I have a 3.9L V6 & spent the last week replacing cooling system components. Everything went wrong: One of the 7 water pump bolts broke, a thermostat bolt broke, then the heater core pipe came loose. I got the thermostat fixed by using a thin stamped steel housing which enabled me to use the broken bolt as a stud with a nut. There was enough thread left, which was great because I don't have to get it drilled out or need a new intake manifold. I got the correct heater core, but it didn't fit quite right in any dimension. It didn't quite match the mounting screws, wasn't wide enough on the flange piece to fit the slot, the top cover had to be Dremel-tooled for the pipes to come out, and it's just a bit taller than the original, making the heater box dome at the top. Fortunately it is aluminum. As for the water pump, it's the very top bolt that broke, the one without any brackets. It left a bit of threaded stud to put back in the hole, and I'm using a small C-Clamp to hold that area of the gasket/Permatex tight. The clamp is just under the pulley to the left of the belt in the 2nd last pic.

I know the answers will be "Get it redone, the right way," but it's holding after a couple heat up cycles. Any dangers of long term leaking? I will not do the job again myself, I'm getting too old & have physical issues. I really didn't think the job would be this bad. A shop I called said it might even need a new timing chain cover. The van has both the factory temp gauge (H/C) plus it has an aftermarket calibrated gauge reading about 190 F operating temp, so I can keep an eye on it.

THX in advance.