You may already know this, but on average, you can expect to get about 100,000 miles out of the water pump that was installed in the cooling system when your car, truck, or utility vehicle was assembled in the factory. It is important to have the cooling system serviced every 30,000 miles so we can inspect the water pump to make sure there is nothing wrong. Here are signs you need a new water pump.
Corrosion on the Pump
The water pump is located in the front of the engine and it can get corroded if it starts to leak slowly. This is a common problem with an old water pump that needs to be replaced. Unfortunately, the coolant will seep out of the water pump and puddle around the pump. When the liquid comes in contact with the metal, it will start to eat through it.
Leaking Engine Coolant
As the problem gets worse, you may end up with leaking engine coolant on the garage floor. You can check the color of your engine coolant when the engine is cold. Simply look at the radiator overflow reservoir or unscrew the radiator cap to see the color of the coolant. If you’ve got the same color on the garage floor, the water pump may be leaking.
Rotten Circulation
In order to get coolant into the engine, the thermostat releases it and the water pump circulates it. As the water pump gets too old, it may have problems circulating the coolant. Consequently, you will not have enough coolant throughout the engine to keep the temperature below 220 degrees Fahrenheit. As such, the engine will start to overheat.
Growling Engine Sounds
The water pump may also make strange growling noises if it is going bad. You will hear these noises coming from the front of your engine because, as we mentioned above, this is where the water pump is located. It is important to bring your vehicle to our shop right away if it is making any strange noises. This includes a growling water pump in the engine.
Constant Overheating
Finally, the engine is going to overheat constantly if the water pump is not functioning properly. The reason why is that you do not have coolant circulating through the engine to remove the heat from the engine. As such, the engine will get too hot.
Call us right away if you are having any of the problems that we have discussed in this blog post. We can remove the old water pump and replace it with a new one.