Coolant leaks from the Water Pump

mmilind

Hi,
I have a 96 Grand AM SE, 4 cyllinder, with 63 k miles on it. Recently the coolant has started leaking, and found out from Tuffys that it is leaking from the water pump. I also found out the cost of replacing the water pump is an emormous $600/-. Does it really cost this much?

john319

but my 96 Chrysler Town & Country costed me $127 parts and labor to replace the water pump by the dealer. they charged like $18 for coolant to refill as well. I have replaced water pumps before, Very easy to do actually.

lancerfixer

Based on experience, I'd avoid Tuffy at all costs. They were going to charge me for all sorts of unnecessary repairs when I brought my car in for brakes. Find an honest mechanic, and at the very least bring the car to the dealer. If nothing else, as noted by john319, it's actually a fairly easy job to do oneself. A water pump will run about $30 or so, plus about $15 for a repair manual for your car.

rhmass

I had the same problem recently with my car and the mechanic replaced the water pump plus the themostat with a bill of $350. Find an honest mechanic for the job.

adc100

But the water pumps of GM vehicles are burried deep in the bowels of the engine compartment.
Unless you have experience with repair work this is not a job for the uninitiated. It's an ugly job. 30 dollers for a water pump much lower than you will have to pay for a quality rebuilt. My experience is to avoid the Pep Boys variety and go with a higher quality. I am not a Nappa fan but I have gotten quality parts there most of the time. I think you are looking at 200-300 bucks to have the job done. Just another opinion.

isellhondas

Replacing these can be a fairly simple job. They can also be a miserable nightmare depending on the car.

Still...with some shops now charging close to 100.00/hr for labor the job can get expensive.

If it's a three hour job, with parts and labor, I can see the job approaching the 500.00 mark.

While the guy is "in there", it's smart to replace the hoses and belts too.

And, I would NOT use a rebuilt. A new pump isn't much more.

jgmilberg

Take it in to the dealer, you will get a gm part, with a warranty, that is likly to perform without fail for at least the same amount of time the original one did. At all costs avoid the disount auto parts stores, if you must at least buy the lifetime one. GM dealers are flat rate $76 an hour for labor, plus parts. The dealerships have the lifetime warranty on labor, so if something goes wrong because of the car not being reassambled properly, the dealership fixes it. It is always worth the extra money for a complicated repair just to go to the dealer, in the long run it pays for itself.

isellhondas

Labor rates will vary greatly by location.

In San Francisco is might be 95.00 per hour and in Cody, WY they might charge 45.00.

jeber

don't know specifics on grandam 4 cyl, but in many cases if getting to water pump is a difficult job, and if getting "in there" to the pump then exposes timing belt, change it too. At 63,000 you are probably close to needing that done. the point being, whether you do it yourself or have it done, see how much more time/money it is to do timing belt.

I learned this the hard way, twice! On one car, I did the timing belts (myself), a HUGE PITA, and a couple months later water pump self-destructed, also ruining new timing belt. On another car, the opposite happened, mechanic changed water pump, then a few months later timing belt broke. Either way cost me lots of unnecessary time & $

rayfbaird

I had a clutch that needed to be replaced. Rather than going with my independent repairman (Subaru Certified before he went independent) I chose the dealer.

Driving it home I head this thunk -- twice. I had to have it towed back to the dealer. They said that the mechanic was just new and had forgotten to put in the bolts that secured it. Fortunately, it was not a serious error. That has happened a lot with dealers. You can get the best, and you can get the worst. Problem is you can't tell which you will get.

I've liked asking dealers for some mechanics who recently left. They know the special issues of the vehicle, and have experience.

isellhondas

They left because they got fired for leving bolts loose!

0patience

mmilind,
The charge for replacing that water pump is about right.

The labor for that engine to replace the water pump is 6.3 hours.So that is a fair cost for replacement.

n2boof

I had a 1992 Chevy Beretta for years......1 water pump at 120k sold @ 138k....cost:$25.00 AutoZone and $80 labor at Big A tires (beware of the sideways mounted engines---I learned the hard way---cheap on parts expensive on labor) i.e. to replace the $20 fan belt costed $60-$80 every time for labor. Being a female I had to grin and bear it... Now I own a 99 Pontiac Grand Prix SE, with another side mounted engine. You would have think I'd learned the 1st time around....but I guess I'm a sucker for the 3.1 liter motor that was in the Beretta and Grand Prix for the long life. My Beretta never had the 1st problem engine wise, just everything else went wrong attached to it.

burdawg

The water pump on the Quad 4 is on the right side of the engine between the engine and firewall, approximately next to the cylinder head. It's difficult to get to. Where's it leaking from? Around the shaft? Pump gasket? Housing to engine gasket? Also, there's a drain plug on the bottom of the housing, it's a longshot that it's leaking from there, though.

swschrad

lots of engines have a little green scum, maybe damn green scum, by one or two places where the water pump bolts to the engine due to a small gasket deformity. this is not necessarily a reason to replace the pump IMHO unless you are noticing a continued loss of fluid.

if the coolant is leaking out a crack, out the front seal, or out the little hole some pumps have on top about where the bearing is, replace the pump soonest.

if it looks like the leakage is at the hose connections, it's either a rotting hose or a loose clamp.

jodar96

If you ever spot a leak as message #15 said, and your vehicle is still under warranty, take it to the dealer and insist that they replace the water pump. Do not allow the dealer to tell you " that leak is normal" The leak is not normal, and you will evantually need a new water pump.

Our 97 Dodge Caravan had this little leak/deposit build up at the bottom of the water pump while it was under warranty, and I elected to ignore it. At 73K, it needed a new water pump at $156.