Grand Voyager water pump :(

'96 Grand Voyager, 3.8l engine... water pump appears to have sprung a leak (it's really hard to see with all the other crap in the way, but it doesn't appear to be a hose). Gonna hafta pull this thing off tomorrow morning... wondering if anyone here has done it and can offer any tips/advice.

Thinking it's probably as good a time as any to replace the serpentine belt while I'm in there, so any tips on that would be appreciated too.

Anyone know where I can find a shop manual online? PDF or...??

TIA...

Reply to
Matt Ion
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Here you go ! Just found it today

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I have coolant leaking everywhere this morning and thank fully under warranty as recent second hand purchase. I thought it was cool. Can you tell me if you have an owners manual and how thick it is, I am trying to access one.

Reply to
klassyklaws

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Don't have time to order one online, it's gotta be fixed tomorrow.

I'm looking for one as well.

I found some very basic procedure info at

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was a little scared at first, as the first procedure shown there involves removing the timing belt and at least two engine mounts, but then I realized that was for the 2.4 and 3.0 liter engines; for the 3.3 and 3.8 (further down the page) it's MUCH MUCH simpler.

Reply to
Matt Ion

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The 3.3 and 3.8 are not as bad. I that once you remove the splash shield, it is accessible. The power steering pump is another story.

-KM

Reply to
kmatheson

I changed a water pump on a 3.3 a few years ago, on a 1990 grand voyager. If it's still in the same place on the new vans, don't worry. It's about as easy a job as you could hope for.

Reply to
Robbie and Laura Reynolds

Shouldn't be too bad a job. I've done a 1990 3.3L and a 1999 3.8L. They were basically the same procedure and used what appeared to be a similar water pump too.

Block the rear wheels and loosen the wheel lugs on the front passenger side. Jack up the van and remove the wheel. Then remove the inner fender splash shield to gain access. Doing the serpentine belt at the same time is a very good idea. Consider replacing the tensioner and idler too if they are still original equipment and your belt is similar to the ones I've done.

Scrape the old gasket/RTV off carefully and completely. Then make sure that you get the new O-Ring seated properly before re-attaching and tightening the new pump. I use a small bead of RTV sealant to hold the rubber O-ring in place and make for a better seal. Torque all the bolts to the manufacturer's spec (not handy to me now) alternating bolts across the pump.

It is also a good time to flush the old system thoroughly and replace the Thermostat too if it has not been done recently.

Good luck. Total time should be about 1-2 hours to replace the pump depending on how much experience you have.

Bob

Reply to
Bob Shuman

Thanks... got'er all done, also replaced the bypass(?) hose that jumps between the pump housing and the thermostat housing, as it appeared to be crumbling... and finally discovered that there's STILL a leak, apparently a pinhole in the back of the pump housing. MOTHER@%$^#%(!@!! And the housing is a part of the big cast front plate on the block. Nice.

We're hoping a little JB Weld might be able to patch it from the inside, if we can find the hole from there, but if not, it's looking like a very expensive fix. Ugh. What a stupid design.

Bob Shuman wrote:

Reply to
Matt Ion

I'd be willing to bet that JB Weld will fix it if it's just a little hole. Just make sure you clean everything thoroughly. Scuffing the metal up wouldn't hurt.

Reply to
Robbie and Laura Reynolds

Update: opened the pump back up, and with some backlighting, found the hole... there's a sort of "cylinder" the pokes out the back of the pump housing with a couple of small hose outlets... the whole back edge of where that meets the main part of the housing is really rough and "bubbly", almost like there were a bunch or air bubbles in the metal when it was cast. One of those "bubbles" is where it's broken through - the pinhole of light is painfully obvious when it's backlit.

So, I've cleaned it well and gone over it with a wire brush wheel in my Dremel; just waiting for the residual water to dry up now so I can put some JB Weld on it. This IS an aluminum piece, no? Is there a "special" JB for aluminum or should the standard stuff work (which I already had for some steel patching)?

Reply to
Matt Ion

Alright... patched up the whole area around the hole with a nice thick layer of Permatex Cold Weld (similar to JB Weld), let it cure overnight, reassembled everything... it seems to be holding up now.

Anyone seen anything like this before? Looks to me like the result of a really poor casting job on this particular piece... wonder how many others are out there?

Reply to
Matt Ion

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