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View Full Version : What are the signs of a wrong-rotation water pump?


MFE
March 18th, 2006, 02:27 PM
I got my engine back, got it installed, it runs beautifully but it runs HOT. Way hotter than before the rebuild.

The thermostat is a brand new Super Stat, installed correctly and with a bleed hole drilled in it. The water pump is brand new, the radiator is the same nearly new 3-row that I took out of it 3 months ago, the fan clutch is new less than a year ago and is the same I took out, etc.

The coolant does not smell of exhaust and the oil doesn't appear to have water in it. I'm pretty sure the head gaskets were installed correctly, I can see the tabs sticking out the corners and the guy who put it together has been building engines for over 40 years.

I have been ****ing with this thing for over a week and I'm about to set it on fire, which would be OK, because the water gushing out the radiator would put it out pretty quick.

Today's episode involved jacking the drivers side of the car up a mile high so the rad opening was the highest point in the system. I filled the rad. I ran the car til the stat opened and it gushed over 2 gallons out the rad opening. I filled it back up, it gushed. Once it stopped gushing the level in the rad went up and down several inches in a 10-second cycle. Temp needle slightly above halfway.

Are these the signs of a wrong-rotation water pump? I'm about to rip the ****er out of there and have a less than pleasant chat with the parts counter if it's the wrong one.

Kwiknotch
March 18th, 2006, 05:35 PM
I'm pretty sure all the water pumps that fit the 87-93 cars and have the two tubes one the passenger side are reverse rotation. I know you might not think so, but I have seen brand new thermostats be stuck, so that would be my guess.

PnyPwr
March 19th, 2006, 08:38 PM
the bolt pattern for the pulley on standard rotation water pumps is different than the bolt pattern on reverse rotation pumps (at least on Fords it is)