Coolant pipes

[pitteach]

I'm wondering if anyone has had any experience with these items. I have a 2000 3.8L. I am concerned with the metal pipes that come off of the water pump. One comes off the top and is about 3/4" diameter and the other comes off the bottom and connects to the radiator hose. I have been keeping an eye on these for some time because they are deteriorating and rotting away to the point where the rusted metal just flakes off. My concern is that they will give way anytime soon.
My question is are these tubes replaceable or do they come with the water pump? The pump works fine so I do not want to replace it.
I wonder if others have had problems with this or is mine a unique situation seeing as I live in the rustbelt? I have never seen such rapid and complete destruction of an engine component. Any feedback will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[12Ounce]

I happened to be at a parts counter just the other day (Atlanta area) and noticed another customer picking up the upper tube that you are speaking of. He said it had rusted at a welded joint and then snapped into. Scary!

Both of those parts are listed separate from the water pump. Both are o-ring connected. Might be a good idea to buy ahead ... could be nasty trying to locate on a vacation trip.

[nra1ifer]

I have a 1999 3.8L Windstar. I replaced the water pump on my van several months ago trying to fix a chirping sound that had turned in to a squealing sound (turned out to be the camshaft position sensor). The pipe at the top of the water pump goes down into the water pump a little over 1". Mine had grown together to the point that I could not get it free of the pump (about 110K miles at the time). When I checked local Ford dealers for a replacement pipe (it does NOT come with the water pump, although I think it SHOULD), one of them said they had it. After a 30 mile drive, with old pipe in hand, I discovered that the pipe they had in stock was not the correct one for my van. Apparently, there are several: one for "no rear heat/air", one for "with rear heat/air", possibly one for "towing package", and maybe others. Along with the aggrevation of having to loosen engine mounts and jacking the engine up about 4" to get the water pump out of the engine compartment, this made for a not-so-fun exercise. My best recommendation is to keep an eye on the parts you have been looking at, drain/flush/fill the coolant regularly, and if your van has a lot of miles on it, replace the water pump as a preventive measure. The parts are relatively cheap, but it will take some time to do it. It's a lot easier to schedule this kind of maintenance than to put up with a bad water pump and the problems that could cause.

[pitteach]

Thanks to all for the info. I am making a point to get this done in the next month or so. As 12 ounce says, I hate to have this let loose on a vacation trip or when my wife is out with the kids. It looks like a bloody knuckle job so I'm going to try and take care of as much as I can while I'm in there. The van has 83,000mi on it but I still may replace the pump while I'm there. Looking at these pipes, I could easily see how they become "melded" to the water pump by corrosion. I am afraid to even touch them as they look like they are going to disintegrate. I am also going to replace the belt and I have a steering pump that looks like it is spraying a little fluid. Any other suggestions while I'm in there?
Another thing, is there anything I can do to prevent these new pipes from rotting? I'm assuming that Ford did not redesign these pipes so I expect to have the same problem in the future.

[12Ounce]

Well, if you're going to do the work ahead (a very good idea), you may want to consider replacing the front cover gasket. For me, removing the water pump was the major piece of the job.

I don't know if your gasket is leaking ... I don't know if its a problem on 2000's. It was definitely a problem on '99's.

You may want to check into this.