any hints or tips before changing water pump?
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 442
Likes: 6
From: jacksonville Florida
any hints or tips before changing water pump?
the water pump on my '82 is leaking so I am going to replace it this weekend, any tips or anything I should be aware of before/while doing it? I also got a new lower radiatior hose to replace just cause the old one wasnt looking so hot.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 7,720
Likes: 12
From: Chattanooga TN
No, it is a pretty straightforward job. I would replace all the belts and hoses "while you are in there", but that's just me. Some will flame, but depending on mileage I might put a timing chain set on there. Those cars have a nylon timing gear that can fail. If you put a timing chain on right you have to remove the oil pan. If you remove the pan you may as well put an oil pump on. It can turn into a big job fast.
Melting Slicks
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 3,079
Likes: 315
2024 C3 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
No, it is a pretty straightforward job. I would replace all the belts and hoses "while you are in there", but that's just me. Some will flame, but depending on mileage I might put a timing chain set on there. Those cars have a nylon timing gear that can fail. If you put a timing chain on right you have to remove the oil pan. If you remove the pan you may as well put an oil pump on. It can turn into a big job fast.
When I had to replace the water pump on a 56K mile car, I was told to pull the timing chain cover and have a look. The nylon coating on the teeth was almost all gone and the chain was loose and flopping around. I was told it was probably within a few hundred miles of destroying the engine. Ended up changing the dented oil pan and the cracked motor mount...but not the oil pump. Did that the next time when the engine finally had to be rebuilt.
Advanced
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
tried to replace mine. when it was time to put the pulleys back on they ended up being right against the pump( the area by the top plug). anyone had this problem? will try to grind the pump down so the they clear it.
Racer
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 489
Likes: 29
From: Denville NJ
Measure depth of the take-off carefully and compare to the new one. I changed my original on my 76 and the new one was off just enough for the pulley to hit the pump. It looked perfect and did not realize until I had the pulley and fan back on.
Jegs had some good spacers that solved it at a good price.
Jegs had some good spacers that solved it at a good price.
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Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2006
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From: Gladstone MO
C3 of Year Finalist (appearance mods) 2019
Pull the old pump, take it with you to your parts store, set them both on the counter side by side and compare- overall length, height of the hub, distance between the hub and nose of the pump- in general MATCH them. Before you rip it off, call your parts store and get them to order a correct year CORVETTE pump- there are 3 different SBC pumps- long, short, and Corvette. They all bolt on, but belt alignment and mounting everything else gets wicked in a hurry.
Timing chain is not a bad idea unless you know it's been changed before. The most difficult part of that is getting the front cover off and then back on. Easy way to install the crank timing gear- put it in the oven at 350* for about an hour. Use some good gloves, get a piece of pipe that slides over the crank, stick the hot gear on, stick the pipe over it and swat it a couple of times. 350* is hot enough to make the gear expand, but not enough to change the temper of the gear..
Timing chain is not a bad idea unless you know it's been changed before. The most difficult part of that is getting the front cover off and then back on. Easy way to install the crank timing gear- put it in the oven at 350* for about an hour. Use some good gloves, get a piece of pipe that slides over the crank, stick the hot gear on, stick the pipe over it and swat it a couple of times. 350* is hot enough to make the gear expand, but not enough to change the temper of the gear..
Advanced
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Pull the old pump, take it with you to your parts store, set them both on the counter side by side and compare- overall length, height of the hub, distance between the hub and nose of the pump- in general MATCH them. Before you rip it off, call your parts store and get them to order a correct year CORVETTE pump- there are 3 different SBC pumps- long, short, and Corvette. They all bolt on, but belt alignment and mounting everything else gets wicked in a hurry.
Timing chain is not a bad idea unless you know it's been changed before. The most difficult part of that is getting the front cover off and then back on. Easy way to install the crank timing gear- put it in the oven at 350* for about an hour. Use some good gloves, get a piece of pipe that slides over the crank, stick the hot gear on, stick the pipe over it and swat it a couple of times. 350* is hot enough to make the gear expand, but not enough to change the temper of the gear..
Timing chain is not a bad idea unless you know it's been changed before. The most difficult part of that is getting the front cover off and then back on. Easy way to install the crank timing gear- put it in the oven at 350* for about an hour. Use some good gloves, get a piece of pipe that slides over the crank, stick the hot gear on, stick the pipe over it and swat it a couple of times. 350* is hot enough to make the gear expand, but not enough to change the temper of the gear..
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 2,740
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From: Aurora Ontario
The bigger question is....how does everything line up? The pulley on the pump has to line up exactly with the pulley on the crank. Will a different pulley solve this? If not I would get the right pump and do it again.
Jim
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2006
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From: Gladstone MO
C3 of Year Finalist (appearance mods) 2019
Grinding the pulley or using spacers to get it to clear the pump will work, but it also will cause belt alignment problems. Nothing is much more fun that trying to reinstall a belt that got tossed because the run was crooked in the middle of the night on your way home. And pulley misalignment is a sure fire way to toss a belt.
Team Owner
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 37,637
Likes: 3,118
From: Crossville TN
I would not suggest using silicone on the pump gaskets. Silicone and anti-freeze don't get along that well. Use Permatex gasket sealer...just a light wipe on both sides. Also put some of that sealer on the bottom 3-4 threads of each mounting bolt, in case there is some casting porosity or drill break-thru in those bolt holes.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 7,186
Likes: 45
From: detroit area
dont forget that if its an original water pump then the middle nipple will be different..... corvette water pump or just a stock 350 water pump are different... then if it's a long or short pump
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 442
Likes: 6
From: jacksonville Florida
alright job is done, ended up taking 8 hours though 1) cause I had to do it in my apartment parking lot here in college and 2) damn gaskets didnt take. The gaskets that came with it werent worth much and I tried to rush and finish the job last night, bad Idea I couldnt see that the gasket wasnt lined up properly and when I put everything back together this morning it leaked like a sieve. Had to go buy new gaskets and redo the whole job, this time everything came out well. One tip though I found out is take off the AIR pump first after loosening the belts, made it a lot easier to get to the other bolts as well as remove the fan to then remove the pump easier. Although the timing gear would have been a good idea, I just didnt have what I needed at my disposal up here at college to feel safe getting into the timing gear.
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 442
Likes: 6
From: jacksonville Florida
Yeah the new pump didnt come with the middle nipple so I had to unscrew the old one from the original pump