Originally posted by mrstooge:
i just purchased a 1995 contour se v6 with 51000 miles on it.bought a warranty covering major engine,trans for 3 yrs.water pump will be 50% covered.im seeing alot of horror stories about the pump failures.when do they start exploding?60000,70000 etc.really cant afford to get it done now.is this something i can put off awhile and hope it happens during warranty,or should i change it asap?thanks



I looked in my haynes manual and saw no recommended schedule to replace it, although it's possible it was there and I didn't see it.

In some cases, such as a 4 cyl, it's not a bad idea to change it when you change your timing belt, but in your case I'm not sure how long they usually last.
If you don't have the $$ right now, then I would just not worry about it. Be aware of the temp gauge so if it ever fails you hopefully will notice before your car overheats enough to do any damage.
And I would also suggest that if you want to save money you could probably do it yourself without too much trouble.
-Peter