Water Pump Ahhhh!!!

[cmkelly]

So I get off early from work to take the family out on the lake when I look down and the temperture gauge is pegged on HOT! I pull over immediately (in Durham; where's my Durham buddy to give me a lift?) and call for a tow.

Steam is coming out of the fan assembly and I can see water below it. Sound like a water pump to anyone? I grabbed the assembly but it didn't move at all. It's not something I want to do myself so I'm taking ot to a place I trust. What should I expect to pay?

I'll post what I pay for parts and labor as soon as it's done for a reference.

[ishkabibble]

Could be the pump, but I've never had a pump (on other cars) break the seal, it normally just fails and starts banging loudly. You could have a crack in the radiator or broken coolant hose...

It's actually pretty easy to replace a water pump on 240s:

zerothread?id=220947

I would guess a shop is going to charge you $50ish for the pump and $150-$200 in labor for the install and a coolant flush-refill. While they're in the neighborhood, you might as well have them put in a new thermostat.

[cmkelly]

Thanks ish. Hey do you read the Washington Post? My brother has a daily column - John Kelly. He's got a Datsun 2000. Cool ragtop but it's no 240.

[ishkabibble]

I read the Post on occasion. That's cool! I'll keep an eye out for his column.

Datsun 2000 is no 240; it's a better looking car in my opinion. If I were shorter, I'd probably trade my vert for one.

[cmkelly]

Water Pump - $194 installed by my local mechanic here in central NC. Beats the hell out of me having to do it.

[DeXteR]

that's funny ish, maybe the it's the weather up here in "canamichigan" but everytime i've ever had a water pump fail, it was a seal and i had coolant spew all over the place: dsm, cavalier, 240, whatever... that's always how they go for me.

changing the water pump is really easy... but hey, $200 isn't that bad as long as it's a mechanic you really trust.

[cmkelly]

That's what I thought too. My wife went to high school with this guy - I know where he lives ;>) Finding a good mechanic you can trust is harder to find than a good doctor.

I thought about doing it myself but by the time I bought the part and installed it and paid the Urgent Care bill for sewing my knuckles back together I figured I was ahead

[ishkabibble]

I lived in CanaMinnesota for a long time and had a few pumps go out (I owned a lot of ****ty winter beaters). Probably just luck that the pumps had shaft failures but didn't completely blow out. I was always able to limp them home while the pulley banged around like crazy.

Glad you found it for cheap, cmkelly.

[Florida240sx]

Water pump $35-40, Coolant $10, gasket maker $3, I don't like the one supplied. Labor 1hr... Just did one for a lady the other day charged her $125 for labor, which included taking off the valve cover, removing the timing chain guide, and swapped her fuel filter for her....Went and picked up the car and then delivered back to her only 2 miles away.When it comes to some things factor in the time you waste.I had a guy do my clutch swap for $150If I did it I would of lost my overtime pay for that day which was $90 So for $60 my clutch was swapped without me doing anything, and no cutting my hand havign dirty hands

[94_240sx]

According to dealership, there's a small hole on the water pump and starting to leak when it goes bad. I caught it when mine did that and replaced thermostat and water pump myself. I had no knowledge or prior experience, but decided to do it anyway. To be honest with you, it was bit scary, but everything went just fine. FSM helped me a lot, and I had to write down what goes where, and tag the bolts and nuts. I highly recommend doing it yourself. Man... I was so happy when car started right away after all the work was done.

[jamesblonde82]

i didn't catch mine in time on my 92' and the water pump froze, overheated the radiator and cracked it. i did all the work myself. i had it done in less than a day. would have been quicker if i didn't have to run to the parts store a couple times. thank God these are rear wheel drive vehicles, otherwise it would be impossible because a lot of their water pumps are run off the timing belt(s). the hardest part for me to do it was reaching the bolt that is underneath the water pump, and i did that with a knuckle attachment on my ratchet drive. after i did all the work i started it up and man she ran so cool after it. i put new belts on and everything. but, it leaked some i was so pissed...but turned out i didn't have the lower radiator hose tightened enough, so it leaked some. tightened it, and it was a flawless job, i love it when that happens. if you do it yourself, i highly recommend (depending on how long ago you did this) replacing the thermostat (especially if you overheated the engine a bit), belts, and hoses. you can't go wrong with preventative maint' hope you git er done.

[DirftKing102]

So I get off early from work to take the family out on the lake when I look down and the temperture gauge is pegged on HOT!

I know what that is dude. It could be the water pump for your leaking liquid. But i had the same thing happen to my 240sx just awhile ago with the tempature going HOT! It was the radiator was broken and needed to be repaired. Take it into a shop and ask them to check the radiator and water pump. Those are the two things you would need to get fixed. Once the radiator is fixed it should go back down to the middle where it is suppose to be. Hopefully i have been some help to ya.

[cmkelly]

Turns out is was the water pump and not the radiator (at least not yet). All is running in mid range after water pump replacement. The steam was coming from the seal around the pump and no where near the radiator. Thanks for the input though.

[biggie]

Turns out is was the water pump and not the radiator (at least not yet). All is running in mid range after water pump replacement. The steam was coming from the seal around the pump and no where near the radiator. Thanks for the input though.

Had that problem on my '92 coupe, but I didn't catch it in time = blown HG. At least yours was no major issue.

[Florida240sx]

Lady's pump I replaced was the issue. Was wet around it but couldn't tell if that is where it was coming from. So drove with it for 3 weeks goign bad. Thought it was a hose that wa sleaking, her reserviour kept losing fluid... The dya I picked it up to replace hose there was finially a puddle under the car after 2 weeks of checking the car.