Bad Water Pump Noises

Main Navigation

Advertisement
Social Connect
Resources
Our Brand Family
Counterman - Babcox Media
Counterman has been serving auto parts jobbers, retailers and distributors since 1983.
Sponsored Content

Explaining Water Pump Noises To Your Customers

An average water pump moves 7 gallons of coolant per mile driven. If a water pump lasts for 100,000 miles, it has moved 700,000 gallons of coolant. That's enough to fill 78 semi-truck tanker trailers. It shouldn't be a surprise that water pumps wear out, but most customers won't realize just how much work they do.

Avatar
By GMB North America Inc.
Published:

Sponsored by GMB North America, Inc.

An average water pump moves 7 gallons of coolant per mile driven. If a water pump lasts for 100,000 miles, it has moved 700,000 gallons of coolant. That’s enough to fill 78 semi-truck tanker trailers. It shouldn’t be a surprise that water pumps wear out, but most customers won’t realize just how much work they do.

If one of your customers has a water pump that makes strange noises, it’s likely that the water pump needs to be replaced. But other parts can make similar noises when they fail, and you need to make sure you customer has figured out the problem correctly.

To help you guide your customers through diagnosing water pump issues, here’s a list of the most common water pump noises and their causes.

1. Rattling Noise

A rattling noise means one of two issues:

  1. Bad bearings
  2. Bent or broken impeller shaft

Worn-out bearings are the most common cause of water pump failure. Water pumps move a huge amount of coolant over time, and they simply wear out. Ask your customer if they loosened a belt tensioner and checked both the tensioner(s) and water pump. Belt tensioners also can rattle when they are worn out. When the belt is loose, your customer should spin the pump by hand to feel if the rotation is smooth or not. They can check the tensioners the same way.

Impeller shafts may get bent due to improper belt tension. If an impeller shaft is broken, it is likely that the customer ignored the water pump problem for a long time. Also, mixing coolants, or using the wrong coolant, can damage the water pump seals and cause the bearings and impeller shaft to fail early. If the customer brought in their old pump, look at the impeller for signs of corrosion. If the impeller looks corroded, you should recommend flushing and refilling the cooling system.

2. Clicking or Squeaking Noise

Worn bearings also can cause a clicking or squeaking noise. Sometimes these can be heard with the engine idling. Your customer may hear these more clearly after shutting off the engine and loosening the tensioner. Then they can spin the pump by hand, and listen for noises.

3. Whining or Groaning Noise

A whining or groaning noise usually means that either a drive belt is loose, or the water pump pulley is bad.

It may surprise your customer that a pulley could fail. It does occasionally happen. Pulleys may fail due to rust, which can cause cracking between their bolt holes. This allows the pulley to flex slightly when it is spinning, which causes the noise. Also, V-belt pulleys can be damaged by over-tightened belts, or by improperly sized belts.

Worn belts, or worn belt tensioners, can cause a belt to be loose. This can result in the water pump not turning as fast as it should, and then the engine overheats.
Taking the time to discuss possible water pump problems will build trust with your customers.

This article was sponsored by GMB North America, Inc. For more information, please visit our website at www.gmb.net

You May Also Like

Sponsored Content

Advanced Filtration Is Key to Vehicle Longevity

Let’s face it, we love our cars – and we drive a lot. According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Americans drive more than 13,000 miles per year on average. Although the miles continue to rack up on our cars and trucks, their overall shelf life keeps increasing. Once upon a time, vehicles

FRAM
By FRAM
Published:

Let’s face it, we love our cars – and we drive a lot. According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Americans drive more than 13,000 miles per year on average.

Although the miles continue to rack up on our cars and trucks, their overall shelf life keeps increasing.

Read Full Article

More Sponsored Content Posts
What Causes Fuel Pumps to Fail?

Like most vehicle components, natural wear and tear is the unavoidable cause for parts replacement. Fuel pumps are often out of sight and out of mind for most shop visitors. That’s because they are an as-needed repair and not typically a part of ongoing maintenance. Nevertheless, if you diagnose fuel pump failure, customers will want

By Carter
Protecting Your Vehicle in the Winter

Depending on where you live, autumn is an idyllic time of year with bright colors and mild temperatures. If there is one downside though, it means that winter is on its way, which means frigid temperatures, snow, ice and difficult road conditions. The lifespans of cars and trucks are increasing all the time, so protecting

By FRAM
A Closer Look: Standard® Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI)

Gasoline direct injection (GDI) is used on most new vehicles and requires a different approach to diagnosis and service. GDI technology has been an integral part of helping to improve fuel economy while reducing emissions, and can be found on more than half of the U.S. fleet. In fact, the use of GDI engines has

By Standard Motor Products
Overcoming Supply Chain Issues in Today’s World

Many legislative and environmental mandates have affected the collision repair industry over the last decade. To comply with such mandates, vehicle manufacturers continue to design vehicles with increasingly advanced electronics, ranging from Advanced Driver Assistance Systems that increase safety, helping people with everything from parking to driving, to the recent push for electric vehicles. They’ve

By U-POL

Other Posts

High Oil Consumption?

A common question an OEM oil supplier like ENEOS sees is how to tell when oil consumption becomes excessive? Since a few factors could be involved, here are some of the potential implications. How much is too much?First, because of wear, vehicles are more likely to consume engine oil as they age. Common culprits that

By ENEOS
The Value of Replacing the Water Pump and Timing Belt Simultaneously

Water pumps have long been considered the heart of a vehicle’s cooling system. Although its sole function – pumping coolant from the radiator through the engine – seems simple, it’s a crucial process to keep engines running at optimal temperatures. Unfortunately, some drivers can overlook this – along with proper care for the part. On

By Carter
Fill Your Customers in About Total Vehicle Filtration

If you’ve ever wondered what one of the biggest threats to a vehicle’s engine is, the answer is microscopic particles. If these tiny specs of dirt and dust aren’t filtered properly, they will quickly accumulate inside the engine, which can cause significant damage to many parts. Worse yet, this can lead to complete engine failure.

By FRAM
A Closer Look: Advanced Driver Assist Systems (ADAS)

Advanced Driver Assist Systems (ADAS) Overview: Advanced Driver Assist Systems have been quite the industry buzz over the last several years. We have seen new business opportunities arise, and even a new segment of mobile technicians focusing on ADAS calibrations. While ADAS may seem relatively new, automotive service professionals have been servicing Driver Assist Systems

By Standard®