Device2

Just like a feature piece of the old Ripley's "Believe it or Not" I removed and replaced an 18 yr old water pump that was all still in one piece and still functioning well. The manufacture of the pump is SEM, the oil pump cover was also stamped with "SEM." Being that the engine was assemble in 99 I presume its OE, anyhow all dates on the waterpump were stamped as 99 it had no leaks or squeaks, the impeller is solid too can't believe the luck..

Never the less due to mileage and age the part is out and replaced with a new one. So I should be good for another 18 yrs. Lol, SMH just joking but I will definitely take better care of maintenance items on this 996 than the previous Porsche owner.

Botsy67

Great job, that reminds me to replace mine as well...ughhh!!! Just curious, are you planning to re-use the existing bolts or replace them with new ones? Thanks, Cheers,

Mike Murphy

Lol, I think my 99 water pump is still original and taking the car to the track for a DE tomorrow. Hope it lasts!

Paul Waterloo

Murphy: You'll be just fine. I replaced mine last year and it was basically pristine.

KoB

Wow! I just replaced mine for the second time in a few years. The previous one was a no-name, metal impeller pump put in by a local outfit that has since gone out of business. I was under the car earlier this year and noticed a leak. Replacement pump (Pierburg) and new thermostat went in this week.

That no-name pump was also the last time I let anybody else spec my parts. I trust my current shop (Bavarian Rocket Scientists, Albany NY) completely -- but I still buy my own parts, even for work I'm having them do. Probably not necessary since they use the same OE and OEM stuff that I usually buy, but I do it anyway.

bal

@KoB: Glad you replaced the metal impeller pump with the proper kind.

@Botsy67: Not sure if new hardware is warranted. I *think* there might have been thread lock on mine. The tightening torque is very low - I over-tightened one of them and deheaded it...

5CHN3LL

One more data point: I changed the pump in my '99 when I got the car ~4 years ago @ about 50K miles. Several vanes were already chipped, but the rotor was mostly intact. It was actively weeping coolant from the shaft; I realized this when I was pushing the car VERY hard (rev limiter in 5th) and it was leaking enough coolant for me to notice it in the rear view.

Catching it at this stage was just dumb luck. Even after blowing out enough coolant to see, pulling over, and electing to make the 150 mile trip back home as-is rather than risking messing with it and getting caught in the desert during the hot part of the day, I only lost about half a liter.

Gretch

did mine at 130k. It was making a metallic noise. Scared me so much i had the car flatbedded to the shop. I was greatly relieved it was only the pump.