Replace water pump premptively?

[Mr986]

I got a suggestion from a mechanic to replace my water pump--that would be done with some other work--to avoid near term problems with it. The suggestion was that it should be replaced at 40K.

The car is an 06 2.7l with 38K, not quite 6 years old, driven on the track with some frequency. No issues or noises to this point. Any merit to this?

thanks in advance

[logray]

I'm on both sides of the fence with this one.

When I removed my water pump after 75k miles of service it seemed in great condition. No binding, impeller blades were good, no leaks, no rust.

The other side reads about the water pump shaft leaks and separations and impeller blade explosions.

I suppose the recommendation goes If you already have other work being done, the cost of removing the water pump and reinstalling is not that great. It is at most a 2-3 hour job in your driveway. If you're curious as to the health of the impeller blades, just having it removed, inspected and reinstalled with a fresh gasket would not set you back too much money compared with pump replacement.

My advice would be stick with the pump you have, but regularly monitor the car for leaks and accessory bearings for play. If you do the work on your own car or if someone else does, make it a point at oil change time to inspect the car for coolant leaks (not just at the water pump), remove the drive belt and check all of the accessories for play/noises and the belt condition.

[Mr986]

Logray:

Thanks for the reply; I'm planning on doing the 160deg. Thermostat in the spring and thought this might be a good add on to do with it, but am rethinking it. Had it inspected in april and everything looked/sounded good.