Our Community is 940,000 Strong. Join Us.


replacing water pump


jimmybvilla
05-18-2004, 07:45 PM
I am having a difficult time changing the water pump of my Buick Park Avenue 1992 3.8L. The difficulty is removing the lower bolt that goes through the engine mount. There are two water pump bolts going through the engine mount. Looks like I may have to remove the engine mount. But I am having a hard time removing the engine mount. Anyone done this before?

CrispyJo
05-20-2004, 10:43 PM
A buddy of mine had a heck of a time changing the waterpump on his 93 Ultra. This is info that he recalled having to do: Remove the right tire and inner fender well. Remove all related hoses to the water pump and all bolts that you can get at. Loosen the front motor mounts and slowly jack up the motor so that it pivots just enough to get that last bolt hiding behind the motor mount. Be careful not to crunch anything on top against the firewall. When putting the new one in, put that bolt in first and maybe a couple of others just to keep the holes lined up. Slowly lower the motor back on to the motor mounts and tighten them back up. He highly recomends getting a shop manual and following that. As a side note you may want to send the wife and kids away for the day or they might learn some new words.

creslevi
05-21-2004, 01:37 PM
That sounds just like my 94 lesabre, I changed it about a year ago and I just loosened the the right motor mount and took it off, I did'nt have to remove the wheel or inner fender, I did jack it up as far as I could, I think I had to to get the mount out, then I had access to the hidden bolts, I thought the hardest part was cleaning the block mounting surfaces I tried using that spray on cleaner and it was a joke !!. I am pretty sure I installed the pump completely before putting the mount back on, so far no trouble (29,000 miles)but keeping my fingers crossed, Its quite a job but Doable, Now I wish I had spent the extra money and bought a new OEM pump instead of a rebuilt, I think mine had about 180,000 miles on it, it never leaked just got noisy. good luck.
Rick

jimmybvilla
05-22-2004, 07:07 PM
Thanks Rick, I removed all the pump bolts and engine mount bolts. Now it is separating the engine mount bracket from whatever you call that where it is connected to. Nut and bolt pin has been removed. does one need an expander tool for bracket?

creslevi
05-22-2004, 08:10 PM
Hi Jimmy
I think I had to remove the piece from the frame also because the mount has a kind of hook that won't let it out of the bracket, so I took both halves of the motor mount off, Have it supported on a jack, when its all loose jack up that side of the engine only as much as needed for the pump to clear, Then clean up the block and install the new pump completely then put the mount back on. Good Luck
Rick

jimmybvilla
06-02-2004, 01:45 PM
There are three bolts that hold the bracket mount to the engine. Two bolts below screw the bracket mount to the engine. There is one bolt coming out of the engine horizontally which is being held by a nut. To remove the bracket mount it must be slid out horizontally. Here is my problem. The bracket mount is connected to the engine mount by a pin and this engine mount is bolted to the frame with 4 bolts. This can't be moved horizontally. The only way is up. But it can't be moved up because the bracket mount is held by the horizontal bolt from the engine. How high must the engine be jacked up before before the mounts are clear from the frame so the mounts can be slid out. If somebody thinks the engine mount and the bracket mount can be separated let me know how.

creslevi
06-02-2004, 04:51 PM
Hi
I just looked at mine trying to jog my memory, I am sure I removed both sides of the mount (Engine & Frame) while the engine was supported on a jack, when all 7 bolts were removed (3 on block & 4 on frame) I jacked it up just enough for the pump to clear, I don't think the stud with the nut is involved ??, and even then the horizontal mount bolt would barely clear a big A/C line, but I could just get it by ?.
I hope this helps, Make sure you have a decal somewhere showing the routing of the serpintine belt, I thought mine had it but did'nt and I know I spent an extra hour figuring it out, if it don't make a drawing you will be glad you did, I think I had to also take off the Water pump pulley ?.
Good luck Rick

