Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Changed my waterpump....and just in time!!

I replaced the waterpump in my car today and a good thing I did. I can see 3 small cracks in the old one about 5-10 mm long, radiating out from the shaft. I could just stick a fingernail into one. My car has 155, 000 kms on it. I recomend anyone whose mileage is same as mine or higher get theirs done. Took about 2 hours with a new thermostat and coolant flush done too. I got the metal GMB pump from BAT.

I want to change mine ASAP, but i'm wondering if I can do it myself. Do you have to drain the coolent? Anything special I should know before doing it? The How to isn't to clear.

Did you happen to check to see if the SS cone was loose?

Just wondering...

Yeah what is this cone. Does it have something to do with the thermostat. Terry said something about the cone and that being a potential problem.

Quote from Terry Haines on this subject covered earlier this year in a prior post:

"The 'cone is the s/steel insert in the back half of the pump housing..it matches the angle of the pump vanes and allows a minimal clearence between itself and the impeller, the hole in the center controls the amount of draw/volume the pump can move at a given speed...if the cone is not in place the 'assembly' is no longer a pump....

From everything I've read and heard, pump failures have been somewhat of a mix between cones coming loose and bashing the plastic impeller to pieces (double-whammy there) and the plastic impeller simply disentigrating for as yet unknown reasons (some say earlier impellers were made of substandard materials), with the cone still in place.

I'll be doing my pump here in the next week or two, so I'm definitely checking to see if the cone insert is loose or not.

For more info, do a search on "water pump failure" or any variation of such. You'll find plenty of reading material...

Oh great, now you tell me about the cone. Didn't notice anything though and I had my fingers in there looking for debris from the old gasket. No I did not drain the coolant, I just put a pan under the car where the pump is and caught the coolant when I split the pump. Take out the top 2 bolts last as they hold the pump to the block ( and 1 near the bottom). The other bolts just go into the pump itself. I had to remove the battery for access and split the housing for the thermostat to create clearance for removal. I think my car had less space because it is an ATX. The old pump looks like the impeller has stress cracks from being pressed onto the shaft. And one crack does go right to one of the 2 holes.

So what all do i need to buy to fix this problem for my 99 svt contour??? Thanks

Waterpump: P/N 125-1910 or 125-5670 (gasket should be included)

Waterpump Belt: P/N 267K3 or JK3-274 or F5RZ-8620-A (might as well do it, especially if you're over 60K miles)

Coolant Flush Kit and Dex-Cool coolant: Need enough for 10 quarts of a 50/50 coolant/water mix (the flush is another "might as well", especially if you haven't done this one in a while, or ever)

Waterpump Install: Contour.org HOW TO'S and/or a Haynes Repair Manual (P/N 36006)