Reuse a water pump from a parts car?

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72Valiant4Door

72Valiant4Door

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I have a parts car with a 318, and it happens to have an aluminum water pump on it....

I was wondering if it is okay to use? I would love saving a little weight. The 318 ran when i got it, but has sat for a decade and the motor was gunked up and dry rotted.

The cooling system was in great shape and held full coolant.

My tech buddy said not to use it, because it has sat for so long.
 
As already stated it might be iffy, you can even up your luck some by checking the bearing, any slop or side to side movement? Set it up with the shaft pointing down, pour some water into the pump cavity; does it leak any where? Spin the shaft and see if anything changes; still no leaks you've got maybe an 80% probability of success for no dollars spent.

Good luck with what ever you do.
 
Is the inlet on the same side? Some are different..... I just replaced the iron pump on my 68 and couldn't find one in aluminum....
 
I reuse as much as I can all the time on my personal stuff, cuz if it don't work, I got another one waiting.
Lemee see if I can remember something that didn't rework........I guess I'll have to get back to you.
 
The one that is original to your car is exactly the same. IF you have a cast iron pump, then someone swapped a 69-down setup into your car.
Nothing will interchange between the two styles. Different timing cover, damper, pulleys, accessory brackets.
Not a simple swap
 
I wouldn't chance it. Parted out a 5.9 Durango 8 years ago. Was a running leak free truck. Kept the water pump just in case I ever need one on the wife's Durango. Ended up putting it on Jake's project truck last month. No play at all in the shaft. It leaked about a pint of coolant over night. Suspected he flubbed the gasket, so we removed it, installed another gasket and reassembled. Lost another pint overnight. It's in the scrap pile now. (The waterpump, not the truck)
 
whitepunkonnitro said:
... Nothing will interchange between the two styles. Different timing cover, damper, pulleys, accessory brackets.
Not a simple swap
Click to expand...
I 2nd that. I changed my 65 Dart 273 to the later aluminum water pump and had to get creative with pulleys and belts. It is also 1" thicker, so no room to install a fan clutch. I also had to change from the TRW to the Federal power steering pump, since no brackets exist to mount a TRW to the later water pump.
 
I pride myself on being oober cheap, but I don't ever reuse stuff like that. Ever. If it had a bolt on rear cover and you could easily service the bearings and seals, sure, I'd do it. I'd refurbish it and put it on. But that's the only way. Just my .02. Eric L
 
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