hose will be hot to the touch, check it with your hand to be sure but don't burn yourself). NOTE: During first warm-up you may notice that the temperature guage on your dash rockets well above the 220-degree mark - this is not a cause for immediate alarm, it happens because there is an air pocket blocking the hot coolant from reaching/heating the coil on the new thermostat and opening it. If this happens go ahead and let the engine continue to idle for an additional 3-4 minutes (no more) giving the thermostat its chance to open provided that the dash guage needle does not 'go into the red'. If the thermostat still fails to open after a few minutes OR the engine does begin to overheat (guage begins creeping into the red), turn off the engine and let it sit - after a few minutes of 'heat soak' the thermostat will eventually open on its own (even with the engine off) and then you can continue to the next step in the refill instructions. 5. SLOWLY remove the fill/overflow tank cap, BE CAREFUL IT MAY BE UNDER PRESSURE, if so it will try to spray coolant onto you; let the pressure bleed off before completely removing the cap; 6. Restart the engine and let idle again for at least one minute with the fill cap OFF; this burps the trapped air out of the cooling system. 7. Refill the fill/overflow tank to 1/2-inch above the "FILL COLD" mark and screw the cap back onto the fill/overflow tank. 8. Drive the vehicle a few minutes (to the store and back? ) and check the coolant level in the fill/overflow tank when you return. Edited March 30, 2012 by Bad Ass Silvy (see edit history) Quote
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