What To Do When The Factory Piece Takes Its Place In The Aluminum Graveyard In The Sky
It happens to every water-cooled car. We have to swap out our water pump. In our case, we're replacing our factory unit with an Edelbrock Victor-series aluminum water pump. The water pump (available in both unpolished, PN 8840, and polished, PN 8845) is heavy-duty for both street and racing applications. Externally, the Edelbrock pump is exactly the same as the stocker to provide compatibility with all accessories and pulleys. The 8840s and 8845s are reverse-rotation pumps for ’86-’93 5.0 V-8s, and offer increased durability and cooling potential.
After 83,000 miles of use, my factory pump decided it was done taking my abuse and was ready to take its place in the aluminum graveyard in the sky. We first noticed the problem while leaning on the radiator support one day pondering the next performance addition. We saw a subtle, yet attention-grabbing, leak coming from the center of the engine on the underside. That’s the one good thing about a water pump that goes out—it’s easy to diagnose. If this happens to your car’s water pump, you’ll need to allocate about 3-4 hours from start to finish for the job. Along with our Edelbrock water pump, we also visited our local auto parts store for new radiator hoses, coolant, clamps, thermostat and gasket, a can of radiator flush, and a tube of thread sealant.