Sc300 Water Pump Replacement

[WadeLovell]

Failed to replace water pump when timing belt was done by mechanic last year. Is there a good write-up on doing just the water pump for the SC300? I see a lot of information on the timing belt. Is it just the same job over again with a different objective? I hate to drop another $1k to have the mechanic do it if I can handle the work. Thanks in advance.

[WadeLovell]

So far, it amounts to following the directions for replacing the timing belt. I had to pull the radiator in order to fit the air impact wrench onto the large bolt for the harmonic balancer. That actually did not do it (600 ft/lbs at 90PSI using 4.8 CFM). I attached a four foot long cheater bar to a 1/2" drive bar and an air impact six sided 22mm socket, had the assistant crank the starter and forced up hard on the cheater bar to free the nut. Next time I will remember to either disconnect the spark plug wires or connect an oil cooler to avoid the mess I created this time.

I am replacing the timing belt as well even though this timing belt only has 15,000 miles on it. It is a quarter of its way through its life and this will buy a full 60,000.

[WadeLovell]

Update:

The "OEM" fitment Asin water pump I bought from AutoPartsWarehouse {NOT recommended} was not an OEM fitment water pump. If you buy a real OEM fitment pump you will be able to separate the front half (which has moving parts) from the back half (which has no moving parts) and dramatically reduce the time required to replace the water pump. If, on the other hand, you do as I did and buy one where the entire unit is the same size and shape but the casting itself is different, you will have to figure out you have a problem when the replacement gasket you ordered fits the old pump but not the new pump, remove the heat shield on the passenger's side, disconnect additional couplings, and replace additional o-rings. O-rings not included with the pump were over $17 at the dealer. The one leak I had afterward could have been avoided but I had to disconnect the back half of the water pump {where I tried to reuse an o-ring}.

Ideal world: Buy an OEM pump or a precise replica of the OEM pump. Spend $3 on a replacement gasket which you probably won't need. Save some money on o-rings. Save some money on coolant. Save an hour or so on disassembly and reassembly.