Coolant leaking
 

Was on a back road tour today with my local PCA chapter. Great drive, great fun
We are on our way back on the last part of the tour, coming down a nice mountain road with lots of twisties and I notice a flashing red light on the temp gauge and the OBC said check coolant level. The temp was fine, right in the middle of the 8 where it always is

As I was under 5 miles to our last stop and going downhill and the temp was fine, i drove to the stop. I checked the coolant tank and it was all the way at the bottom. Looked under the car and could see water dripping from the middle of the car just in from of the motor.

I opened the coolant tank cap and there was no hissing sound. I put in around 1.5 liters of water to fill the tank. Since I was not overheating and it was a slower leak, I started driving home, around 30 miles, stopping about 1/2 way and checked the water level. It was halfway down. Added water to fill it and continued home

When I got home, I checked the tank and again it was 1/2 way down. I opened up the access panel and could see coolant pooled under the water pump on the plastic under pans.

It was hard to tell if it was leaking form the water pump or a hose, so I put the car on stands and removed the front under pan. The hoses looked OK, so I started the car and a minute later it started to drip. Turned it off and it appears that the leak is from the pump right above the outlet elbow

I removed the serp belt and the water pump spins freely and no wobble. The car has the original pump and is just under 73k miles.

I guess my next project is changing the water pump. Should I replace all the hoses while I am in there?

I am also thinking of just having my Indy replace the water pump as I will need to drain and refill the coolant and he has an airlift system and I do not. He has been working on Porsche cars for 40 years and gives me great deals on labor, so I am guessing he is going to charge me around $100 for labor and I will supply the parts. If he happens to have a water pump, Ill get it from him and he gives me ~40% off list on genuine parts. If not Ill get a Pierburg pump for around $190

All in all, I have owned the car for almost 1.5 years and have spent very little on maintaince

1 window regulator $175 parts and labor
3 oil changes $180 total
4 tires $750
F & R brake pads ~$60
Brake fluid $20
60 k service parts and labor $200

Washing/cleaning/waxing supplies ~$200


Call it $1600 over 18 months or ~$1000 a year including the washing stuff
I think I am ahead of the game so far :)

When I did my WP I only lifted the rear. No need to bleed or purge anything. Get the low temp stat and do front mount while you're right there.

Doesn't the coolant pour out when you disconnect the hose on the WP?

I need to drain and refil anyway as I put in about 3 liters of tap water

Doesn't the coolant pour out when you disconnect the hose on the WP?

I need to drain and refilL anyway as I put in about 3 liters of tap water

How long does it take to replace the WP?

Hey JayG; Timco is right. Do the motor mount at the same time. It makes both jobs easier. You will need to have the front end higher than the rear to get the coolant to drain from the radiators. I did the pump, mount low temp stat and hoses. Took about 3 hours. Your hoses may be fine. mine had a wear spot on 1 from the lower tray, but were soft and pliable. I changed since they were 17 years old. I used an airlift, but it is not required.

Oh yes the coolant gushes out when you pull the hose. Also have ignition on and temp to full hot to drain heater core.

+1 on doing the motor mount while you are in there. Disconnecting the hoses to the WP and thermostat make it much easier to get to the motor mount. Then lowering the engine a little to get to the motor mount makes the WP much easier.

When I did mine I did:
WP, 160 low temp thermostat, new Porsche coolant/distilled water 50/50.
I did not do the motor mount because it had been done relatively recently, but I wish I had.
I used a Pierburg WP but at the time Sunset had the OEM Porsche WP for only a few $$ more and way cheaper than anywhere else. I think the price has gone up a little.
I also did UDP at the same time.

If your mechanic will do it for $100 in labor that sounds like a good deal to me, and if you do a Motor mount and the labor only goes up a little bit more even better :)

+1 on the motor mount. I was replacing draining the coolant anyway, so having the hoses disconnected made it a lot easier to get to the motor mount.