- Change everything you can think to change avoiding the possibility that the water pump is what's leaking
- Give in and decide to change the water pump
- Read the Haynes manual.... a lot
- Thank the stars above you have a 6 cylinder that does not require removal of the timing chain
- Purchase water pump and gasket (app. $40)
- Put van on ramps
- Disconnect negative battery terminal
- Drain antifreeze (for about the fifth time in a month...you should be good at this by now)
- Remove plastic belt guard (for about the third time in a month... again, you're an expert)
- Using 19 mm box wrench rotate belt tensioner counter clockwise to loosen belt
- Slip, pinning hand between wrench and lower pulley
- Swear
- Push hard, using the pain and frustration
- Remove serpentine belt from water pump, tucking it carefully out of the way without removing from other pulleys
- Release tensioner, almost pinning hand again
- Remove three 12 mm bolts holding water pump belt wheel
- Attempt to remove five 10 mm bolts securing waterpump
- Realize your handy open socket set is not sufficient for job
- Get trusty heavy duty hinged ratchet and sockets with extension
- Realize your metric sockets are in the trifold toolbox
- Search in vain for said toolbox
- Swear
- Ask wife where it is, getting the expected response
- Swear
- Call son to see if it at his house; not there... swear again
- Ride with Daughter-in-law (who came to get wife to go shopping) to purchase metric sockets
- Get call from son on the way saying he did have the box after all; go there to get it
- Return home and continue work
- Remove five 10 mm bolts securing water pump
- Push water pump pulley wheel against water pump and attempt to pull water pump from vehicle
- Realize the leak has been going on long enough to "rust fuse" the water pump to the timing cover
- Spray the hell of it with WD-40, clean up, and eat lunch while the magical solution does its work
- Pull water pump from vehicle (yay!); realize there's not enough room between the timing cover and vehicle frame to completely remove it
- Hop on You-Tube to find everyone and their brother (except Haynes) says you need to drop the engine to get the water pump out
- Place jack under oil pan and head to back yard to get the 2 x 6 you've had for 10 years and never used so you have something between the jack and the pan
- Realize you finally cleaned up the flippin yard the previous spring and apparently threw the stinkin thing away
- Swear
- Catch wife and daughter-in-law as they leave to shop and ask them to pick up a 2 x 6
- Watch several repair videos while you wait
- Call wife to see if they went to the next state to get wood, then watch them pull into the driveway
- Place wood between jack and oil pan, raising ensemble to rest firmly and support engine
- Prepare to remove three 15 mm bolts securing right side of engine
- Realize you have 14 mm sockets and 16 mm sockets but no 15 mm sockets
- Swear
- Call wife to pick up socket before shopping (app $5)
- Get socket from wife, watch them leave... again
- Realize the socket is for 1/2' drive ratchet and all you have are 3/8" drive ratchets
- Swear profusely
- Call wife, explain situation, claim you will walk and never drive again
- Retrieve from wife a new socket set and ratchet and a new 1/2" drive ratchet (app $25)
- Watch them leave to go shopping... finally
- Remove three 15 mm bolts gently lowering engine, hoping your jack is strong enough to hold it
- Remove water pump and gasket
- Clean all surfaces
- Prepare new water pump and gasket
- Realize you threw away the packet of gasket seal you had a week ago
- Swear like a sailor on leave in a blue law state on Sunday
- Go through two bags of garbage to find the packet of gasket seal because you'll be damned if you're going to call them back again to pick one up for you
- Rejoice when found, and clean up garbage spread all over the ground
- Apply gasket seal to gasket, place in groove on water pump, and install water pump on vehicle
- Finger tighten five 10 mm bolts securing water pump, becoming contortionist to get them all
- Raise engine, tighten three 15 mm bolts securing engine in place
- Tighten five 10 mm bolts
- Attach water pump pulley wheel with three 12 mm bolts
- Realize in all the movement the serpentine belt all but came off the vehicle
- Struggle for 15 minutes getting the belt on all pulleys, fighting tensioner, pinning hand again until successful
- Fill coolant system with antifreeze solution
- Connect negative terminal on battery
- Start engine and check for leaks
- Stare with wonder that there are none, and that the vehicle actually runs
- Install belt guard
- Bring van off ramps and begin clean-up just as wife and daughter-in-law return from shopping trip apparently purchasing the entire store
- Realize at some point the sun went down
2 hour job..... taking approximately 6 hours to accomplish..... Would have been easier to just by a new vehicle.
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