jimmybvilla
06-02-2004, 10:27 PM
Thanks Rick. Finally, success. I just needed to jack the engine higher until the bracket mount and engine mount were loose. Then I removed the hose so I could swing the bracket mount to the side until I had access to the bolts. Did not have to remove the mounts at all. I did pull the bracket mount out a little so it could clear the water hose. There was a decal showing the serpentine belt configuration so no problem there. Thank you very much for your tips. You are a great guy. Jimmy

creslevi
06-02-2004, 11:33 PM
You are very welcome Jimmy, glad I was able to help, but I don't remember having to take off any hose's the pump was just an insert into the timing cover ??, if memory serves me right, I did remove both halves of the mount being as they were all loose anyway, It gave me more room to clean the surfaces of the pump.
Rick
PS
If you have'nt finished it yet I would suggest taking a good look at the bypass hose from the intake manifold to the water pump (under the alternator) and if the Nipple from the intale manifold is nylon/plastic ??, I would replace it and the hose while you are at it, the new nipples are metal, mine just broke while I was replacing the alternator at home (it was plastic/nylon ??) If I had known that I never would have felt comfortable on th road, It probly saved me a big towbill.

Digital60
08-09-2004, 08:53 PM
I am fighting with the exact same problem - THE BRACKET.

Where is a safe place to jack up the engine? I can't seem to find any safe place to do so. I tried a corner of the tranny, but it didn't seem to help. Any ideas? Thx so much!

jimmybvilla
08-10-2004, 10:37 AM
I used a 2x4 between the jack and the oil pan. 2x6 will be better to better distribute the weight. Chock your rear wheels and jack up until the bracket is loose and you can swing it counterclockwise. Good Luck. Jimmy

Azathoth6100
10-10-2004, 06:13 PM
I seem to be having the same problems. I've read all the posts and I have removed all the bolts on the mount (both sides). But for some reason the braket mount is still hooked to the frame. when we try to jack the engine the whole car goes up with it. Anyone know if there is a hidden connection between the bracket mount and the frame and how would I get this thing loose? I have a 93 park avenue if that makes a difference.

Digital60
10-10-2004, 07:38 PM
The ONLY way I could get the mount off was to use a 2x6 (better than a 2x4 to distribute the weight) underneath the transmission oil pan. Sound like a scary thing to do? Well the thought of it was. However, I have been told by several people and it worked for me. It took quite a bit of lift underneath that oil pan before the mount even came close to budging at all. Then suddenly it started moving freely, and a little more lift, did the job entirely, and the mount slid off of the stud. Believe me, I stressed pretty hard on it.

The only problem was is that the noise I thought was the water pump for sure is actually coming from the harmonic balancer! Oh well. :)

parkavenuechrome
10-11-2004, 10:11 AM
These guys are all right, You have to jack the motor up to remove the mount to get to the water pump removal. A 2x6 would be fine.

Azathoth6100
10-14-2004, 01:49 PM
Thanks for the suggestions. Thats exactly what we ended up doing. First, we loosened up the other motor mounts than got jack under the engine (with a 2x6) and finally the engine moved and that mount swung free. Getting the mount back into place was another story but it's finally done. Thank you for the help.

GSteven
10-20-2004, 07:44 AM
Looks like this subject is well covered. Nothing to add except that I found azathoth6100's last comment to be very true. I thought it was amazing how the motor mount came out relatively easily but getting it back in place was highly frustrating. Like putting a square peg in a round hole.

BIGRYNO
01-08-2005, 07:15 PM
I have been doing a water pump on my 93 PA and had to send my wife and kiids away so they would not learna few new words. Same issue everyone else has had with the motor mount bolted to fram and removing it. Should I remove the motor mount bolts on both sides of the engune. I know that sounds dumbbut mine are pretty rusted in and the side with the water pump was real hard to begin with. Thanks to everyone. I''m new here and love this place already.

Ryan

Add your comment to this topic!