New water pump?

[Jimmy9190]

My 2001 Dodge Dakota has 132,800 miles on it now. 3.9 V6 and a 5-speed manual. About 6 months ago the fan clutch siezed and I replaced it. Everything is fine, there are no water pump bearing noises, no play in the water pump shaft and my truck runs cool even in the 100+ degree heat here in Florida. Last night I read online that the water pump and fan clutch "usually have the same life span" and it is recommended to "replace the water pump when you replace the fan clutch, because they both last about the same length of time".

I bought my truck used with 41,000 miles on it almost 5 years ago. In the time I have owned it, I have had the coolant flushed at about 60,000 miles, then at 80,000 miles I hit a deer and the body shop had to replace the radiator so it got new coolant again. Then at 129,000 miles on March 31st this year I was hit in the front end and now I have another new radiator, a new fan shroud, a new AC condenser and another fill of new coolant.

The way I learned it is as long as you flush the coolant on a normal schedule (or in my case accidents caused me to get new coolant and new radiators twice) the water pump should be fine and last a very long time. I learned that the lubricating properties of coolant keep the water pump lubed, clean and in good condition, so unless the pump fails or starts to leak, it is best to leave it alone.

Anyone else heard of the "replace your water pump when you replace the fan clutch" theory? What do you guys think?

 

[The Critic]

With 130,000 miles, you're nearing the end of your water pump's life regardless.

Water pumps have sealed bearing assemblies so I'm not sure where the lubricating theory comes in.

There's really no reason to replace the water pump now as long as you can afford the downtime when the pump does eventually need to be replaced. Also, if you stop the car immediately in the event of a cooling system failure, then I wouldn't worry about it either. On the other hand, if a not so car savvy person drives the car on a regular basis, then I usually suggest a complete cooling system rebuild every 100k or so as most people don't understand the importance of stopping the vehicle when the cooling system fails, resulting in a toasted engine. Any cooling system rebuild is cheaper than an engine in those situations.

 

[pidster]

I went through 3 water pumps on my old Tercel which was retired at 350000km. Hoping the Ranger will do a little better.

If you do replace it, the only thing I can recommend is that you buy an OEM pump or a very good quality brand if going aftermarket. If you're due for a coolant flush I'd do it, if not then I'd just wait until then, You'll obviously have to drain it all to change the pump. Any rad/hose/cap replacement that needs doing might as well be done all at once, so check the whole system with a microscope.

Not a Dodge guy myself, but that sounds like my kinda truck setup otherwise, I'll bet you have some fun in there

 

[tomcat27]

the critic is pretty spot on. being quite the dodge fan myself, I will offer the following advice: whenever you replace the water pump, consider changing the timing chain - or at least measure the chain wear: you can see how far you can rotate the engine in each direction (nbr of degrees). the timing chain in the whole 3.9 and 5.2 lineup is a weak link. and by removing the water pump you are most of the way to replacing the timing chain.

 

[mrsilv04]

If you've got the time and money to replace it now, why not. You're getting at the upper end of what can be expected from the pump.

I'd pay a little extra to get a good pump... either an OE unit or a NAPA unit, since I'm assuming you're going to keep this truck for a while.

Otherwise, keep track of the coolant level in the overflow tank, and wait until it becomes an issue.

Other than this, how's the truck doing since you got it back?

You did get the issue with the grille corrected with the insurance company paying for an OEM grille or mounting bracket, correct?

 

[Jimmy9190]

Thanks for the replies. The water pump in my old Jeep pickup went at about 135,000 miles too. I know that even though the coolant has been changed regularly, the vanes on the impeller in the pumps can just wear away over time. I have heard and read that antifreeze eats away slowly at the vanes in the pump and blades on the impeller.

I do plan on keeping this truck until the wheels fall off of it. It's still a very good truck, and is in great shape even though it has been in one minor accident - 3 years ago I hit a juvenile deer at 75 MPH, the deer was only about as big as a good-sized dog, and then this wreck back in March. The body shop did replace the front grille with an OE grille but only after I complained to Allstate about it. I know the shop manager himself had said it didn't fit right, and they probably said let it go unless the customer complains about it. That was the least of the problems with the body shop, but I won't get into that here. I did have to fix a lot of things they didn't do right though.

I will probably go ahead and do a new water pump, bypass hose and new radiator hoses in the next couple of weeks. I have heard of some water pumps lasting 150,000 miles but I would rather be proactive and do it now so I don't get stranded some place. My truck runs and drives great and has a lot of new parts. I figure the water pump and alternator would probably be the next things to need replacement. I can check the timong chain but it really is not a problem on this generation of Dakota. The ones from 1994 up through about the 2000 model year had serious problems with the timing chains and tensioners but Dodge did a redesign on it for 2001 and up.

Thanks for the help here.

 

[mjoekingz28]

My water pump just died a horrible death. I see the low coolant light come on so I pull over, then it dumps all the water. There was a trail for a 100 yards or so leading up to where I stopped.

Upon inspection, the pulley was diagonal and the belt was halfway on it. Not sure exactly what went wrong with it. This is at 170,000 miles. The coolant was changed regularly.


I had a cadillac a while back with 100-110k miles and it slung a belt. I replaced the belt and it happened again....the water pump had seized.