Just finished replacing the water pump, thermostat, oil cooler seals and trailing arm links (tuning forks).
The PITA bolt on the water pump wasn't so bad. My Craftsman 1/4" drive with an 8mm deep-well socket fit in there perfectly to break the bolt loose.
The I used a regular socket with a Harbor Freight swivel attachment to pull it the rest of the way by hand.
In addition to a bit of play on the pulley, once I got the pump off I noticed some crustiness, looks like it may have started to leak from the weep hole.
But the impeller was intact! :dance:
Turns out this must have been the original pump, since the gasket was never cut. Not bad for 91K miles, I guess. (although yesterday I changed the WP on my Dodge Grand Caravan with 163K miles and it, too was original)
The new gasket got a little janked up during shipment. When I first started the car I had a little coolant weeping at the gasket, but after re-torquing the bolts it seems to be holding. I'll have to keep an eye on it for a while.
And no more annoying clunking when I go over bumps with the new tuning forks! :dance: