water pump - '97 SW2

Just replaced my pump on a 1993 sw1 and I took most of the bolts off by the side and the rest from the top. You remove the plastic flex membrane under the right fender and you will be able to take most of the bolts off with a ratchet and a long extension. I think the bolts are 10mm. I did not bother to drain all the antifreeze because I had changed it not long ago. Have a big basin ready and place it under the pump area so that when you remove the hose going to the pump you will be able to catch the coolant coming out. Clean all the residual gasket left over from the old pump with a scraper before you install the new one. Have a gallon of antifreeze handy to refill the lost coolant. It is also a good time to make sure that the fan comes on as the motor heats up.Nice job to do on a sunny autumn day before the winter gets here. Alex

Jack up the right front, remove the wheel and the plastic splash guards.

When I removed the 3 bolts that hold on the pump pulley, I used a 6 sided 10 mm socket, a 10 inch extension, and an impact wrench. This made removing those easy - didn't have to worry about the pulley spinning. That was the only "trick" that I'm aware of.

Remove the pulley from the pump by pulling it out the top.

The dealer replacement (dunno about the napa one) has the gasket built in to the pump. Simply clean up the engine block with a clean rag and you should be in good shape - there isn't any paper gasket material there with the factory pump.

When I did this job, I used the opportunity to REALLY empty out the engine block and radiator for a nice and complete coolant change. The 97s use Dexcool - I mix it 50/50 with distilled water.

Torques aren't critical - I'd use a 1/4" ratchet (for the small spaces) and just make them all snug.

And, a _QUICK_ zip of the impact wrench to reattach the pulley. You don't need it TIGHT, just snug.

Hope this helps - good luck.

Thanks for the advice. Seems to be a consensus about removing the bolts from the side.

Thanks for the detailed response!

Shoots, I forgot about the pulley (moving it from the old pump to the new)... and I don't have access to an impact wrench. On a Toyota once, I ended up having to take the pump to a repair shop to get the pulley off; I couldn't find a way to do it myself. Do you know of other alternatives than an air wrench? (I'm nowhere near a shop.)

The impact driver that I use is an electric one.

I've seen electric ones (that plug into your cigarette lighter) at Wal Mart for on the order of $24 or so.

You might be able to loosen the pulley by using a wrench on it while the belt is still on (to hold it still). You'd have to rotate the engine though (big socket, breaker bar) to be able to get to all 3 of the bolts.

Good Luck!

having to take the

myself. Do you

I've done it by hand. One trick is to use a 6 pt box wrench an go 'the long way' when reaching for the bolt, i.e. the wrench handle passes beween the two other bolts to reach the third. This cuts the amount of torque created, and you can have a friend help hold the pulley somehow.

I used antiseize (i before e except after c!) on the threads and snugged them good. YMMV

But man, air tools make this stuff so much easier....

Melodious Thunk typed until their fingers bled, and came up with:

you can use a strap wrench to hold the pully.

Thanks to everyone for a lot of great advice. I got the water pump installed in two hours and fifteen band-aids.

I ended up using a hammer (the handle, that is) jammed between the waterpump pulley and the crankshaft pulley to keep the pulley still, and a (teeny little) 10mm wrench with a pair o' pliers for added leverage. A neighbor showed me the pliers trick.