Invius

Working on car now, have 7 10mm bolts out of pump, but won't drop down, or come out above, what am I missing?

Raised engine, loosened bolts for engine bracket all the way, have it pulled back as far as it will go, still no joy.

Thanks,

DS

Akshun

you may need to use a flat screwdriver to pry it from the engine.

Invius

it's free and dangling, just doesn't seem to be enough clearance to remove it. It looks like I need to remove the hose to the thermostat housing as well, which looks like it's going to be a bitch

fpena944

Correct, you must remove the hose and that is by far the worst part of this job. But I've seen somewhere that there are water hose tools to make removal easier. I didn't have one so I struggled every way I can to get that thing off.

Good luck!

Invius

Thanks Fernando, any tips? It's a pain in the @ss!!!

rmc1148

There are remote clamp removal tools I believe sears online has them, Im sure someine will add better info.If its just the hose try loosening /prying with screwdriver spray some lube between hose and nipple if you can.

JMLavoie

My water pump failed on me last Thurs, about 300 m from home and managed to coast home: lucky. 00 C2 has 141k kms or about 87k miles and I believe it is original wasserpumpe, as they say.
Heard the impeller rattle against the wall of the pump or engine wall when it failed and it was all very quick affair. Retraced coolant trail for same distance to home. Not sure yet if impeller bits got to travel? A bit worried about that!
Getting more well-reputed VW dealer with excellent mechanics to do replacement.
Since they are not totally familiar with PCars, I printed an excellent renntech.org procedures for them to follow to do this job: Very happy I did this for them and I'm sure happy being a renntech member as well.
Should get the pump today and start the removal job today or tomorrow. I'll try to get some helpful feedback from the mechanic once the job is done or ... I'll hear from them before if they run into a similar problem encountered earlier in this thread. Sorry I cannot be more helpful at this stage.
Martin

fpena944

The hose clamps are actually pretty easy in this case because they are accessible. But you are correct, if you have the clamp tool it does make it less painful. I did have it but what makes it more difficult is the hose itself because it is very snug up against the receiving end.

As mentioned above the clamps are one thing, but at least you can see how they work and there is hope in sight when you have them loosened. The problem I had the most was with the actual hose. For that I very carefully used a think flat-head screwdriver and a plumbers wrench with a rag to keep the teeth from sinking into the rubber.

Using a combination of prying and pulling I was finally able to get the hose off. It would move millimeters at a time but very slowly I made progress. Honestly it took me longer to get that hose off than the rest of the waterpump itself. I guess it makes sense that it has to be tight because of the pressures associated with the cooling system but it makes for a pain when removing/replacing them.

DBJoe996

I finally removed the hose clamp and hose at the top and dropped the whole assembly with the thermostat housing down carefully. I never could get that hose loose on the thermostat housing. I agree with above, it took me more time to get that hose assembly off than replacing the water pump. Bang on the water pump with a rubber mallet to get it loose. I had to do that too. Make sure the engine mount bracket is as far back as you can get it towards the rear of the car. Also, replace the top and bottom spring loaded hose clamps with quality SS worm clamps of the correct size. Makes a difference. Also, I remember that there is a metal tube down there fastened to the left side of the engine. I took the two bolts out on the left side of the engine but needed more space while working down there. Found a third bracket bolt way up under the engine about in the middle, removed it and then I could move that metal tube way out of the way so it made things much easier, particularly when removing and replacing the thermostat housing.

Invius

I had to remove the thermostat housing as well to get the water pump out... and since I removed it, now the seal is seeping and it wasn't before, so I am going to have to order a new gasket for the thermostat. It's always something.

I did the same thing with the metal hose.

Thanks for all the help guys!

porsche-t

This looks like a good explanation of the job - .

Invius

Thanks Porsche-T, I had watched that video numerous times before I went in. The black hose you see hanging down is the one I couldn't get off, and the video starts with it off, so the part I needed assistance on was never discussed. I ended up taking the thermostat housing off, dropping out the pump, and putting the T-stat housing back...but now I need a new t-stat gasket since I opened it up it now has a tiny drop which it never had before.

Thanks for the assistance,

DS

soverystout

the t-stat and water pump are always best done together with all the necessary gaskets. Sucks you will have to have coolant running out of the car again. hopefully you ordered a new drain plug washer for the plug.

Revn29k00

Sorry to bring this thread back but I'm looking for any tips as well. I currently have the water pump and t-stat off the car but there were 2 bolts that were a royal pain in the a$$. The first one was the water pump bolt on the right side. Very tight and was able to get it with multiple wobble extensions. The second was the upper left t-stat bolt. This one was the hardest because the exhaust header was in the way. Again I got it off but I am concerned with how I am going to get these back on.

Any tips?

Rapewta

Go to Renntech.org and do a search in the common fixes and repairs for 996's.
If you dropped it down and out, you will get the replacement back up and in.
It took me most the day to replace mine as a first timer.
Remember to use the correct coolant (phosphate free) and keep "burping" the air out of the system for a couple days.

Your dash coolant temp/level light will probably keep coming on until the
air is out of the lines. Check out Renntech. Lots of guys giving great tips and videos on this replacement. It is not easy if you have not done it before.