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Water Pump - 3L Escape vs 2.5L

CSVT#49

CSVT#49

Addicted CEG'er
Joined
May 28, 2004
Messages
6,768
Location
Andover, MN
Alright guys ran into a bit of a snag with my 3L build.

I bought a new Ford Motorcraft pump assmebly PW449. It comes complete with the pump and hoses. I then purchased a new Ford water pump tensioner and Motorcraft belt.

Issues...

3L Escape has a different water pump housing, it has a bigger outlet OD then the 2.5L. The block also has a larger OD water neck port. These do not jive with my new Motorcraft pump. I also picked up for piece of mind a new metal impeller water pump to swap out the OEM pump with from the PW449 assembly.


Solutions...

Option #1 - Use the 05 Escape water pump housing and drill out the casting for the water pump tensioner and tap the mounting hole with a M6x1.00 tap. This will allow me to use the tensioner setup, which I prefer, and I can use the 05 Escape water hoses to connect up to the block. Not sure if the metal 2.5L tees will work with the water pump, but will need to investigate that further.

Option #2 - Remove the existing water neck on the block and buy a new (if I can get it) water neck for an 2.5L Contour/Cougar block and install it on my 3L. Then use the new PW449 pump assembly and the tensioner and go on with life.

Questions...

I can't be the first one to run into this issue. I've search the forums for 'water pump' and didn't really come up with anything specific to water pumps after about 20min of searching. So for those of you that have completed swaps... what did you do?

Pics...

2.5L SVT pump hose on top, 05 Escape hose on bottom
waterpump2x.jpg


2.5L SVT pump on the left, 05 Escape pump on the right (notice difference in casting for outlet)
waterpump1.jpg
 
I had a pretty much the same problem on my 3L. I was replacing my upper and lower intake gaskets and figured I would replace the water hose that attaches to the block between the heads. So I called ford and got a water hose for a 2.5 but when I tried to install it the hose wouldn't fit. It was too small. So I removed the old one and took it up there so they could cross reference the number on it and sure enough it came up as a fusion/escape part number. So I bought it and it worked fine. Although I believe my car had the 3L water pump housing on it because I didn't have a tensioner on it. However I think the opening size of the water hose on the water pump housing is the same on the 3L and 2.5
 
Just out of curiosity how come you prefer the tensioner setup? I guess I would just go with the stock 05 Escape setup and leave out the tensioner. My memory is terrible, but I'm almost positive that the 2.5L T works with the Escape water pump. If I remember correctly if you go with the 3L pump all the other hoses for the 2.5 fit just fine.

Anyways I looked and yes the metal T works. The only issue I remember having with the hoses was connecting the smaller hose to the pump, it was very tight but it did fit.
 
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We always use the 3L pump. The smaller water pump outlet is also larger so it's a pain to get the smaller hose onto it. I've never heard of a 3L water pump failing so I've never thought twice about using the 3L pumps. I'd suggest getting a 3L pump and returning what you bought. Use the one that came with the motor if it came with one.

As far as the tensioner it's not needed but if you want to use it you can. They seize up over time so I'm not a fan of them. The pump is only held to the head with 3 long bolts so you can remove them to swap belts without too much trouble.
 
Blackcoog said:
We always use the 3L pump. The smaller water pump outlet is also larger so it's a pain to get the smaller hose onto it. I've never heard of a 3L water pump failing so I've never thought twice about using the 3L pumps. I'd suggest getting a 3L pump and returning what you bought. Use the one that came with the motor if it came with one.

As far as the tensioner it's not needed but if you want to use it you can. They seize up over time so I'm not a fan of them. The pump is only held to the head with 3 long bolts so you can remove them to swap belts without too much trouble.
Click to expand...

Well this just answered my question. My old 3L car had one of your motors in it. It would also explain why it did not have a tensioner on it.
 
Well looks like I'm cleaning up my 3L pump housing then and using my metal impeller pump in that one.
 
Well I drilled and tapped the flange to accept the tensioner and test fit the tensioner. It all looked and worked good. Then I sand blasted the housing and painted it with high temp cast aluminum paint. It turned out really good with the paint and then I removed the water pump to install the new metal impeller... doah. Looks like the 05 Escape uses a different water pump even though the outside looks the same. The new water pump I have doesn't fit. Now I have a metal impeller water pump for an SVT and no use for it. Did some digging looks like I can pick up a Motorcraft water pump assembly PW-467 and it will drop right in. Comes with new hoses too, but I really don't need them.
 
The failure-prone plastic water pump impellers looked exactly like the metal one in your photos, right down to the two holes on either side of the shaft - and that's where they cracked. Since they were just pressed on the the shaft, once cracked they just allowed the shaft to spin.
The plastic impeller that you've got there should be fine.
 
sleepr said:
The failure-prone plastic water pump impellers looked exactly like the metal one in your photos, right down to the two holes on either side of the shaft - and that's where they cracked. Since they were just pressed on the the shaft, once cracked they just allowed the shaft to spin.
The plastic impeller that you've got there should be fine.
Click to expand...

Actually they cracked because the plastic that was spec'd originally couldn't withstand the thermal cycling, became brittle, and then cracked. It had little to nothing to do with the holes you mentioned. The newer style plastic impellers (white in color) are properly spec'd and will not crack. The design shown in the picture above is completely different in the way it pulls and pushes the coolant through the system. It is from the Escape engines and doesn't fit with the Contique style water pumps. I just used a brand new Motorcraft Escape water pump with new hoses to replace the one shown.
 
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