Water pump leak?

ChucksKLRST said:
Your water pump has two seals in it. A Slipper seal for the coolant and an Oil Seal that seperated the chain drive of the impeller from the water pump side. If these seals start to go bad then they will leak from the weep hole. See pictures
Click to expand...

Hi, I know this is an old thread, but I'm just about ready to undertake the seal replacement given the "weep hole" leak on my 04. Quick question though, and possible more to follow after I start the task!

Apart from the impeller, do all of the seals, including the one nearest impeller get pressed in from the engine side of the casing? Its just that all of the pictures I have viewed, I find it difficult to work out in relation to the impeller does that bearing /seal orientate.

Many thanks.
 
Sorry, I can't recall. I think so, but wouldn't swear on it. I know I couldn't have done it without access to an actual bearing press and some scrap PVC collars. If you haven't finished yet, then good luck.
 
I must reply, my st has 33000 miles and the water pump is being warrantied AGAIN. Leaking from weep hole not loose hose clamps. I checked this forum in hopes that this was a bike problem but it sounds like everyone thinks its hose clamps and maybe my st is one of the few with this problem. My mechanic says it will no doubt do it again and then I guess the bill will be on me unless Honda steps up. Thanks for the info anyway.
 
Homerj said:
I checked this forum in hopes that this was a bike problem but it sounds like everyone thinks its hose clamps...
Click to expand...

We tend to take the "check your clamps" route first because those leaks are very common, are often mistaken for failed water pumps because the leaked coolant drains through a channel just below the pump and are easy to check on.

My mechanic says it will no doubt do it again...
Click to expand...

If this is your second replacement by the same mechanic and it fails again, I'd start questioning your mechanic before I would the water pumps. Past experience doesn't favor two failures, much less three. If the system was refilled with coolant containing silicate corrosion inhibitors, that's a recipe for the pump seals to die a pretty quick death, as is improper installation of the new seals.

Honda changed the design of the housing in 2008 to incorporate a drain tube instead of letting it drip down the side of the engine. To me that's pretty much an acknowledgement that the coolant seal (there are two, the other is for oil) is going to leak a little bit.

Tell us about the history of your bike: Have you owned it since it was new? How long ago (time and mileage) did the first failure happen? Where did you see the leakage and how much was there?

...and then I guess the bill will be on me unless Honda steps up.
Click to expand...

Your other post says you have a 2007, which I'd assume means you also have the extended warranty. If the work was done by an authorized Honda dealer, any defects will continue to be covered by the Honda warranty. If the dealer gives you any grief about it, whip out your phone and call Torrance. The number is in the back of your warranty booklet.

--Mark
 
+1 on Mark's thoughts. The tech got paid to replace parts and may have little interest in looking any further than that route. What are the odds two pumps were faulty?
 
I seem to remember a thread floating around that talked about the DEPTH of the part while being pressed in.
Maybe the Mechanic is pressing it in too far, or not enough? I also agree, I'd get a different mechanic if it keeps happening.
.02
 
I would like to retrofit a drain onto the weep hole so I can better monitor my "slow weeper, mainly in cold temps". Is this simply an elbow fitting that is pressed into the hole, or is it threaded?

FYI, my weeper started last year, coolant only. It wept when I started it cold this spring but doesn't appear to have wept all summer. I am going to roll dice that I will be fine for the rest of this season and replace it next year. Already have parts, just don't have time and want to "wear out" the existing seal fully first. Seems like a piss poor design that allows a manageable leak before it gets to the point of replacement.
 
While I would agree that there is a lot of road grime there, did you bother watching the video? He has in fact lost his mechanical seal, as shown my it pumping out weep hole.
 
Blrfl said:
Cars have been using spring-type clamps for a very long time. Not only are they less expensive and less work to install, they also self-adjust. My theory about why this is a problem on the ST is that the clamps are steel and the fittings are aluminum, which has a much higher coefficient of expansion. When the bike gets cold enough, the fitting shrinks faster than the clamp. The clamp loses clamping force, which is one of the things keeping the worm gear in place. Rayzerman, who's been in the auto business, also says they dump a stop-leak pellet into the cooling systems on cars during manufacturing. Cars that were old enough to have had worm-gear clamps would also have had steel fittings that wouldn't have shrunk as quickly.

--Mark
Click to expand...
Late to the party here. This makes sense! Thank you Mark
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom