[Jamie '92 968]

So, the last 2 days my car had been making an unusual sound. Kind of like a rattle but with a squeel sound that hinted of some fluid involvement.
Couldn't figure out where it was coming from, as it was intermittant, and was planning to have it checked out ASAP.

Unfortunately, things at work are pretty busy so I didn't get around to it....

On the way home from work last night I noticed a funny smell (coolant?) and didn't see any likely cause from the cars ahead of me.
My eyes went to the temp gauge and sure enough, 3 or 4 seconds later it started to climb.

Luckily, I was right at an exit and pulled into a mall parking lot right as the temp gauge pegged and shut the car down.
When I got out, there was a big river of coolant coming out from under the car.

I popped the hood and watched my coolant tank level drop from a bit below normal to empty in about 15 seconds.

Looks to me like the water pump let loose.

Couldn't see any burst hoses and the HCV looks fine.
I just had my radiator and most of my hoses replaced a few weeks ago.


Luckily, I was not stuck in a bad place, I had no place I had to be at that moment, and I was well within AAA towing range of RS Barn.

I thought it strange that Max was already gone for the night when I called to let them know that I needed help.
Apparently SOMEBODY is monopolizing Max right now.

Flash, can you please send him home where he belongs? [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif[/img]


Jamie

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[rxter]

Hold on a second. THere are a few more head gaskets that need attention around here [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif[/img]

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[ds968]

Bummer, sorry to hear about that. Hopefully it was almost time to replace your drive belts... [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/huh.gif[/img] , so there's silver lining in there somewhere ?

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[Jamie '92 968]

[quote name='ds968' date='Jun 4 2010, 02:30 PM' post='94194']
Bummer, sorry to hear about that. Hopefully it was almost time to replace your drive belts... [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/huh.gif[/img] , so there's silver lining in there somewhere ?


Great point.
I've got about 3 years and 25K on them.

The water pump is original. 18 yrs and 145K.
Guess I got my money's worth out of it.


Jamie

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[Darryl]

Do they belts anyway while it's all apart...those parts are cheap enough compared to the labor to R&R and purchase of the water pump. Sorry to hear about the problem.

- Darryl

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[flash]

max is now on a plane headed back

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[Jamie '92 968]

[quote name='flash' date='Jun 4 2010, 04:11 PM' post='94203']
max is now on a plane headed back
[/quote


Excellent!

I was afraid he might decide he liked California and stay.
[img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cool.gif[/img]

Jamie

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[Jamie '92 968]

Just talked to Pete.
He confirmed that my water pump ceased and cooked the timing belt to the edge of failure by the time I shut it down.

Guess I was lucky the temp shot up as fast as it did so I knew to shut it off quick.

A new pump and a few belts and I'll be back in business. [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif[/img]

Jamie

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[Scott Collins]

Hey Jamie,

RT. 476, (aka "The Blue Route") is as good a place as any to have a problem. Fairly new highway, good-sized shoulders.
What exit was it?

Nothing like the smell of coolant cooking off, right? Sorry about the pump. Smart move to pull over and shut it down. You saved thousands!

You'll probably have the Barn do the work, but if you need any tools, just holler. I'm close, and have the flywheel lock, spanner wrenches, and some other stuff you would need.



-Scott

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[Jamie '92 968]

Scott,

Was coming North by the Baltimore Pike exit and pulled off into the Springfield Mall Macy's parking lot.

It was good timing, and I appreciated the shade trees while waiting an hour and a half for the AAA flat bed.

The car is, in deed, at the Barn awaiting the arrival of some parts and Max's return from LA LA land, but thanks for the offer [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif[/img] .



Interesting question that I just remembered...
I could not locate the tow eye hook for my car to be pulled up onto the flat bed. I expected it to be in the tool kit, but it wasn't there.

This is strange, because there is nothing missing from my car, including the white gloves in the box under the hood.
I've never been towed before (knock on wood), so I just assumed it would be there.

Is the tow hook located somewhere else?

Jamie

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[Scott Collins]

My tow hook is in the tool kit pouch, deep in one of those pockets. Did you check all the way down? Maybe it's buried?

Sounds like you found a good spot to have the breakdown, and also shop if you had had more time. Usually with AAA, you can shop for hours!

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[Jamie '92 968]

Update:

Picked up my car from RS Barn yeasterday. Good as new!

Apparently, the bearings in the water pump failed and the shaft and impeller had shifted at an angle to the point where the impeller was contacting the pump housing.
The water pump had completely ceased and was burning up the timing belt from friction over the pulley.
Max told me I should buy a lottery ticket.
I was pretty lucky to get away with just a new pump and some belts and rollers.
It was pretty scary to see chunks of timing belt that had worn off.

From what I am told, this is a pretty rare failure mode of the 968 water pump, which is why I was not in a hurry to replace it. Mostly, the failures are benign and just result in a lack of flow through the system or a slow leak of coolant.
Any other data points out there?

The moral of the story is that if you hear a squeaking noise that may be coming from the water pump, BEWARE!

On the plus side, I got my belts replaced, and the slight vibration I had at higher RPMs since my last belt job at the P dealer 3 years ago is now gone.
The vibs were pretty subtle, and everybody except me thought things were absolutely normal. But I knew it was there and it bothered me.
Done by the experts, the car now runs much smoother. [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif[/img]


Jamie

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[rhudeboye]

Man did you dodge a bullet!

I did a DIY upper radiator hose replacement a while back. A few months after, I drove up to PA to leave my car at RSB. As they pulled things apart they noticed the radiator hose was being sawn into by the belt running beside it. The hose had a lot of excess that I should of cut off so it fit in there tighter. So I came close to over heating in the middle of a 200 mile road trip.

Situations like these encourage me to <b>stop </b>tinkering with my car and leave it to the pros.

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[pure&amp;simple]

Congrats! Great to hear it turned out ok.

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[Jamie '92 968]

[quote name='pure&simple' date='Jun 9 2010, 11:35 PM' post='94544']
Congrats! Great to hear it turned out ok.
[/quote


And thanks again for the real-time help with the RSBarn contact info!
I owe you one.

This network of good people is amazingly useful.

Jamie

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[flash]

i love it when it works out like that

the belt comment reminds me to make a side note to everyone - there is a little support bracket that is supposed to hold your upper radiator hose up away from the belt - if it's gone, the belt will hit and make a mess

here is a thread about it:
http://www.968forums.com/index.php?showtopic=8566

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[Jamie '92 968]

If you don't want to buy and install the bracket, it looks like the D1R SC kit is an alternative fix for this problem.
[img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif[/img]

Jamie

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[flash]

lol - yup

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[Scott Collins]

Jamie,

Nice that you did not have to look at some bent valves. Very nice.... You have to be the luckiest guy right now. Head to Atlantic City now, before it wears off! [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif[/img]

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