Newbie Question - Coolant Pump.

[john.harrill]

A friend's Scorpion will be deposited in my driveway tomorrow. The water pump has packed it in and I will be replacing it in the coming weeks.

The local shop quoted the owner a price, which included pulling the engine to replace the pump.

Is it necessary? Can the front of the engine be accessed through the wheel well, like other transaxle-equipped cars? :confused:

[DJ]

There's absolutely no need to remove the engine to replace the water pump. And it can easily be done from above.

Once you remove all the peripherals, remove the pulley bolts but leave the pulley hanging loosely. You probably won't be able to get it out anyway. Then loosen the pump bolts and work the entire assembly out together.

To reassemble, hang the pulley back on loosely and work the pump back into place. Replace the bolts and reinstall the peripherals and you're good to go.

You should also be aware that the Scorpion (and Euro Beta VX) use a pump with a wider impeller so try to get the correct one. If you can only find a regular Beta pump, it will work fine, too. Many people have used them on Scorpions with no problems.

[John Allen]

The Scorpion pump also has one other unique feature, the pulley hub is 'triangular' in shape. This allows you to remove the pulley bolts and 'tilt' the pulley to clear the frame rails and remove it without pulling the engine. I have seen a Beta pumps with this feature, not sure if all of them have it (124s and 131s have round hubs).

IF you can't get enough clearance to pull the pump, loosen the engine mount under the frame rail near the pulleys and tilt the engine down a little with a jack - removing the rear wheel may also help with clearance.

[davidb]

I found lowering the engine was a MUST ! Replacing the
"T"-stat too would'nt be a bad idea. Hint: if you use grey
Permatex water pump RTV sealant [#22071] work fast.
It doesn't stay "workable" very long, quickly gets tacky.
And of course apply sparingly: don't seal the pump holes!

[John O]

I found lowering the engine was a MUST ! ... don't seal the pump holes!

I didn't find lowering needed, but there's no accouting for what worn e-mount might necessitate. The Scorp pump is far easier to change than on an X.

David, is right on the money when he notes not blocking the holes. It's also possible to install the pump return gasket incorrectly thus partially blocking water flow, as it is NOT symmetrical.

When changing pumps, I discovered that the previous owner had installed a Beta pump rather than a genuine Scorp pump and I took some pics to document the differences I found. Pics are HERE (http://picasaweb.google.com/roadbox128/ScorpWaterPump).

Hope that helps.

John O.

[john.harrill]

Thanks, all.
I hope to start on it soon. Here's where it diddled on my driveway:

[DJ]

I found lowering the engine was a MUST !

That's only because you didn't have proper guidance... ;)

[DJ]

Thanks, all.
I hope to start on it soon. Here's where it diddled on my driveway:

Yep. That's precisely where diddle would emit from a Scorpion...

[DJ]

The Scorpion pump also has one other unique feature, the pulley hub is 'triangular' in shape. This allows you to remove the pulley bolts and 'tilt' the pulley to clear the frame rails and remove it without pulling the engine. I have seen a Beta pumps with this feature, not sure if all of them have it (124s and 131s have round hubs).

IF you can't get enough clearance to pull the pump, loosen the engine mount under the frame rail near the pulleys and tilt the engine down a little with a jack - removing the rear wheel may also help with clearance.

I thought I responded to this yesterday but I must not have hit the submit button.

Maybe, maybe not, John. I've had 2 different Scorpion pumps that had round hubs. I've also had Beta pumps with the triangular hub. Additionally, I currently have a pump with a triangular hub but the pulley will not come off without also loosening and moving around the pump.

Unless your mounts are shot and the engine is sagging toward the strut tower, you should never need to loosen engine mounts and tilt the engine to replace a water pump if you just follow the procedure I outlined. It may take a bit of twisting and turning to figure out how to get it out and back in but patience is the key and it works like a charm.

To add a bit more specificity, you should remove the pulley bolts first and they should be the last to go back in. Being able to move the pulley around allows easier access to the pump bolts.

[john.harrill]

Coolant pump is in and working.
Not that hard, really. Hung the pulley on the end of the pump shaft while positioning the new one and it slid in nicely.

Thanks, all.:)