Water Pump Brands

[LazyDog]

I recently started working on the wife's relatives cars like Ford, GM, Chrysler etc. I am a Volvo guy and know what brands are good besides the OEM blue box.

Reading through some of the comments about brands like AC Delco and Gates makes wonder who makes a quality water pump besides the OEM stuff.

Can you share your favorite brands.

The link below is for what is available in Rock Auto for a Chrysler minivan.

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/chrysler,2005,town+&+country,3.3l+v6,1430643,cooling+system,water+pump,2208

 

[Trav]

Mopar, the rest is scrap metal.

 

[Chris142]

Most of them come out of the same Chinese factory. Just go in a different box.

 

[kschachn]

The only water pump brand I've found reliable is Aisin. If they don't make one for that vehicle then I'd buy OEM.

 

[LazyDog]

The Aisin is good stuff on the Volvo's follow by Hepu. They do probably all come out of the same factory,
I once a fuel pressure regulator brand Airtex but was pleasantly surprise it was a Bosch regulator on the Airtex Box at a much better price.

 

[Trav]

I don't see any listing of any good quality aftermarket ones for this one on Rock. I cant remember seeing an Aisin for domestic makes, they may but I have not seen it. I would be nice if they did.

 

[Skippy722]

That pump is cheaper on ECMP.

https://www.eastcoastmoparts.com/oem-parts/mopar-water-pump-68382491aa

 

[LazyDog]

Originally Posted by Skippy722
That pump is cheaper on ECMP.

https://www.eastcoastmoparts.com/oem-parts/mopar-water-pump-68382491aa



Thanks for the link!

 

[OhioMazda]

Is Gates not considered a good brand of water pump?

 

[Kruse]

Originally Posted by OhioMazda
Is Gates not considered a good brand of water pump?


I have never seen a Gates water pump that was not made in China. Belts are still good

 

[nthach]

I have a Chinese pump on a friend's truck that still working, but I dread replacing it again. Motorcraft one was DOA.

I like Aisin/Hitachi(Paraut) for Japanese cars that it came OEM on - Yamada isn't had in the aftermarket and they are a Honda company. When I replaced a Mercedes water pump as a wee kid, I used a Hepu.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

GMB water pumps are good if they are made in Japan. Some of them are, especially if GMB was the OE supplier for your car.

 

[Chris142]

I have installed many gates pumps. Never had one come back. Even have one on my jeep.

 

[GMBoy]

Originally Posted by Chris142
I have installed many gates pumps. Never had one come back. Even have one on my jeep.


I also have had no issues with Gates. Actually, Gates is my go-to water pump for all GM 3.6L's I do. The quality is good, comes with the new bolts and correct gasket style as OEM. Priced under $60 on Rockauto and never had an issue. I've probably replaced 40-50 of them last year alone. The OEM pumps fail very early on in as little as 40k miles I have seen so I won't use a GM part as replacements.

 

[Trav]

The problem is Gates manufactures hoses and belts and AFAIK not water pumps, they buy those from suppliers so depending on who they got if from may be the variable in quality.
Its been my experience that when one person has good experience and another a bad experience with parts from a company the parts usually come from a different supplier.

JM2C

 

[Lubener]

Stay away from rebuilds and go with the best warranty. I would bet Mopar is even Chinese and built by someone else, so I doubt it is any better.

 

[Falcon_LS]

For U.S. brands, I go OEM - sometimes there will be two different parts available; the actual OEM factory part and a lower priced ACDelco, for instance, to compete with the aftermarket. Skip the lower priced unit, and go straight for the factory part. The cheaper one is usually a Chinese made unit, no different than what comes in a Gates box.

For German brands, like VW, I go with HEPU. For Asian brands, like Toyota or Mitsubishi, I stick with Aisin.

 

[650NutKase]

I've had 0 issues with ANY Gates product. They seem to still be making good stuff. In fact, I just threw on a Gates pump on a Jeep a little while ago. The OEM Mopar one was leaking around the gasket at 70k...
I also have a Gates WP in storage for my F150 for when the time comes.

 

[Trav]

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1&q=gates+water+pump+failure

 

[StevieC]

I will use OE pumps unless they are a known issue then I will seek out a different brand for that application. It's rare though that an OE pump isn't the best choice.

It's a critical component that is usually a pain to replace so why take a chance to save a buck?