Folks,

Ever wonder why they designed the red block water pump the way they did? Having just replaced mine, I got to wondering. It seems strange to cantilever the pulley so far from the support plane. No wonder the pump is prone to failure if you over tighten the pump/alternator belt. And wouldn't it have been more straightforward and wiser to design a configuration that had its gasket surfaces in a single plane. This design has gaskets/seals in 3 planes, for heaven's sake. My old Taurus push rod engine has a simple one-surface gasket design, is low profile so the side load on the bearing is minimal and the auto-tensioner is fool proof (a good thing when I have a wrench in hand). Geez, if Ford can do this....

I cursed the design last night when I goofed the seating of the rubber ring on the tube that goes out the back. I should have stuck my finger into the hose opening to feel that the ring had seated properly. Live and learn. Too bad there was no way to back off the tube and reseat the ring without taking it all apart again. Having to take off the fan and pump one more time was a pain.

I know that the tube out the back routes coolant to the heater box without having to wait for the thermostat to open (warmer tooties faster...nice), but that could be achieved in a one-plane design, surely.

And if you are supposed to preload the upper gasket by pushing up on the pump while tightening the bolts, ya think there would be a metal surface close to the bolt plane to lever against. And why oh why would they design it so that you have to take off the top half of the timing belt cover to get at one of the screws. Not a big deal but neither is altering the cover design a few mm. All in all, I am not impressed.

Still, when it is installed properly, it does work just fine. I have to grant the designer that.

Bill