Hello!

Thanks to the help of several knowledgeable people on this board, the water pump change on my new used 1990 760 V6 is on the way. I've finally managed to get everything out of there, hoses, fan belts...

There would be plenty of things to write for a beginner's guide. The faq on this site is nice but I'd say much of it is not relevant to this particular engine, and it kinda works only if you are already familiar with this kind of work, the various technical terms, and already know exactly what is what under the hood, but can be frustrating for beginners. The Chilton book that I have is much worse actually.

It seems like the water pump change itself should not take too long but there are many other things that can make you lose a lot of time, such as stuborn fan nuts, figuring out how to slacken the drive belts etc... It seems that I have already spent hours trying to remove bolts and nuts and my hands are hurting from that. Make sure you have vise-grips handy. PB Blaster didn't seem to be of much use. I even broke a ratchetting wrench trying to get some bolts off, and a socket also.

I also spent a lot of time and frustration trying to remove the smallest bypass hose at the back of the rear pump housing (next to the big fat one). I decided that the only way was to cut it and get a replacement (got just s standard by-the-foot piece of hose to replace that 2.5 inch long one). It was difficult to access and I just sawed it off with a long, toothed kitchen knife. I discovered that the hose was actually joining 2 metal tubes that were practically touching each other, so there was barely any space to slide the blade. I am afraid that remounting those 2 hoses when replacing the pump is going to be a major pita (lubricant?).

One more bolt is giving me trouble. Now that the pump is out, I am trying to separate it from the back housing (retained by 4 bolts). 3 of them went out, and to put up a last resistance the 4th one just stubornly remains in there. No amount of PB Blaster, force, vise-grip pressure and hammering will take it out. Since I can slide a thin saw in there I am probably going to saw it and replace it (the stuck part will remain in the old pump that will be replaced so no need to drill it out).

Because everything has to be complicated, ACE didn't carry those bolts that seem to be 7mm. They had the 6, they had the 8, not the 7, so I'm on a quest to find them.

Sorry for this very long post, but I think it could be interesting for first-timers like me to know all the caveats that can turn a 2-hour job into a 4-days thing.

I'll post with my findings after I get a chance to put this whole thing back together. Ideally the radiator should be changed, especially since a part of the upper right plastic tube (that the upper hose goes on) broke away with the old hose, but that will have to hold for a while until I have the funds for a new radiator.

David.

Ps : oh, also, use a *large* recipient for the coolant when you take off that lower hose, not small ones like I did.........bad move.