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Bad Hose or Bad Water Pump?

2K views 12 replies 5 participants last post by  hskrRT 
#1 ·
I bought the Mityvac coolant pressure test kit and used it on my 1998 Durango. As I was pressuring up to 16 psi, I found coolant dripping from both hose clamps on each end of the lower radiator hose. I tightened each clamp a bit. The connection at the bottom of the radiator stopped leaking. The connection at the water pump continued to drip. I tightened the clamp a bit more but it continued to drip. The hose itself feels pretty good and looks pretty good, but I am not expert on analyzing hoses. I checked my records. The water pump and hoses were changed in May 2013 and coolant was flushed at that time. We have put 40,000 miles on the truck since then and we live in a hot climate in Arizona.

Is it possible the the water pump is leaking from its weep hole instead of the hose connection being the problem?

Can a water pump leak travel down the pump then drip from the lower radiator hose connection area?

Should I just change the lower radiator hose to see if that fixes the problem?

How often do most here change hoses and flush coolant?
 
#3 ·
I reseated the hose and tightened down the clamp. Then I had my wife pump up the pressure tester while I was underneath with a shop light. The hose connection is not the problem, but the weep hole in the bottom of the water pump is leaking. That means the replacement water pump has only lasted 40,000 miles.

How urgently should I replace the water pump?

Anybody having any luck with any particular brand of replacement water pump?

Same question on coolant? Any particular brand in favor here?
 
#4 ·
Hrmm ... I'm Olde Skool, I use Prestone Green mixed 50/50 with distilled water. However, that doesn't mean it's the best one out there.

As to how urgent - we're running high 90's, a leaking water pump is just begging to be left on the side of the road, possibly with a cracked block. YMMV, but I'd do it soonest.

For brand - Sad to say, a Mopar might be your best bet. Everyone's selling crap nowadays.

(Sez the guy who remembers when 40,000 miles on a water pump was long life ... )

Don't forget the thread sealer (not sure Magnums need it, but BOY do the LAs need it on several of the bolts!)

RwP
 
#6 ·
i got my last waterpump at oreilly's. It was the cheapest place i looked. I've got over 100k miles on it so far and don't see any problems out of it.
 
#7 ·
I've got a "cheap" parts store pump on my truck. Lifetime warranty, so if it ever goes bad pull it off and replace it. It's easy to do on the Magnum motors. Especially mine with the clutch fan removed and stock shroud gone. But for $60 if it lasts 5 years not worth trying to warranty it. But I've got about 8 years on this water pump. I did just replace all my hoses with Goodyear hoses though. These are probably the best quality hoses I have used on my truck. Check Amazon for pricing.
 
#8 ·
I went with the $60 Murray brand pump from O'Reillys with the lifetime warranty. The job was not too bad, although I messed up the first attempt to get the pump on. I missed scraping off a bit of old RTV that was right under the alternator bracket. I should have used a mirror to look, instead I was just feeling with my fingers and scraping. The new gasket got snagged on the old RTV when I was putting the new put in position. I did not realize I had snagged the new gasket and torqued down the bolts. So I was leaking right at the gasket snag point when I filled her up. I had to go back to O'Reillys for another gasket. The Felpro gasket was much sturdier than the cheap gasket that came with the pump and only cost $1.69. If I was doing the job again, I would just spend the $1.69 for the Felpro gasket and not use the gasket that comes with the pump. Anyway, she is all back together and I am on the road again.
 
#10 ·
You are correct. I am a novice mechanic and moving those items out of the way looked like something I could screw up so I tried to cut that corner. As usual, that did not work out. To get it done correctly, I moved the ac first, which was only the four long bolts. Then I left the alternator on the bracket, disconnected the cable to the alternator, unbolted the bracket, and moved that whole piece out of the way. Only after doing this and removing the first failed attempt at sealing on the water pump was I able to see the small crescent of RTV above the highest bolt hole that fouled up my first attempt. As you note, without moving that upper stuff out of the way you just can't see parts of that upper mating surface well enough to know if it is fully cleaned.
 
#11 ·
to much RTV....IMHO

IMHO.. RTV is used in many applications it should not be used. Worse yet is the, "if a little is good then more is better..." attitude. I have greased (yes, wheel bearing grease) my gaskets for years. Expands the paper a bit, very water resistant and most important won't squish out into the water jacket and float around in the cooling system.
Bolts that go into the water jacket should be coated with a little Permatex "Form-A-Gasket" (comes in a small white can with a brush and looks like molasses), won't come off and seals great.

Last.. I like RTV and use it, but I choose sealer and use it in the proper quantity.
New guys to DIY auto repair need to know there are other and sometimes better options.
DrPepper
 
#12 ·
Good info. Thanks. I had a mobile mechanic replace the OEM water pump in 2012. He put on the replacement water pump using RTV only and no gasket. I was going to do that myself but a gasket came with the pump that I purchased from O'Reilly so I figured I should use it. The mobile mechanic's RTV did seal up fine, but I think he used a bit much as I had plenty of scraping to do to get clean mounting surface. I put a thin layer of RTV on the gasket as many here advised to do and that sealed up fine once I had a clean mating surface.
 
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