Re: V6 Water Pumps

[Hirsch <Catenary@domain.elided>]

Paul Bowman wrote:
 =

> "My favorite alfa innovation is 30,000 mile V6 Water Pumps."
> =

> Having seen this statement in numerous places both on the Digest and Al=
fa
> Owner it appears to have become conventional wisdom.  Yet my experience=

on
> an '88 Milano Verde has been that the original factory  pump lasted to
> 59,600 miles when I had it replaced (with an aftermarket pump) because =
it
> was starting to weep coolant from the shaft seal.  This month I had the=

> replacement pump replaced approximately 56,000 miles later.  I say
> approximate because the speedometer/odometer was inoperable for about s=
ix
> months before replacement and I can only estimate the miles that elapse=
d
> during that time.  The failure mode was the same.

=46rom talking to other Milano owners, reading AROC newsletters,
and this Digest, I've learned that there are generally two
Milano/GTV6 water pump failure modes:

1) Water pump leaks water to give warning that it needs replacing.
2) Water pump shows no evidence of leakage and bearing freezes.

Although the first failure mode is apparently more common,
a number of years ago my water pump chose to fail via mode
2 and left us stranded 160 miles from home over a holiday
weekend. Since water pumps are relatively cheap (< $100US)
and occassionally fail without warning, why not just replace
them when the timing belt is replaced? This interval for most
prudent V6 owners turns out to be 30,000 miles, hence the
30,000 mile pump replacement ritual.

So look for leaks from the pump and check for bearing wear
by wiggling the pump pulley from side to side. Excessive
play may indicate pump failure in the near future. Perhaps
you can avoid failure mode 2.

For an overview on pump replacement, see the article
"The 30,000 Mile Milano Malady" by Erik Roe at the
Oregon AROC website:

   http://www.alfaclub.org/techstff/mwaterp.htm

BTW if silicates are responsible for destroying the
V6 water pump, why do the 4-cylinder and 164 pumps
last so long? I don't think it's the antifreeze
that's killing these pumps.

Rich Hirsch

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