Replace Seized Water Pump
Summary
Replace a failed water pump in my M50 engine.
Start Date: May 2012
Odometer: 308,000km
Total cost: $0
When test drove the the M50 engine I installed in my car, it overheated after a few minutes. I tried bleeding the radiator, but it still overheated. The radiator was new, and had good pressure and flow. I next removed and tested the thermostat out of the car, and found it was functioning properly. Finally I started removing the water pump to inspect its condition. The pump's plastic impeller was seized in the engine. I pulled out what I could of the impeller, and replaced the water pump with a known-working spare I had on hand.
Parts
Journal
Here is the failed water pump. I tried to reconstruct the impeller to be sure I had retrieved as many pieces as possible. Remaining pieces will dissolve over time in the engine's coolant chambers.
As soon as the water pump was replaced, the engine stopped overheating.