Hi all

Just looking for some advice/pointers on changing out a water pump on my 04/4.7. I am trying to get into doing more of my own work on the truck and want to tackle this. I have been trying to do some research on it but am finding that most people posted just that they have changed it. Not really too much on the steps involved. I can see that the belt has to be removed as well as the rad overflow and fan shroud. I guess my questions are

1. How do I remove the clutch fan from the water pump? Should I attempt this prior to removing the belt?

2. Where are the hoses coming from the water pump? I am assuming that they are located above the bigger rad hose?

3. Where is the rad drain located? I believe it is on the bottom right of the rad if you are facing the front of the truck. Just need confirmation I guess.

Thanks all for any help....I figure the only way to learn is to start doing. This job seemed in the moderate range of skill level for me. I will post my results after and maybe take some step by step pics.

 

1) Jam the water pump pulley with a screw driver and use a wrench and hammer to turn the nut on the fan CCW. They also make a spanner wrench for this purpose.

2) Only hoses you can have are the upper and lower rad hoses and heater hoses

3) drain is usually on the drivers side at the bottom. Removing the lower rad hose will also help.

Taking the pump off is fairly direct. Obviously the belt has to come off. Now would be a good time to replace it if needed.

 

I agree with weedahoe...

I would start with the shroud. If it is a 2 piece shroud, you can take the four screws out right off the bat. This will make it easier to get everything past the fan. To remove the fan, I have used a bolt (probably about 2 inches longor so) to stick through one of the holes in the pulley which will hold it in place as you unscrew the fan. You can use a pipe wrench or large cresent wrench if you dont have an open-end wrench that size. Once you get the fan off, you simply take out all of the bolts holding it on. I would recommend using a piece of cardboard with holes punched in it in the shape of the pump, so you can put them all back in the hole they came out of.

Hope this helps...

 

Thanks for the repies!

Do the hoses actually need to be removed then? They dont appear to be attached to the water pump itself if I am looking at it properly. They seem to be off to the left hand side. Maybe the ones I am looking at are the heater hoses.

 

Had a better look at it today. Located the drain and the upper and lower rad hoses. I am assuming the two smaller ones on the lower left are heater hoses. Guess I can drain most of it through the rad and then the rest out of the pump. It looks like the upper rad hose has a fill plug near it. I will fill there after install so that the pump has no air trapped in it.

Again I will try to take pics as I go.

 

Sounds good and yes those two smaller hoses are heater hoses. Some guys also use an aspirin to wedge and hold open the stat so any air can pass through. Eventually the aspirin will dissolve and close the stat.

 

Thats a cool idea.....Any idea what the torque settings are for the water pump? I havent had much luck finding them. I suppose I could try to figure it out by testing the bolts that are in there now.....

I also have not had much luck finding what the capacity is for coolant - any ideas? I would assume that since I am only draining the rad and pump I wont need to fill it completely but when I picked up the water pump the clerk there only gave me one 4L jug of anti freeze. Never thought much of it until I got home. I would like to add new although I suppose I could just reuse what I drain.

 

You can find and download your service manual here and find the torque specs in it

https://dodgeforum.com/forum/3rd-gen...-download.html

 

Well attempted this job today. While draining the rad, I repalced the tensioner pulley which was pretty simple. Once the rad was drained I removed the overflow from the fan shroud and then started on the clutch fan. Tried jamming a screwdriver in the water pump pulley but only ended up with a bent screwdriver. Tried jamming two allen keys and another screwdriver in there.....nope. Even welded up a makeshift spanner wrench with a piece of flat bar and two more allen keys as pins....still nothing. SO.....I ended up refilling the rad and putting the belt back on.

According to the service manual I found online, the clutch fan coupling has to be turned counter clockwise (looking from front) to loosen. I even checked the new water pump threads and they are right handed so it should be counter clockwise.

Anyone have any ideas as to any other tricks.....or am I driving it to the shop this weekend?

Oh and one more thought....I noticed the original tensioner pullet spun pretty freely byu hand while on but when I installed the new one it doesnt spin quite as free. Is this alright? I watched it while the truck was running and the belt doesnt appear to be slipping on it or anything.

Thanks again!

 

Thanks Weedahoe....though I found it after doing some searching on the internet.