“It was at this moment he knew…he effed up.”

Was attempting to pull the power steering pump from my 99 Ram 1500 5.2L. Knew there were four bolts that mount it, and I (accidentally) chose poorly and pulled this one instead. Located just under the hard line coming from the water pump, it came out easy enough.

Trying to reinstall has been a different issue. Gets to the last half inch, as shown, and it feels like it’s binding/bottoming out; now coolant is starting to seep out.

So my questions for the hive mind:

- What the hell did I pull out?
- What, if any, unnatural acts are required to correctly reinstall it?

As always, appreciate your constructive comments and suggestions.

 

I belive that is a timing cover bolt. Should just reinstall like any other bolt

 

Ah Grasshopper, you have taken the first step towards wisdom. You messed up and realized it. Seriously, with coolant coming out, I think you may have pulled a bolt from the water pump. It's definitely the same bolt that came out of the hole isn't it? The next time I'm out by my truck, I'll raise the hood and double check.

Now, is the bolt partially threaded but not going in or can you pull it out as it sits in the photo?

 

Likely a timing cover bolt. I'd re-install it and refill your coolant.

 

Probably pulled a little gasket with it and now its having to push it. Or it's got some rtv on the threads and they like to gunk up the threads. Probably fine just cranking it down.

Oh, and you're not even to the fun part of removing the pump from the bracket. Hope you rented the tool to pull /press the pulley. Then you get to bleed the system for about a month. I've done two. Grab some beers.

 

Thanks for all the response so far. Much appreciated.

So after a little sleep, a lot of caffiene, and some morning Google Fu, it looks like I pulled a long water pump bolt.

From another post on DodgeForum here , it's the 130mm bolt shown in the picture.

So, if that's the case, have I bought myself a water pump uninstall and reinstall to get the bolt to seat? Other considerations, given the position/function of this bolt?

 

No, it should just go back. If it's truly fighting you, pull it entirely and inspect the threads for RTV (likely) or thread locker (would be odd). Also for damage like a rolled or crushed thread. Reinstall with a bit of RTV on the threads and maybe a dab under the head itself for good measure.

If it's still putting up a considerable fight, you may need to run a tap in, but getting a tap long enough might be a different story.

You may lose a fair bit of coolant with the bolt removed 100%, so you have 2 choices: just snug it now as-is and trust nothing significant is wrong, or take the bolt out for inspection and lose coolant.

Only you can decide, without being there with my hands on the ratchet I can't judge how exactly the threads feel.....

 

After zooming on your photo....whoever gooped that bypass tube into wp may have been a real hack (as stupid as I think the tiny, fragile o-ring is I've never needed anything more).....so who knows what the previous mekanik did with your bolt......

It might even be the wrong length altogether as they vary a bit. I can't tell (more accurately can't REMEMBER) but it kinda looks like your bolt doesn't anchor the wp but rather just the timing cover. I just did this job but hell I can't remember what I did yesterday....

 

Also the thread you reference is '04 3rd Gen and WAY different

IIRC 2nd Gen has 7 wp bolts. 4 longer ones at coolant passages thru cover (2 left and 2 right). 3 shorter ones everywhere else. It's pretty self explanatory when it's apart

 

There's some pics here that might help you.

I further believe it's just a timing cover bolt so worrying about wp bolt lengths is pointless, but I don't remember what the timing cover bolts did for different lengths

https://dodgeforum.com/forum/2nd-gen...-and-wp-2.html