I think it's been 3 weeks since I started my water pump project, and I'm almost finished. I just need to bleed the coolant system and re-double-triple-check my tensions, then I'll drive 100 miles tonight.
With the help of everyone on this board, especially AFJuvat, this whole ordeal went pretty well... overall. I made the first mistake in ordering the wrong water pump. I needed the late style with the belt guard, and I must have clicked the wrong one. So, I ordered the correct one ASAP. I made the second mistake of installing the wrong pump before looking it over and comparing it to the old one. I could have saved myself some energy right there. Instead, I got it all back together, literally,
all back together before realizing that I had this spare belt guard on the bench. So, tore it back down, got the right pump, put new pump on.
This is where the Very Bad Thing happened. AFJuvat told me to have an insane amount of patience with the bottom water pump bolts, but I got a little hasty. The bottom bolt broke. Now, at this point, I would have expected myself to bust out into a total rage and start throwing crap and swearing… Instead, I broke out into a cold sweat, knowing that the second worst possible thing that could have happened, did. So, I tore it all back down again, and looked at the damage.
There was one thread visible where the bolt had broken off. I’ve read on the board before about guys that were able to (carefully) weld a nut onto the remaining bolt and get it out. However, this seemed to be just begging for more trouble. I.E., Overkill type of trouble. So, I called my neighbor over, who is a master welder, and he strongly advised me not to go this route. I took his advice, and called a friend of mine, whose dad is a machinist. They came over and drilled the old bolt out, and used an easy out to get it out. I was really quite amazed… he totally freehanded it and got the bolt dead on straight.
Fast forward to yesterday. I installed new water pump with shiny new bolt, much more carefully this time, then proceeded with installation. Everything else went together very well, and I’m feeling good about it. I checked the tensions many times. I used the twist method, the krikit, and the 9201. I have to say, I’m not very impressed with the Krikit. There just doesn’t seem to be much room to maneuver in there. With the 9201, I was able to get much more consistent readings, and it was 100 times easier to get it positioned correctly.
So, here I am today. I filled the coolant system, checked everything again, and reluctantly turned the key. She fired right up! I need to track down why my headlights pop up but don’t turn on, but if that’s the least of my problems, I’m totally happy with that!
Now for the final questions!
I do notice that my battery light stays on, although I haven’t had it running for a long period of time. And, I wish the injectors weren’t soo noisy so I could determine if my belts are making too much sound or not. There’s no whine, but it sounds like a thousand little ants playing snare drums on my belts. Is this normal?
Also, I checked my balance idler roller’s positioning, and it’s spaced correctly. How much should it actually be turning, though? It’s not supposed to touch, but apparently the belt has just enough slack to touch it and make it spin. Should I be concerned here?
And, last… I had a pretty difficult time getting a consistent balance belt reading. 3 out of 5 times, I’d get a consistent reading, but that makes me nervous. I wasn’t comfortable with the cam belt until I could hit it 5/5 times.
Anyway, that's my story. I'm painfully honest, and made some mistakes. But, I'm willing to share those mistakes if it entertains or (hopefully) helps someone else avoid them
