My 94' 940T has a scary sound coming from the water pump area. It is making a rattling type of sound. I read as many FAQ's as I could about the water pump, and I don't think that I read anything about this problem. I assumed that it maybe the W/pump or the T-belt. It seems to be coming from the T-belt cover area. Any thoughts?

Thanks
RZ

My vote is timing belt tensioner. You really should change your belt every 50k, and generally the tensioner is replaced at about every other timing belt change. You are surely living on borrowed time with 200k on your car, assuming the first belt was replaced near 100k and has not been replaced since. If the belt breaks, you will find yourself dead in the water, but your engine wil not otherwise suffer. Regardless, this is something you need to deal with asap. If the tensioner seizes, your belt will break. OTOH, if it is water pump bearings you are hearing, pump failure is not far away, and you don't want to ge there either.

Allen

listen to Pete he is correct.

You will need the gasket and both orings to seal the water pump properly. I always have a spare set of them on hand when I replace a water pump, cheap insurance.

Good luck

As noted, this engine is different from the B6304 in the 960 and it cannot be destroyed by a timing belt failure.

Likely sources of noise: water pump or timing belt tensioner. If both are aging, then replace the whole shebang for peace of mind. It is real cheap, real fast, and not technically challenging if you read the FAQ carefully.
--
See the 700/900 FAQ under 'Select Link' button on the top right.

Hold it, and don't panic. This is a non-interference engine. If the timing belt fails the car stops. It doesn't do any more damage than that. Not that this isn't bad enough....

Is it overheating? Any idea on the age of the waterpump or when the timing belt was last changed.

The rattling sound could be what you think it is, or it might be something entirely different. Check all the fluids.

Start with the simple stuff. Are belts properly tightened?

Thanks for the information. First of all, I have 200178 miles on this car. I believe this is the original water pump and the second timing belt. It is not running hot at all, nor is it leaking, I looked at the belt and it appeared fine. I started the car and listened, the chattering still seems to come from the water pump.
I can't get to it for a couple of days, but I bought a w/pump last night, I guess I should have grabbed a t/belt also.
Hey, thanks for the info. I'll get to it here soon.

Yes! Don't drive the car until you find out what's going on. The timing belt in these cars drive the water pump, idle wheels and is held in place by a tensioner. "As the belt goes, so does the engine" and boy are the engines expensive in this model.
’97 960 104k

The timing belt does not drive the waterpump, and it's a non interference engine on a 940.

Regards


Pete