Do I need to remove the strut brace.....

[syclone1157]

... in order to remove the water pump. It needs about 1/2cm to clear. I am just unsure if by removing it this will affect my allignment ir if I will have trouble replacing it.
Thanks ,
Martin

 

[BDZ1984]

I removed mine and had it powder coated to match my intake/valve covers.. from what I could tell (6months of driving) it did not effect the allignment of the car... It is a real pain in the ass to get out..

 

[syclone1157]

It is a pain in the ***. How do I do it? Is this the only way to take out the water pump? Do i just start punding on it until it comes out? Oh where oh ehere could my underdog be???????

Martin

 

[big-n-italian]

can you either undo the top two or bottom two bolts and tip it out of the way?

 

[FE 065]

two words:

service manual

 

[BDZ1984]

hope you have to hood off... but its a 2 person job... pull and pry the best you can it will come out.. also if you jack up the front of the car and let the wieght off the front wheels this will help to.

 

[Tom Sessions]

You do not need to remove the brace and you don't need to pound or pry.But it is easier to do with the hood off.You will need to unbolt the pulley on the water pump so you can get to some of the water pump mounting bolts.Also remove the pulley on the front of the crankshaft that the bely runs on.There are also 2 heater hoses on the passenger side of the pump that can tough to remove.Once all the bolts and pulleys are loose the pump can be twisted and removed below the cross brace.Just remember the water pump pulley must be installed at the same time the pump is put in place or you won't be able to get the pulley on.It is easier than is sounds.You can reach me on monday if you need better instructions.

Tom

 

[EllowViper]

Just replaced mine on my 2001 GTS. As far as the nose clearance on the front of the water pump...its tight indeed. I could not get mine out by following the service manual per se. I ended up taking the bolts off the passenger side of the cross brace (two very easy bolts to remove) and prying it about 1/2 inch forward (it will hit the mounting bracket and won't go any further). There is enough flex and give to do this so don't sweat it...don't need to take the tire off either as you can reach the bolt head through the wheel well. Loosen all the pully bolts on the water pump and once its free...then you can actually work it off by wiggling it under the cross member (manual says it has to come off with the pump, but if you move the cross member forward as I did, you will have the clearance needed to do this with the pump still bolted to the engine (same applies with putting the new pump on). Take the crank pully off too, as well as the two smaller hose connections. I did not have to take the crank sensor off (as the manual indicates). I also took the belt idler pully off that is between the alternator and water pump on top. Makes getting at the one bolt for the water pump easy to remove. Once all the water pump bolts are out, break the pump free of the timing cover until its loose. Now the fun part. The manual states the pump comes out "up" between the cross member and the power steering pump. If you've taken the pully off and removed it, that simplifies the problem...but it is a bit of a challenge to twist, turn, and manuever the pump out, beside, and above the PS pump (I think the shifter install was easier!!!). Even with the initial problems, I got mine out in one hour (hood on) and a new one on (taking my time and messing with/poking around other things) in about an hour as well. Put the ROE hoses on so bleeding, etc was a non-factor.

 

[FlyBryViper]

Tom is correct, as usual. We just did mine 2 weeks ago at the race at VIR. Remove the lower crank pulley instead of the brace. Do not remove your crank bolt, just the pulley bolts.