P38 Water Pump Condition

[Hammer H]

Just thinking if i should consider replacing the water pump and looking for the best way to test it. I have a very slow, just noticeable trickle of water in the overflow at idle which increases to a jet under slight acceleration. Would this be considered normal?

Paul

[TheTree]

Where exactly is the coolant coming out? If it's from the overflow that would indicate excessive pressure in the system.

I replaced my water pump last weekend, I was suspicious of it after the engine got rather hot after a very steep climb.

I now note that the difference in temp between the watchdog and gauge is down to about 2 degrees instead of 5, so it has made a difference.

You can take the poly-v belt off and check the water pump bearing, if there is any play it's worth replacing IMO

Steve

[Hammer H]

Hi Steve,

I should have been more specific, it's the plastic pipe from the top of the radiator to the exp tank, with the cap off at idle there's a very slow dribble.

With the belt on, I can feel slight play in the bearings, think you've answered my question think I will replace the pump a be safe. How long did the job take you Steve?

[P38 4.6 Timmy]

Gday Hammer.

I replaced mine a while back when I replaced the radiator, straightforward job..probably around 2 hours just takin it easy...one can't rush these things!

I got the spare one with a bunch of other spares & stuff from a bloke who no longer owned a Landy...the poor sod:)

Ping me a pm if interested.

Cheers.

[Hammer H]

Thanks Timmy,

Two hours is reasonable. Thanks for the offer but I have a Thor

[P38 4.6 Timmy]

No probs mate...I'm not sure if the water pumps are the same, they're the same block so I suspect they may well be, I just don't know it the pulley arrangement is the same.

I'm sure someone with such knowledge will chime in :cool:

[P38 4.6 Timmy]

Did a quick search, they're all the same.

103098

[TheTree]

The water pumps are all the same, though there are some with brass impellers.

2 hours is a good estimate, mine took a bit longer because someone had used gasket cement when the old pump was put on and it took some time (with kerosene and a norton soft abrasive wheel on a drill) to clean off the old gasket.

We2 used a light spray of hylomar when we put it back on but often i just use a dab of grease to hold the gasket in place while bolting it up.

That hose you refer to is the bleed hose, it seems normal for a small stream of coolant to come out of there

Steve

[P38 4.6 Timmy]

Good info there Steve.
Yep, I use the old grease on the paper type gasket trick too, I think it helps produce a good seal & of course makes it easier to remove next time....not like when someone has used an RTV sealant or something.
Also give all the bolt threads a good clean up with a wire brush, then use an anti-seize compound. And don't over tighten them, remember, it's only aluminium, use a torque wrench if you have one, can't remember the value, but it's not much, something like 16 ft lbs....

[daf11e]

Changed mine a couple of weeks ago.....glad I did....no more temp fluctuations and runs much cooler.

[TheTree]

Changed mine a couple of weeks ago.....glad I did....no more temp fluctuations and runs much cooler.

Bloody hell that pump had done some work !:o

[daf11e]

Yeah, doesn't look corroded...looks eroded.

[Rextheute]

Gosh !!!
How many Kay's - or how long since its last confession ?

Now I might change mine for good luck or New Years !

[daf11e]

It's on 140k klm.....I've done 70k of them, I'd say it's fifteen years old.

[banarcus]

A trickle from that little black hose into the top of the expansion tank is normal, even if it squirts whilst revving the engine. Its a steam hose or a passage for air in the coolant to bleed off.

[PeterH]

If you are feeling any movement in the water pump bearings I would definitely replace it sooner than later.
P38 water pumps have a habit of failing with very little notice, better to be safe than sorry.
I did mine recently, wasn't too bad to do, the hardest part was probably cleaning the old gasket off properly.
You need a big 36mm spanner (or special tool) to get the fan bolt moving, you don't need to brace the fan, just put the spanner on the bolt and give it a good whack with a hammer, it is a normal right hand thread.
Also starting the fan bolt when replacing the fan can be a hard one, took me a few goes to get it. You have to hold the fan at just the right angle for the thread to engage.
Hope that is of some help!

[Hammer H]

Changed mine a couple of weeks ago.....glad I did....no more temp fluctuations and runs much cooler.

That looks buggered, couldn't have been very effective

[daf11e]

It wasn't, I had temperature fluctuations and it was the last bit of the cooling system I replaced. New rad.etc...now all good.

[garybrook]

This must be the season for new waterpumps. I've just replaced my original one at 160,000km, even though nothing was wrong with it. It just seems to me that was enough work before the seal or the bearing fails.

As for why I thought it was the original, the bolts were unmarked and there wasn't a single scratch on the pumps' gasket face after I took it off - and it was a b****r to get it off. Replacing the new radiator, pump and thermostat only took about 3-4 hours, even though I'm a bit slow, but the gasket alone needed me about another 2-3 hours to carefully remove it.

The old pump is an old stamped OEM steel impeller version but there was no corrosion visible and the car still had clean oat coolant, as it was when I bought it last year. It looked that the gasket was installed dry, but it was like concrete. When I replace the gasket I used a smear of Loctite 510 that I've used before.

At the same time, I replaced the thermostat as it looked very old, but was working correctly and the radiator, which was leaking through a cracked breathing spigot. On the radiator, I reinforced the spigot with a brass tube glued in with Devcon Plastic Welder. This is one of their later methacrylate glues that supports 120C temperatures. After almost 8 months I thought I had fixed that one permanently but in the last couple of weeks I noticed a tiny bleed of coolant under the glue, so I used my new spare that has been in the garage, waiting.

The new waterpump I bought is a Spanish Airtex bronze impeller version, the radiator is from GM Radiators, Glasgow and a genuine OEM thermostat, all from the same supplier, RoverLord, with great support. When I istalled the the new GM radiator I drilled, glued and sleeved the spigot with aluminium before it was broken, as the design there is weak.

Enough. Thanks all.