Hey, I have a 1988 Dodge Dakota 3.9 V6. Last week, the water pump went bad while I was driving. I need help replacing it and buying the parts

 

It's a pretty straight forward job. You'll drain the coolant, if it hasn't all run out. Disconnect the battery negative cable. Remove the belt(s) and hoses. Remove the fan. Then remove the bolts that hold the pump to the block. The longer bolts are different lengths so keep track of them. I generally will pull a bolt and put it into the matching bolt hole on the new pump. Use a good scraper to remove all the old gasket. Match the old and new pump and make sure they are the same. You may have to swap the heater hose pipe to the new pump. Some have a removable pipe and others have a pipe fitting to hook the hose to.

While you're at it, replace the thermostat with a new 192 degree unit, but do NOT get a Failsafe. Every one of those I've dealt with either were failed when I got to it of failed in short order. I had one fail the first time I warmed the engine up. You also want to replace that little bypass hose. Those are designed to failed when it's really inconvenient, at least it seems that way. Usually in the freezing rain on a really windy day.

You want to seal the gaskets with a thin seal of grey RTV water pump and thermostat gasket sealant. You also want a little sealant on the long bolts that go through the pump into the water jacket or you'll have pesky leaks that are hard to track down. Move the bolts from the new pump to the old one keeping them in the matching holes. Once everything is ready to reassemble, put two of the long holes in the proper holes on the new pump and get them started in the correct holes. Don't let the gasket sealant touch the block yet. Turn the bolts in a bit to stabilize the pump then put the rest of the long bolts in. Move it close to the block and start the short bolts.Make sure all of them are started in the proper holes then snug them down. Tighten one with them not all started and you may not get them all in.

Once the bolts are torqued down, put the new thermostat in. Make sure it's in the groove and not to one side or it WILL leak. A little sealant on both sides of the gasket here too. If there isn't a little jiggle valve or hole in the thermostat, drill a 1/64 hole to prevent an air lock. Most of them have the jiggle valves now. Once that is on, put the NEW bypass hose on and clamp it.Now you can put the fan back on as well as the upper and lower radiator hoses. I try to orientate the clamps so I can tighten them when it's all back together. Invariably one or two will need tightening after a couple of heat cycles.

Once everything is back together, fill it with fresh coolant. Don't reuse your old stuff, if any is left. This is the time to fill with fresh coolant and you'll be good for the next 4-5 years. I generally will get the concentrate and mix it with distilled water but I have several cars at any one time. You can get premixed coolant ready to use, and it's a little cheaper per gallon but concentrate makes two gallons. The premix will be good for the cold weather to come.

As far as tools, you'll need basic ones. A 3/8 drive ratchet set in SAE, a combination wrench set, some pliers and screw drivers.

I'd suggest going to the U of Y (University of Youtube) and watch someone do it to get an idea of what you're going to do. I've been doing this since the late 60's and I still watch a video before I tackle something. Some of the better videos even tell you what tools you'll need.

 

Hey, Thanks. Btw do you know how much coolant it takes.

 

Not off hand. I usually get a gallon of distilled water and a gallon of Coolant concentrate. Get a large tub and mix them together to get two gallons of mix. Your truck will probably take about 1 1/2 gallons. Keep the rest and mark the bottle MIX so if you get a little low, you have a good mix to add.

 

Hey I loaned this fan removal tool from oriellys. I think it called fan clutch removal wrench. It said it can be used on a dodge 3.9 v6 but I couldn’t figure out how it works. So, what I’m getting here is, how do I take the radiator fan off this 1988 dodge Dakota 3.9 v6. I’ll upload a picture of how it looks too.

 

That's probably for the later ones, You have the old bolt on stye. Looks like you have one bolt holding the fan on. After removing you may have to wiggle the fan to get it off.

 

You don't show the tool. In the bottom picture I can see one bolt hiding behind the fan blade. Looks like you took the other 3 out or they are hidden by the angle of the camera.
Look at this page scroll down to see the fan clutches so you can get an idea of how it is bolted on. https://www.carid.com/1988-dodge-dakota-radiator-fans/