I plan on replacing belts and painting front engine parts at the same time. I noticed my Fan has some movement showing so decided to replace my water pump while in the area. Can anyone suggest a good quality water pump? I plan to keep the car original as possible and know the direct replacement is the ACDelco Water Pump 252-585 - short pump. Oreilly's/Auto Zone showing new ones for around $76.00 - assuming that will do the job. Thanks for your advice.

 

Your Corvette does not have a "short" pump. It has a Corvette pump which is a little longer than the typical short pump. I would go to summit racing and buy the Stewart stage 1 Corvette pump since you live in a place called Palm Desert.

 

You are correct - I meant to say Corvette Pump not short pump. Thanks for advice on Summit Stewart Pump - my mechanic friend just suggested that too.

 

282-585 is the correct water pump. I have one in my 80. I bought (and painted) another one for my 79, which promptly failed it's original water pump. By the time I got the radiator, fan shroud, and engine accessories off, I was halfway to an LS-Swap, so I pulled the engine and never installed the pump.

$53- at RockAuto for the AC Delco part
https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...ater+pump,2208

 

Bikespace, Joe above here is always pushing for a LS Swap. Whenever he can.
Although I'm real sure it's much easier to just install a new waterpump.
I believe he's STILL working on that LS swap.
Meanwhile, we are out there driving.

 

I'm out there driving, too. My OTHER C3, with the ACDelco 282-585 water pump.

An LS water pump costs more than three times as much, so there's that. It was more a commentary on the fan shroud. You can probably replace the water pump without pulling the shroud, but it's a lot easier without the shroud, radiator, or hood in the way.

 

Oh, OK. I'm on my 4th waterpump now. Car is 47 years old. Never had to remove the hood or radiator to replace a waterpump. The factory fan shroud could be in the way a bit. But really isn't totally necessary to remove 4 bolts and one hose. But hey, there's always more than one way to skin a cat.

 

Never had to pull the shroud to do the water pump on my 78. If you are going with the Stewart, be sure to check if it needs a matched thermostat. I had a Stewart on mine and it required a matched thermostat with some bypass holes because the pump itself did not have a bypass. Can't remember if that was a stage I or II. I ended up pulling the Stewart and going with a stock style aluminum. If your shroud/hood seals and your lower air dam are in place, the stock should cool just fine IMO.

 

Decided to go with an AC Delco Gold Series 282-585, also ordered a new AC Delco Gold Series Fan Clutch since mine never stopped correctly when engine was turned off. When I pulled out my water pump, wow it was the original one, which I will be holding on too. The removal procedure was simple though I am mechanically inclined. The most time-consuming part was removing the Smog Pump & pushing back the AC and Alternator. I plan on keeping my L-82 4 speed 100% original with only 55,000 miles. Actually, a blessing because the last part of the engine I have not cleaned up was the front of the engine. Today painted all the brackets, painted time chain cover Chevy Blue, replacing the remaining belts/hoses and planning on a complete radiator flush. No way do you need to remove shroud & radiator to replace the water pump - plenty of room.

Just FYI - recently replaced Intake Manifold, Valve Cover Gaskets and installed a new GM 180-degree thermostat. At the same time painted Aluminum Intake Manifold and L82 Valve covers to Specs. Cannot wait to finish cleaning up front of engine as well. New Power Steering Pump and power steering control valve completed in November as well. I should be good to go once I complete the water pump replacement - corvette runs awesome. As always, I appreciate all the feedback and advise, this forum is the best for repairs and upgrade suggestions.

 

Don’t toss the old fan clutch they’re hard to come by for the l82 4 sp.
you may not like the hd version robbing power.
mine was fixable by cleaning

check this out
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-79-l82-3.html

 

Thank you for your suggestion, I kept the original Fan Clutch, original one for sure that came with vehicle. As I was ordering replacement I read a lot of posts on the quality of these aftermarket clutches. I went with the AC Delco Gold Series, but after reading the reviews, something tells me I will not be satisfied with it. I was told by many vendors that at an aftermarket HD Fan Clutch will not function well with your car being all stock. I know my original fan clutch was failing, when I removed it, all the oil seeped out. Can this original Fan Clutches be rebuilt - I liked to reinstall it back in the vette since I am keeping everything stock.

Also is there an aftermarket Fan clutch's you can recommend for my stock L82 that will be better option than the AC Delco Gold. I have been reading the Hayden 2711 or 2741 but informed those are only recommended for Big Blocks.? I would prefer to have my sent out to be rebuilt if anyone can recommend a vendor that offers that service.

 

I wanted to share with forum - the success I had installing my new Water Pump. My first decision was to install a suggested, AC Delco water pump, but after receiving it I just did not feel it was my best choice. I decided to go with the, DAYCO Heavy Duty # DP8191. Turned out to be an exact fit on my L82 Stock Engine when reinstalled. Wow, what difference, also replaced my Fan Clutch and installed a GM 180 Degree thermostat at the same time I replaced my Gasket for my Intake Manifold. My car now, even living in Palm Desert where temp is hot, does not go over 190 degrees. Below is a pic of the pump, what I really liked about the pump, the black cast iron finish. The installation actually went well, first one I ever did.

Suggestions below I followed:

Take a lot of pictures so you remember how everything is reinstalled.
Replace Fan Clutch, if yours is ageing like mine was, keep yours if original for they can be rebuilt. (Purchased a HD Fan Clutch) from Car Quest for $65.
Re-torque your 4 bolts to 30 ft/lbs. as recommended.
Drain Coolant and replace with new coolant. Flush as well if you like - I had mine done earlier in the year.
Recommend Fel Pro WP gaskets - the best. Only apply a small dap of Permatex WP Gasket on WP side - to hold gaskets in place.
Also apply Permatex Thread sealant for bolts when installing new WP. I believe only one bolt enters engine water jacket - lower passenger side.

No leaks, corvette idol improved, and engine is much quieter.

 

That RockAuto-style pump will bolt up, but it doesn’t circulate coolant through the block the same way the true Corvette Blue Flame pump did. The original pump pulled water from that lower freeze-plug port, which helped keep temps under control at idle. The generic pump only feeds from the two small ports, so the flow low in the block tends to stagnate lots of guys report idle overheating when they run that setup even with fresh radiators and thermostats.

Short answer, yes it fits, but it’s very likely why you’re having the overheating issue. Best fix is to hunt down the proper low-profile Corvette pump or a repro of it, that usually sorts the problem without having to modify anything.