NickVR6 0 Posted December 16, 2006 Well after 3 weeks off the road and missing the RR day my cooling problems are now explained :shock: :shock: Anyone removed one worse than this!! ?? I've replaced it with a euro car parts one with a metal impeller, the rest appears identicle though, oh and it was less than £20 rather than £65 from the stealer! I will say though, the original pump has done nearly 140k and the bearings were fine!! Pump literally fell out which was cool, but it turns out the new crack pipe was leaking a lot of coolant as we couldnt get it to seal properly due to rust on the block, so we took the engine out. IT WAS THE ONLY WAY to machine the block surface back to get a good seal :roll: All done though and coolant has dropped 15deg 8) and after an hour long run in period (between 4000 and 6000rpm :twisted: ) im in love with my car once more. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ReekieVR 0 Posted December 17, 2006 the new crack pipe was leaking a lot of coolant Well, i heard of a cool smoke before..... so we took the engine out. IT WAS THE ONLY WAY to machine the block surface back to get a good seal :roll: Eh, you took the whole engine out !?? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Supercharged Junkie 0 Posted December 17, 2006 Wow man, That must of been fun having to remove the whole engine just for that :mad: Glad its all sorted now! Will have to meet up again somewhen mate, been a tad lazy recently :-( Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Supercharged 2 Posted December 17, 2006 Nice one Nicolas, I think they must have quoted for the other pump at the dealer tho as they are about £20 also - I reckon the pattern part maybe better tho being metal... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dr_mat 0 Posted December 17, 2006 Nice one Nicolas, I think they must have quoted for the other pump at the dealer tho as they are about £20 also - I reckon the pattern part maybe better tho being metal... They moved to using plastic for a reason, it wasn't for cheapness sake .. That said, the metal ones will last a good length of time, assuming you keep the antifreeze (and anti-corrosion) up to strength. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NickVR6 0 Posted December 18, 2006 i did think the plstic was for a reason, swings and roundabouts i guess! thats why i added that it had lasted 140k! problem is because ive been upgrading everything,fitting oil coolers etc etc trying to drop the temps, i think its now too cool! I did 400 miles today visiting the mad haywire and the water sat just under 80 on the gauge and the oil never got over 80 lol. When i bought the thing the oil was on 118 and water around 100 all the time!! I know mine will run cooler with fi though, as Vince maps them on the safe side, so more fuel = cooler temps. Car seemed very happy all day they, very consistant and pulled like hell with some nice cool air today. oh and yes, engine out because my block was so rusty round the crack pipe it needed to be properly machined back to a nice smooth surface, and you cant get in there. Its my 3rd crack pipe so just wanted it sorted once and for all, as they should last 10+yrs without leaking. Its one of those things, you can fanny around all day playing contorsionist and brake other bits or take a step back and think f-it, wouldnt it be easier if it was right in front of you! Easy to say that though when you have access to all the gear ;-) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin Bacon 5 Posted December 18, 2006 They moved to using plastic for a reason, it wasn't for cheapness sake .. That said, the metal ones will last a good length of time, assuming you keep the antifreeze (and anti-corrosion) up to strength. That is exactly why they used plastic. Injection moulding plastic is a lot cheaper than casting metal, which is why all the new VR engines have plastic manifolds etc. It's all about 'fit for purpose' these days, and not making things last like the good old days. Other manufacturers use plastic impellers in the pumps too and the same happens. It's a shoddy design since plastic and metal expand at different rates and the impellers are simply pressed on.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Supercharged 2 Posted December 18, 2006 Easy to say that though when you have access to all the gear I just can't believe you took it out and stuck the same 140k engine back in again...! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GIXXERUK 0 Posted December 18, 2006 mine looked pretty much the same when i replaced it nick Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Supercharged 2 Posted December 18, 2006 Also - where to all the bits of broken plastic end up? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GIXXERUK 0 Posted December 18, 2006 fingers in and fish and you do find .... most of them lol.... fish fingers ! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yandards 0 Posted December 18, 2006 They moved to using plastic for a reason, it wasn't for cheapness sake .. That said, the metal ones will last a good length of time, assuming you keep the antifreeze (and anti-corrosion) up to strength. That is exactly why they used plastic. Injection moulding plastic is a lot cheaper than casting metal, which is why all the new VR engines have plastic manifolds etc. It's all about 'fit for purpose' these days, and not making things last like the good old days. Other manufacturers use plastic impellers in the pumps too and the same happens. It's a shoddy design since plastic and metal expand at different rates and the impellers are simply pressed on.... There are other issues with plastic parts too, the main being that contaminates in the water system (and they do get there) will cause a lot more damage to a plastic impeller than a metal one. It is just part of the 'lifed' cars that are being manufactured these days - everything is simulated/analysed so they can tie down failure points to within a tight mileage limit. Not that you would get them to admit it but I would put good money that most car companies don't expect 'new' cars to get past 10 years without major work. In fact as VAG's policy on spares is only to supply MOT parts for 7 years instead of the 20+ years they used to, there is a good case for a 7 year life expectancy. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites