1
V8 water pump - remove and refit
John Dupont (Teal Blue 0534) provided our first V8 Workshop Note which was released in the V8 Column of the April 1979 issue of Safety Fast!. (Apr 79)

This note should be read with sheet 25.50.01 of the V8 Workshop Manual Supplement (AKM 0039).

Removal: Firstly you must drain the block as well as the radiator. This is because the four long bolts securing the pump to the block go direct into the water jacket, so if you do not drain the block, water will come pouring out! Of the four long bolts, one is longer than the other three and on my car I found I had to remove the radiator in order to pull this bolt out. Incidentally, this bolt is no longer available - the part number is 253955 so if you can find a dealer who has one in stock, snap it up. When all the bolts have been removed take the pump off by tapping it forwards with a soft hide or nylon hammer. Do not hit the pump downwards as there are two small dowels which help to re-locate the new pump. The four long bolts must be cleaned in petrol or thinners to remove old sealant that will be on them. I found a wire brush of the type you clean sparking plugs with to be very useful.

Refitting: Smear a new gasket both sides with Golden Hemetite and place it in position on the new pump. The next piece of information is very important. The four long bolts must be coated with 3M EC776 thread lubricant - Rover part number 605764. Failure to do so may mean the next time you come to change the water pump, the long steel bolts may be impossible to remove as they will be corroded solid in the aluminium block. Only coat one bolt at a time and put it in the pump and block with the coating wet. Do not let the lubricant air dry. Finally torque up the bolts.

When fitting the by-pass and heater outlet hoses, make sure you position the jubilee clips so you can reach the head with a screw driver with the top hose in position to aid re-tightening. I positioned them wrongly once and found I had to drain the radiator again and take off the top hose to get at the clips on the two smaller hoses.
Part numbers: The water pump has changed its part number in my parts catalogue from GWP304 to GWP310. The three long bolts 254037 and the one long bolt 253955. Hose outlet pipe 90611531, top hose GRH512, water pump gasket 610756. Torque settings are - large bolts 17lbs ft and the small bolts 7 lbs ft.

1a)
Sequel to the water pump note
Peter Beadle (Damask 0414) explains that the Rover thread lubricant is now part number 608591 and incidentally is around £6.00 a tin! (Note that was in 1979 pound notes!)

The long bolt 253955 mentioned as NLA can be obtained as a JRT part BH505441. The shorter long bolts 254037 come in packs of five and you only need three! Fortunately the JRT part is sold individually as part BH505381. Similarly the hoses can be obtained as JRT parts - for 613644 now order JRT ERC2279 and 906 11531 now order JRT ERC2278. Finally the water pump GWP310 comes complete with the gasket 610756.

1b)
Mini water pump sequel
Charles Williams (Blaze 1170) from Wolverhampton popped up with this sequel to avoid the need to remove the radiator.

I recently had my water pump go and doing the job properly, I read the manual and the relevant V8 Workshop Notes. John Dupont mentions that he removed his radiator to take out the long bolt and I followed this. However it is not necessary as when the all the bolts are undone the long one will come off with the pump. Reassembly - place the bolt in the pump before offering the pump back into position.

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