New Water pump leak

[Mijostyn]

Hi all,

Three weeks ago I got about 30 yards out of the drive and the Battery/Alternator warning lit up. Back in the garage the battery measured 12.6 volts. When I started the car it dropped to 11 volts = bad alternator. When I got the belt and alternator of I notice the water pump was oozing from the bearing which was clunk clunk loose. After replacing everything with new components, gaskets and coolant the water pump started leaking immediately from around the bottom of the gasket. I had tightened everything to spec. I gave all the bolts another 1/4 turn and the leaking slowed to just two or three drops overnight. I have not run the car yet as I still have to replace the spark plugs and rebuild the exhaust system as four of the nuts have rusted away to nothing, totally gone! The others I have to cut off with a Dremel tool. Anyway will the leak stop after a few heating cycles or am I going to have to do the job again with a new gasket? Should I use a sealant? All mating surfaces were meticulously clean.

[wizard]

Are the water pump and gasket the genuine articles from Porsche?

[Mijostyn]

Yup.

[wizard]

Odd.

 

If it's definitely not a hose which has not been securely clamped, then it looks like you'll need to do it again with another gasket.

 

I wouldn't tighten the bolts any further ... and sealant should not be necessary.

[Mijostyn]

Definitely not a hose leak. I can see exactly where it is coming from. Since it is so slow I think I will drive it a little and see what happens just for fun. I will report back. One fellow told me that heat cycling the casting of the water pump might relax it so if there were the slightest warp in it that it might settle in. Personally I think that is BS. I think that the pump would have to get a whole lot hotter than 200 degrees to change the shape of the casting but what do I know. By the way I was jinxed from the beginning. My pump came with 2 gaskets! 

[Ahsai]

Perhaps if and when you redo it, you can examine all the mating surfaces and make sure they are smooth and flat. Also make sure there are no nicks on the gasket itself.

if everything checks out, it is indeed very odd because the gasket is compressible and when compressed it should seal perfectly. Another thing you may want to try is to clean the threads of the water pump bolt holes very carefully (by a chaser).

[Mijostyn]

Has anyone tried Bar's Leaks? It is supposed to stop small leaks. Apparently GM uses it in their cars which I know is not saying much.

[JFP in PA]

2 hours ago, Mijostyn said:

Has anyone tried Bar's Leaks? It is supposed to stop small leaks. Apparently GM uses it in their cars which I know is not saying much.

 

Leak additives are band-aids, often ending up causing clogging issues in the radiator and heater cores.  If your pump is leaking, replace it.

[Mijostyn]

Well, I got the car finished today and everything seems to be working fine. So I went out and drove it like I stole it for 30 minutes.

The car is almost entirely cooled off. NO DRIP!! I did have to add about 1/2 gallon coolant but I think that is from just shaking the air loose that got into the system. 

The car is also not stone cold yet so I'm still sort of holding my breath.