Water Pump

Leaking water pump

mainiac7 2/10/01

I just received shipment of my 1947 Crosley Pickup and the water pump is leaking from the front end. It looks like it might be possible to tighten up the packing by tightening the large nut on the end, but have no manual yet. Is this possible or is there a repair kit?

rwright24127 2/11/01

I looked through my service manual and didn't see anything. The parts dealer I have been dealing with, is Service Motors. I've had pretty good luck with them so far and they do sell rebuild kits for the water pump.

chuckhk1941 2/11/01

On the pump with large brass nut on end--try to tightened it--it is adjustable. If there is no adjustment left, you must replace the packing( not a hard job)-Local hardware store -- ask for Faucet packing -- it's all the same -install, tighten.  Checking the bushing wouldn't be a bad idea (for play) & LUBE with waterproof water pump lube.

mainiac7 2/11/01

Thanks Chuck I was hoping to hear what you described. I will repack and lube it so I will know it is not going to be a problem later. 

Pump Coupler

klownskar 10/1/01

Can regular heater hose be successfully used as a water pump coupling?

chuckhk1941 10/1/01

NO. If making it yourself use air conditioning hose, make sure the holes (small)are the same as the orig.or the impeller will scrape the inside of the pump. Better yet our vendors sell them cheap. http://CrosleyAutoClub.com/PartsSuppliers.html

Water Pump Coupler

Dale62 – Winter 2010

What is the distance between the holes for the rubber water pump link? I need the measurement from the hole for the generator to the hole for the water pump on the rubber link.

JimB – Winter 2010

I measured one of the couplers our vendors sell for a couple of dollars and it measured 1 1/8th inch center to center.

ChuckK – Winter 2010

Make sure that the generator pin is in the hole on the plate that mounts inside the bracket. Jim's answer(1 1/8) is the same as I came up with.

Water Pump Goop

prowland Apr 30, 2002

Has anyone else had these problems and found solutions: Coolant foaming, and black goop seeping out of the water pump. Regarding foaming, I've tried pressure caps, new pumps, block and radiator cleaning, checking for pinholes, thermostat checks- nothing helps. The black goop just worries me- what's it leading to!
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chuckhk1941 Apr 30, 2002 8:44:39 PM

The black goop from the water pump could the wrong grease mixing with water-antifreeze -- must be waterproof grease.

Jim Bollman Apr 30, 2002

If Chuck is right and the black goop is from the wrong kind of grease that could be where the foam is coming from to.

The water may be going through with out be spread through the block. Inside the inlet on the side of the engine there should be a baffle that spread the water along the 4 cylinders. If the water is not being spread, your engine not only will run hot on the 1st and 4th cylinder but the faster water circulation might aggravate the foaming. The baffle plate is often corrode off.

prowland May 1, 2002

Thanks, guys for your input on foaming etc. The side plate internal baffles are OK but the pump lubricant is questionable. I am using Drydene water pump lubricant, which should be compatible with Prestone-water mix, but maybe it isn't. I queried Prestone manufacturer some years ago about this foaming problem and they said they had reduced the anti-foaming agent in the formula because of the high system pressures used now.  Maybe I should switch from Prestone to water plus anti-rust additive in warm weather!

Types of Water Pumps

Crosley_AZ – 11/21/05

I have 2 types of water pumps.  One splits into 2 pieces.  The other has a plate on the back of the main casting where the pump blade is removed. Early and late designs? Both seem to be rebuildable.

ServiceMotors – 11/27/05

The 4 bolt water pump (has a diamond shaped plate on the back that is held on with 4 bolts) was the earlier of the two styles (prior to it, there was a 3 bolt design which was used with the early generator. It had a triangular shaped back plate attached with 3 bolts). The 4 and 3 bolt uses a rope style packing similar to but better than faucet packing (how fast can you spin your faucet handle?)

The 6 bolt that splits, uses spring loaded vee type sealing rings and is the later style.

There are kits available for either style pump.

Which Water Pump is Easiest to Rebuild

Cutworm – Summer 2009

I have a few water pumps, all different. Which one is best to re-build and use?

Crosley19 – Summer 2009

The early water pump is the easiest to rebuild, and if it leaks just tighten the packing nut. The late model water pump is good, but you have to make sure the bore where the chevron seals go is in good condition, no pitting. The best pump is the late model with the 4 vane impeller. Usually the stock Crosley cooling system is more than adequate. When I build high performance engines I use a Military 4 blade impeller. There are 2 types of 4 blade impellers. The first type had curved blades which really caught the water and moved it. I made Lexan side plates to see why some of my big blocks were getting hot spots on the cylinder walls. The cavitation caused by the curved 4 blade impeller caused a lot of air pockets around the cylinder walls. The second type has straight blades. I prefer the straight blades, there is less cavitation, and the water does not move as fast, giving it a little longer time in the block to transfer the heat to the water, and a little longer time in the radiator to transfer the heat out of the water.