Water Leak within 600 miles!

[Wayne.R]

So, last weekend I swapped out the water pump, removing the manifold which also had the injector rail on it too, which I didn't expect.

Very very fiddly and trying to get onto the belt cover lower bolt, was a proper challenge.

Thank the lord for 1/4 ratchet and bits lol

Because the pipes had never been off before, they had taken on the shape of the clamp making them difficult to remove too.

However, after 5 hours of fighting it, the new pump was on and bolted up.
Then I ran out of light.

Next day, checked for leaks and put everything back and got ready to start.
£40 on VW coolant and my burp funnel and the air coming out was like a volcano erupting.

45 minutes later of holding the engine at 3000rpm and heater on max it was pretty much done.

Fast forward a week and all seems fine and no loss of fluid or wet patches.
Not something I wanna do again quickly though.

[P6GTD]

When I had mine done under All In warranty last year it took the VW dealer tech 5hrs plus in the workshop.
I was told “it was a real struggle to do” so respect to anyone who manages this on their own.

Got me wondering…is this a problem only for GTIs or are Rs and GTDs affected as well?

And… is it a problem on lesser Golf’s??

And finally, why on earth had the factory not found a fix at the build stage years and years ago?

[SRGTD]

When I had mine done under All In warranty last year it took the VW dealer tech 5hrs plus in the workshop.
I was told “it was a real struggle to do” so respect to anyone who manages this on their own.

Got me wondering…is this a problem only for GTIs or are Rs and GTDs affected as well?

And… is it a problem on lesser Golf’s??

And finally, why on earth had the factory not found a fix at the build stage years and years ago?

It’s definitely an issue on the mk7 and mk7.5 R; quite a few mk7 / mk7.5 owners over on the Golf R forum have had water pump failures. Can’t recall reading of any mk8 R’s that have suffered the same issue, so maybe VW have improved the quality and design of the water pump / thermostat housing.

[Wayne.R]

I think it is a very poor design from VW. Heard that over in the US, they have billet aluminium ones from aftermarket companies.
Don't know if this is true or even if they're any more robust over standard ones.

The one off my car, showed no easily visible signs of where it was leaking from, other than a slight rusting around the top left bolt hole, by the gasket.

I'm guessing the gasket failed on mine, rather than a crack or the coupling between the pump and the thermostat.

Had to rotate the crank too, to walk the belt onto the pump. Needed 2 people to do this. It's not easy.

[Watts]

I think it is a very poor design from VW. Heard that over in the US, they have billet aluminium ones from aftermarket companies.
Don't know if this is true or even if they're any more robust over standard ones.

The one off my car, showed no easily visible signs of where it was leaking from, other than a slight rusting around the top left bolt hole, by the gasket.

I'm guessing the gasket failed on mine, rather than a crack or the coupling between the pump and the thermostat.

Had to rotate the crank too, to walk the belt onto the pump. Needed 2 people to do this. It's not easy.

Cracking effort Wayne, top job!

[Wayne.R]

I think it is a very poor design from VW. Heard that over in the US, they have billet aluminium ones from aftermarket companies.
Don't know if this is true or even if they're any more robust over standard ones.

The one off my car, showed no easily visible signs of where it was leaking from, other than a slight rusting around the top left bolt hole, by the gasket.

I'm guessing the gasket failed on mine, rather than a crack or the coupling between the pump and the thermostat.

Had to rotate the crank too, to walk the belt onto the pump. Needed 2 people to do this. It's not easy.

Cracking effort Wayne, top job!

Thanks mate.....Now onto the next jobs to get it where I want it.....

[Paul70]

So, last weekend I swapped out the water pump, removing the manifold which also had the injector rail on it too, which I didn't expect.

Very very fiddly and trying to get onto the belt cover lower bolt, was a proper challenge.

Thank the lord for 1/4 ratchet and bits lol

Because the pipes had never been off before, they had taken on the shape of the clamp making them difficult to remove too.

However, after 5 hours of fighting it, the new pump was on and bolted up.
Then I ran out of light.

Next day, checked for leaks and put everything back and got ready to start.
£40 on VW coolant and my burp funnel and the air coming out was like a volcano erupting.

45 minutes later of holding the engine at 3000rpm and heater on max it was pretty much done.

Fast forward a week and all seems fine and no loss of fluid or wet patches.
Not something I wanna do again quickly though.

Great to see someone else replacing their failed water pump and thermostat. I did mine just over 12 months ago using VAG genuine parts, which were really expensive but saved money overall.

How was the carbon build up on your valves?

I opted for the semi-blind route taking off the radiator cooling fan and the throttle body and pipe work. Bought a number of quarter inch extensions and a few mirrors to get better visibility.Took around the same time as you and found bleeding was a doddle, after reading a number of horror stories online.

[Wayne.R]

Carbon build up on the manifold flaps was minor. On the valves there was some present, but didn't have the time or the desire to wanna tackle it.

I did consider the radiator removal option, but ease of access was my concern, and being a first timer with this install, i wanted the maximum access choice.

I'm a big fan of stuff made by INA where possible. They've always been good quality if OE is too expensive, which lets face it, is the norm lol.