1984 cooling pump not working
Thread Starter
3rd Gear
Joined: May 2025
Posts: 3
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1984 cooling pump not working
I have a 1984 Corvette I assume that the water pump is not working because it started overheating really badly and I assumed that the thermostat was jammed shut
When I took the thermostat housing off I realized the owner before me had removed it which explains why it would never get up to temperature
At this point I assumed the water pump wasn't working so I turned the engine over while the thermostat housing was off and the water did not even move.
does this mean the water pumps not working?
Also when it's running and you take the radiator cap off I can't see water flowing through the radiator it's just still.
Can someone confirm if it's the water pump before I start replacing expensive parts
When I took the thermostat housing off I realized the owner before me had removed it which explains why it would never get up to temperature
At this point I assumed the water pump wasn't working so I turned the engine over while the thermostat housing was off and the water did not even move.
does this mean the water pumps not working?
Also when it's running and you take the radiator cap off I can't see water flowing through the radiator it's just still.
Can someone confirm if it's the water pump before I start replacing expensive parts
Drifting
Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 1,696
Likes: 728
From: Stay dangerous my friends
Water pump is a direct drive impeller that's bolted to a pulley... it would have to shear (that would make a racket) or have the blades screwed up from cavitation or I guess there are some water pumps that have plasic impellers, but probably not yours.
What I think is going on is that there's a cooling system issue, so the PO removed the thermostat in a poor effort to remedy.
What I think you should do, is get a cheap $40 coolant leak test kit from Amazon, and use it to pressure the system to see if it holds pressure, and test the cap to see if it blows off with less than 14psi. This will likely get you to the next step.
What I think is going on is that there's a cooling system issue, so the PO removed the thermostat in a poor effort to remedy.
What I think you should do, is get a cheap $40 coolant leak test kit from Amazon, and use it to pressure the system to see if it holds pressure, and test the cap to see if it blows off with less than 14psi. This will likely get you to the next step.
Thread Starter
3rd Gear
Joined: May 2025
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
Thanks all I pulled the water pump off last night and found the impeller completely sheared off half the fins were missing here have they gone?
Any recommendations of new pump of other things I should replace while it apart
Any recommendations of new pump of other things I should replace while it apart
