Thoughts on Water Pumps

[78F350]

"Thoughts on Water Pumps"

I expect that my thoughts will differ from many.

• Many owners have had original water pumps last well over 100K miles and longer than 15 years. Many have had a variety of significant failures well short of that. These engines can be ruined by a failed pump.
• Waiting for symptoms of a problem before changing the pump sounds crazy to me. It's not that difficult a job. The cost is not significant compared with other regular maint items.
• Efficient/proper cooling is critical in these engines.
• Pierburg makes the OE pumps and can be purchased at a significant discount by a savvy shopper.
• Many other reputable manufacturers make good, adequate pumps to "OE specification" (what does that really mean) for between $100-$200.
• My version of the internet said it is best to change them every 3-5 years. I'm cool with that.
• Metal? or composite? I don't care. Both have modes of failure that will ruin my engine. Buy adequate quality of either and replace it short of the design life cycle.

Lastly, I know a guy that worked with a major OE parts supplier. They made the parts to the specifications of the buyer -Ford/Toyota/MB.... They also had their own production line for aftermarket. The materials and quality could be quite different between the production lines.