Gotta replace Water Pump; clean the Throttle Body too?

Hello,

Just got the news that my coolant leak is coming from the water pump on my 2001 Z28. The car has 177K miles, so it's probably a fair time for replacement. The shop quoted me a repair cost of $575. I think I can do it myself for less although I've not attempted the repair previously.

I found this thread that contains a detailed write up of how to replace the pump:
http://www.ls1.com/forums/f63/water-...nstall-110724/

I see that I've gotta remove the throttle body to get at the pump. I suppose that I may as well clean it while I have it removed. There are an number of threads that delve into sprays used to clean the TB, such as:
http://www.ls1.com/forums/f6/throttl...cleaner-88761/

However, I don't see any corresponding guides on how exactly I'm supposed to clean the part. Is it similar to cleaning brake calipers where you just spray down all the surfaces inside and out with cleaner and let it drip dry and/or wipe away excess with a paper towel? Or is there more to it than that? I ask because I've never worked with the thottle body before.

I spray throttlebody cleaner on a clean rag then clean the throttlebody with the blade open to get all the carbon/gunk out.

As for the water pump, I think there are members who have replaced theirs without removing the tb. They just moved the radiator out of the way. I could be wrong.

In regards to the tb, if you are going to soak it down remove the trottle position & IAC sensors. Those chemicals can effect the sensors. Now when you pull it off and get a look at the back side you'll see what needs to be cleaned, it will be covered in oil residue. I used some Q-tips to get the outlet that directs air into the valve cover. Carb cleaner is what I use.



Water pump - Removing the TB just makes it easier to work on the water pump.

Replacing the water pump is easy. One of the first engine related things I ever did to my car.

The internet is telling me that either one of these pumps will fit the car:

ACDelco 252-846 Water Pump
Bosch 99175 Water Pump

and that I should get this gasket along with it:

Fel-Pro 35635 Water Pump Gasket

Can anyone who has replaced the pump using one of the above confirm that everything worked out?

i got an acdelco when i replaced mine works great and about the gaskets go to dealership for the metal gaskets there cheap and can be reused if wanted you will need two gaskets they are metal and rubber great pieces
ive used gm gaskets with everything and seems there better and will last longer imo

When I replaced the water pump on an 02 Suburban, the pump came with the metal/aluminum gaskets. Better than cork.

Both jobs are very easy. 525.00 is way out of line. You can do both with a few basic hand tools and a few hours of time.

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Originally Posted by robs98mysticZ

i got an acdelco when i replaced mine works great and about the gaskets go to dealership for the metal gaskets there cheap and can be reused if wanted you will need two gaskets they are metal and rubber great pieces
ive used gm gaskets with everything and seems there better and will last longer imo

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I don't understand this response. Why would I need two gaskets? Is this the right one?

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/l...ps7ae6dc54.jpg

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Thewilldog

Quote:

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Originally Posted by robs98mysticZ

i got an acdelco when i replaced mine works great and about the gaskets go to dealership for the metal gaskets there cheap and can be reused if wanted you will need two gaskets they are metal and rubber great pieces
ive used gm gaskets with everything and seems there better and will last longer imo

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I don't understand this response. Why would I need two gaskets? Is this the right one?

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/l...ps7ae6dc54.jpg

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One for each side of the pump.

Attachment 24909Attachment 24910
Thse are picts of the gaskets and where you attach the h20 pump to the motor. You don't need to take the TB off. I did the job in about 2 hours but I was being slow.

it takes longer to drain the coolant than anything, you need a flat head for the intake couplers, then a 10mm for the 6 bolts and pliers for the hoses, and a 15 or 16mm for your belt tensioner... you will also need to swap your tstat housing onto your new waterpump, when you put the new waterpump on put 3 bolts in partway to hold the gasket on one side, get the bolts started then slip the new gasket in on the other side using the bolts to make sure everything is lined up.

- - - Updated - - -

make sure you clean/scrape any old gasket residue off the front of the block as well

Quote:

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Originally Posted by robs98mysticZ

it takes longer to drain the coolant than anything, you need a flat head for the intake couplers, then a 10mm for the 6 bolts and pliers for the hoses, and a 15 or 16mm for your belt tensioner... you will also need to swap your tstat housing onto your new waterpump, when you put the new waterpump on put 3 bolts in partway to hold the gasket on one side, get the bolts started then slip the new gasket in on the other side using the bolts to make sure everything is lined up.

- - - Updated - - -

make sure you clean/scrape any old gasket residue off the front of the block as well

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Curious, what did you do with the old coolant, kill weeds?

Put it in a well sealed container and bring it to Autozone or O'Rielly's ... they'll take it off your hands for free. Don't dump it, a lot of coolant is toxic to animals and that just makes for a bad day.

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Originally Posted by tep98ws6

Put it in a well sealed container and bring it to Autozone or O'Rielly's ... they'll take it off your hands for free. Don't dump it, a lot of coolant is toxic to animals and that just makes for a bad day.

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This....I didn't know I had a coolant leak, one morning I found my neighbors cat :Puke: its guts out next to my truck. As I pulled out of the drive way I saw the puddle and made the connection. Cat lived but doesn't come over to my house any more, so win, win....

I found a dead cat back behind my garage once. Few days later I found out my neighbor put out anti-freeze for the raccoons because they kept getting into his garbage cans. Wasn't fun cleaning that up. Even though I don't like cats, I was :(

Quote:

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Originally Posted by robs98mysticZ

it takes longer to drain the coolant than anything, you need a flat head for the intake couplers, then a 10mm for the 6 bolts and pliers for the hoses, and a 15 or 16mm for your belt tensioner... you will also need to swap your tstat housing onto your new waterpump, when you put the new waterpump on put 3 bolts in partway to hold the gasket on one side, get the bolts started then slip the new gasket in on the other side using the bolts to make sure everything is lined up.

- - - Updated - - -

make sure you clean/scrape any old gasket residue off the front of the block as well

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Success! Took most of the afternoon, but I was able to swap the water pump with a new one as well as clean out the throttle body with some carb & choke cleaner. I also replaced the thermostat and housing.

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/l...pseb2bc9bd.jpg

I actually had to remove two of the belt pulleys; the tension pulley and the pulley directly in front of the bottom right hand screw holding the pump in place. It was blocking my socket wrench. You were right, it did take a while to drain the coolant.

Just got back from a test drive and didn't find any leaks and didn't over heat, so I think I'm good to go.

sorry i didnt respond when i did mine i had fresh coolant from my cam swap...if only the pump went prior to the swap lol....i drained mine into a CLEAN container and filtered it prior to reusing it. glad all went well for you!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by robs98mysticZ

sorry i didnt respond when i did mine i had fresh coolant from my cam swap...if only the pump went prior to the swap lol....i drained mine into a CLEAN container and filtered it prior to reusing it. glad all went well for you!

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Only caveat, I didn't think the pump would come with the corresponding gaskets (it did) and I didn't realize they were sold in pairs (they are) so I now have two sets of gaskets I don't need and will probably never use. Oh well, good learning experience.

When I changed the water pump on an 02 Suburban a few years ago, I had fun. :yup: