Patience! If memory serves me correctly, I was able to get the bolt started with my fingers and then worked a swivel socket on there with a couple of extensions. It was tight but doable.

 

I did my water pump and thermostat this weekend. The youtube video makes it look easy ! Getting air box out and belt is easy (MAF sensor on the '02 has a clip on the underside you have to press to pull the electrical connector out - that took me a while to figure out since i didn't want to break anything - but now I could do it in 10 secs). Removing engine bracket is also quite easy. I used sissor jack to support weight of engine (more secure than my trolley jack). You just need to move the final bolts on the bracket as far back as they will come without taking them off - this gives an extra inch or so of clearance to get pump out later.

Now the hard part - 5 of the bolts on the water pump are easy - the 6th is OK - but the last one on the bottom right is hard to get to. I tried various socket extensions and U joint - finally I used a 1/4" socket from the top of the engine with a screwdriver to keep it pressed against the bolt - that work - but took me a long time to figure that out and get it out/in again.

Use wire cutters to cut the w-pump gasket - three cuts required.

To get the pump out - you have to disconnect the hoses - spring clips can be compressed and moved back with plumbers wrench - but space is tight in there so a medium size wrench was good - to get the actual hose off that has been on there 12 years is hard - I used a screw driver to pry it - but took a long time - the hoses were in remarkably good condition and still flexible.

You also have to move the rigdig water line on the side of the engine to get access to thermostat bolts and remove that too - then pump slides right out.

My pump vanes looked fine, and I couldn't hear any bearing noise or wobble - but there was some scoring inside the hole where the pump sits. (65K miles). I had decided to do this job due to coolant loss and eventually saw a leak under the pump. (Fluid is green as die ages - not pink - as it comes out of engine)

Got pump back in (again it took time to get that last bolt). I used permatex water pump sealant like he shows on video - original factory fit does not use that (looks like just the gasket) - but it does make it easier to position the gasket when fitting it back on - same for the thermostat.

Old thermostat (factory) was Wahler - new one - same brand from Pelican. Decided not to go with low temp one. I used Pierberg pump. Used Pentosin SF fluid ($12.99 at O'Reiley for 1.5ltr - took about 4 bottles plus same amount of distilled water) . After I put it all together I could still see green fluid by bottom thermostat bolt - dang - after driving for 5 miles with bleed valve open - things look good - no leak - not sure where that drip came from (hopefully from a spill while I was filling fluid). Car still looks dry after a few hours.

This was definitely a whole weekend project for me - don;t budget 2 hours unless you have done ti a few times before ! But doable and the video is very helpful (although missing a few critical pointers for newbies like removing MAF, hoses, and best technique for bolt # 7 ! )

Hopefully this write-up is useful for some of you - and I do not see anymore leaks !

Cheers - time for a cold guinness

 

Thanks for taking the time to share your tips!

 

If you haven't already succeeded... remove the idler pulley above the water pump and pull it out from above. I spent an hour tearing up my hands on the old pump's gasket before I decided to ignore the "pull it out from below" step in all of the water pump DIYs. 2 minutes to remove the idler, and the pump slipped right out. It was also a snap to lower the new pump in from above...

Removing from above also eliminates messing with the hard line.

 

There is a hard line on the left side of the engine without looking, I believe it is the one that connects to the thermostat there are three bolts 2 on the left engine block and one @ the front undoing this and moving it out of the way will give you clearance to get the water pump out, That last bolt on the right side is tough, I put a bit of grease on the head and got it in place with a box end then used a 1/4" drive short socket on a swivel with a long wobble extension a pain but it worked, make sure that you have the correct pump before you start, I ordered mine and got a 997 pump looks the same only a slightly larger impeller, ended up doing my pump twice. There is a good tutorial on Renntech.

 

My indy told me they have installed hundreds of the 997 pumps in 996s with no issues. I have heard others say its not a good idea?

 

Do not listen to your indy is all I can say. Maybe they never try to hand spin the pump after it's on. There was a recent thread not long ago someone found out the 997 pump is ~2mm bigger in diameter than the 996 pump.
https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...n-a-996-a.html

Also, the latest 996 pump has 996xxx in the part number, not a 997 number. The 997 pump is for 997 and is not meant to be an upgrade to our 996s!

 

He is simply wrong, they are not compatible the impeller doesn't fit into the block, as stated it is 2mm larger I measured it, had to change out my water pump twice, good practice I guess.

 

This is not the recommended method for boring out an M96.

 

 

Oops, just realized, I put right side of engine, meant LEFT side, it was on the right when I was looking up at it, sorry bout that.