T.J. Higgins writes:
> Wayne Angevine writes:
> > Well, after several weeks of relatively trouble-free driving, my Datsun
> > 2000 roadster has developed a(nother) coolant leak. This time it seems
> > to be coming from the joint between the water pump and the block. So,
> > time for some sage advice from all you net.experts out there.
> I also am interested in the answer to this question. I just took the
> water pump off the Alpine last night...
> Demanding immediate
> attention is the water pump. Turns out that the impeller end of the
> shaft has about 1/8-to-1/4 inch play.
It sounds like you both need to replace the water pump. I just did
this last weekend with my non-british car (a '73 Ford Maverick.) The
work is really not at all difficult; it only requires disconnecting
a whole bunch of things (in my case, the fan, fan shroud, radiator,
alternator, power steering, and, of course, the water pump), putting
on the new water pump, and then reconnecting everything. The number
of things you'll need to disconnect depends on the car; I'm not
adequately familiar with 2000s or Alpines to take a guess at that,
except I know you won't need to disconnect the power steering! :-)
On my car, the water pump can be replaced without removing the
radiator, but since the cooling system gets drained anyway, the
added accessability gained by removing the radiator makes the job a
lot easier.
The whole operation took about three hours for me on my Ford, which
included time for me to eat lunch and get the belts and hoses that
were worth replacing while I had everything apart. You will want to
consider replacing the radiator hoses, and any other hoses you have
connected to the water pump, since you'll have them all disconnected
at one end. It's probably also a good idea to power flush the
cooling system before taking the old water pump out, since you'll
need to drain the entire system anyway. However, if the system was
recently flushed, it's easier to get the water/coolant mix right if
you don't flush the system again. (Flushing the system will leave a
generally unknown amount of 100% water in the engine block,
requiring some guesswork to get the water/coolant mix where you want
it.)
Generally, a gasket will be included in the purchase of a new water
pump. You will need to scrape the old gasket off, and make sure the
surface of the block where it mates to the gasket is relatively
clean. I didn't use any gasket sealer, and haven't had any
problems with leaking. (Then again, I didn't have any leaks in the
first place, just a NOISY water pump!)
Take all these suggestions with a grain of salt, as they come from a
person who's never done any significant work on an LBC. (Although
lately my Maverick is starting to build the character of an LBC,
what with flaky electrics, intermittent leaks, and the rust
monster...)
--Ken
Kenneth B. Streeter | ARPA: streeter@im.lcs.mit.edu
MIT LCS, Room NE43-350 | UUCP: ...!uunet!im.lcs.mit.edu!streeter
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