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Decided it was time to change my water pump today and I come and see this wonderful surprise... (See photo).
The teeth on the water pump drive (cam side) are stripped pretty badly. It still grabs on to the coupler fine, but there's the amount of play in it is concerning.
I'm at a 3-way street now:
1, do the right thing and remove the Optispark, timing cover, and replace.
2, don't worry about that and install an electric water pump
3, redneck it, get a new coupler, and JB Weld the s*** out of it.
Any advice is well appreciated to help steer me in the right direction.
Thanks! - Taylor
I'd say, if you have the skills and tools, then do the right thing and fix it correctly.
Having said that, as you remove the Opti and everything else to get to the drive, you will likely run into other "surprises".
😐
Guess I'll be taking a few days off from work the whole I wait for more parts to come in. Money's gonna be tight but this is my only driver. The longer it stays on the road the better
Dang, I feel blessed I have two vehicles. I've had the Vette on Jack stands since last Saturday. I'm also waiting for parts... And ordering more parts as I "work".
Dang, I feel blessed I have two vehicles. I've had the Vette on Jack stands since last Saturday. I'm also waiting for parts... And ordering more parts as I "work".
Ric
I missed my window to get something else. I've looked for months on end for a 4x4 to use in the winter months but people $6-7k gets you a pile of rust nowadays
I would also replace the coupler. Must have been some alignment problem to allow the coupler to vibrate bad enough to strip these splines. Maybe the water pump bearing was going out. Dan
!?
Stripped Water Pump Drive
