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water pump woes-TR3

To: Nancy and Bob Wise <wises@new.rr.com>
Subject: water pump woes-TR3
From: Dave Massey <105671.471@compuserve.com>
Date: Sun, 13 Jun 2004 10:25:37 -0400
Cc: triumphs@autox.team.net i5DESrgs009431
Message text written by Nancy and Bob Wise
>I pulled the pump out (had tools with me so I did this while waiting 
3.5 hours for the tow truck).  In addition to the broken pulley, two 
other things appear not quite right with the water pump.  The 
bearings feel awful--sorta catching and grinding--and both the pulley 
key and the keyway in the impeller shaft are badly worn.
<

Sounds like a classic bearing failure.  Since you have already pulled the
pump it may be too late to verify but was the pump mounted such that the
weep hole was located in the downward orientation?  In other words, there
is a hole in the housing to allow coolant that sneaks past the seal to exit
the housing (due to gravity) before it reaches the bearings.  If the pump
is rotated and the hole is not lowermost the coolant will find its way to
the bearings and wash away the lubricant and cause accelerated bearing wear
and pump failures such as you may have experienced.

 But since you have a zerk you may use that as a landmark.  Hold the pump
with the zerk in to position you remember from the last time you greased it
and look for the weep hole which will be closer in to the pump body.  Is it
on the bottom?  If not then that is the likely cause of the failure.

Dave





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