Hi,

I'm only 2 months into ownership of a 996 Turbo. Can someone please tell me if this is the water pump leaking? I've searched DIY, and I plan on replacing it myself along with the t-stat, but I want to make sure this is actually the water pump before I purchase the parts I need.

So far I've replaced the alternator, air filter, cabin filter, fuel filter (I checked the coolant expansion tank since I could see it, didn't notice any cracks), oil change, trans fluid change, front and rear diff fluid change.

In the summer I will be replacing the three radiators and hoses, plugs and coils.

I appreciate any insight you can provide.

 

If that is the driver's side (assuming this is a USA car), yes that is the water pump.

 

Yes, USA and its the driver side. Thank you for the reply. This may be a stupid question, but where is the thermostat in the turbo? I've searched the forums and pelicanparts guide, but they only show a carrera version which seems to have a different thermostat location/housing or is it pretty much the same? My car also has 90k miles, should I replace the hoses as well?

 

Thermostat is a little housing to the left side diagonally to the pump. Yes, change everything you can while in there. New OEM pump (plastic impeller) and t-stat, hoses, etc. New coolant. I would do the drive belt too

 

Thermostat is in the housing the water pump connects to... if you are standing at back of the car, it would be in the upper left area.

I would inspect the condition of the hoses and replace if necessary. If they are the original hoses, I'd definitely swap them out while in there for peace of mind.

 

With my 2003 Turbo it was clear the water pump was leaking from the blob of dried anti-freeze residue under/behind the water pump pulley.

See pic.

 

There is a little hole in the front of the water pump. When the impeller fails, water comes through that hole. The OP pictures seem to be showing a new pump and old evidence of a leak from before - maybe even some leaking around the seals. The DIY is here: Water Pump replacement DIY

 

Thanks, I appreciate all the feedback. There is a very very slow leak that it hasn't even touched my garage floor yet. The only reason I noticed the droplet on the hose (colored orange) was because I heard a very faint unusual noise coming from the engine, so I decided to take a look under and noticed the small coolant droplet. I'm waiting for the parts from pelican as we speak.

Can I just recycle the coolant I drain from the water pump change? I plan on doing the radiators in the summer which is when I will replace all the coolant with the new pink type. I drive this almost every day.

 

You can recycle it if it's in good shape. I would never, even @ $45 a gallon I have flushed mine 2-3x this year during maintenance. Watch the weeping if you continue to drive the car as the bearing will def fail and cause the impeller to get chewed up and bits thrown into the cooling system. Not a HUGE deal but avoid it if you can. Once it really falls it will puke alot of coolant from the pump area. OEM coolant is also pink.

 

Thanks, Ive only driven it once since I found that leak and it was only to drop my kid off at the bus stop which is probably 1/10th of a mile.

 

My Turbo water pump was quiet. But on a warm day after driving around a parking lot and then parking the car and getting my Mom in the car I smelled anti-freeze. I know from experience if one smells anti-freeze there's leak.

At the dealer -- after dropping Mom off first -- the tech lifted the car and spotted the leak sign.

In the case of my Turbo the only time I've heard noise from that area of the car the source has proved to be a noisy accessory drive idler/tensioner roller bearing. I've gone through two sets of these now in just over 151K miles.

Now it was different with my Boxster. I heard a noise at cold idle that got a bit worse as the engine got hot. This proved to be the water pump. It was not leaking. And the accessory drive idler/tensioner rollers were original then -- at around 172K miles -- and are still original at 307K miles.

So with your Turbo you have a water pump leak but the water pump might not be the source of the noise.

Don't delay in getting the water pump replaced. If it develops too much bearing play this can ruin the belt. (My Boxster's water pump was causing the edge of the belt to wear.) With play comes the risk the water pump impeller blades contact the block. This shreds the impeller blades and runs the risk of filing the engine coolant passages with plastic impeller debris that can block/interfere with coolant flow.

In severe cases the water pump can suffer a catastrophic mechanical failure -- the water pump shaft snaps -- and this brings with it the risk of severe collateral damage to the car or the engine.

Also, don't delay replacing the radiators if they are leaking. Any coolant leak can allow hot coolant pressure to bleed away. The risk of this is the coolant boils/flashes to steam in the hottest areas. It is pressure that prevent the hot coolant from boiling. If the coolant boils/flashes to steam pockets of steam can form at the hottest locations in the heads the steam acts to keep the cooler coolant away from the hot areas and they get hotter. A cracked head (or possibly a blown head gasket though cracked heads seem to be more common than blown gaskets) can be the result.