Ugh!! What a weekend...

November 18, 2008, 07:27:37 AM

So my weekend started out with me looking forward to putting my new chrome water pump on the bird along with doing some painting of the brackets. I purchased a high flow chrome water pump from summit and could'nt wait to put it on.

I'm out side looking at the engine, lots of room should be easy but noooooo, I had to pull the alternator, power steering pump and AC unit, oh well, get to work. Got everything off and decide since I had the power steering pump out, might as well get a new one as mine was starting to go out.

So, got everything off, matched up the water pump to the old one (making sure I have the correct one) all is good so time to install the the new pump. I get it on, nice and secure, then I pull the pulley off the old power steering pump and put it on the new PS pump (but first paint the pulley), by now it has gotten dark, time to quit for the night.

Well, got up in the morning and went to work on the car. I got the PS pump installed and the alternator installed, hoses hooked up and now it was time to put the pulley onto the water pump (I forgot to put it on when I had it out). So I go to put the pulley on and , it won't fit!!!! The pulley washiznitting the crank pulley I'm like WTF!!!!! Right pump, compared it to the old pump, they look the same!!!! , had to take everything off again, once the pump was off I got to looking at it a little closer, pulled the tape measure out and started checking the dimensions. The new pump's shaft was an eighth of an inch longer and a little over an eighth of an inch lower than the old pump. On top of that, the bracket the pulley attaches to was like 2 inches or so in diameter and and the old pumps was about and inch and a half in diameter.

So I had to run to the parts store and buy a stock pump, I have and 87 TC with an 1985 302 in it. I ask for a 1985 WP for a 302 and they bring it out and it is the same as the chrome pump, I'm like wtf? So he brings out one for an 87, nope, wrong one, we look at a couple more and finally find the right one, it turns out an 84 WP is what I need. Ain't that some , got an 87 TC, with an 85 302 with an 83 timing set up and an 84 WP.

This sucks, nothing easy about this car when it comes to working on it.

I finally get everything back on and crank the car, it starts then stalls out, does it again and then one more time, now she won't start!!!!

Get to looking and she's not getting any fuel!!!!! !!! Played around with it for a bit, checking fuses, checking to make sure I didn't disconnect a wire somewhere, can't find anything. A friend of comes over and he looks at and taps on the carberator and bingo she starts, float was sticking (I was just pissed off didn't even think of that). So the bird is back on the road now.

Now I have a high flow, chrome water pump for an 85 302 that I can't return due to I had put it on the car. So if anyone needs or wants one I sell it you cheap!!!!

Now onto my next project, a new chrome WP, AC unit, PS pump, Valve Covers and Breather and some new paint. Just hope I don't run into anymore issues like the this one

Ugh!! What a weekend...

Reply #1 – November 18, 2008, 12:39:05 PM

Man that sucks. But it's things like that that really make me appreciate big block Mopars even more. There were only two water pumps over all the years of production, no matter what the cubic inch. An A/C pump, and a NON A/C pump. And the difference was the number of blades on the impeller. Except for the HP rating, all the old Mopars used the same starter, whether a /6 or a 440+6. You can even use a starter off a new truck on the old cars. Same 2 bolt mounting. Same 2 wire hookup. Was a bunch of stuff like that.