==> Can't Get H2O Pump Out!!! <==
 

Thanks for all of the help so far. I know that I've saved so much already doing this myself. Last week when I started my car, I heard a squeak like a belt was loose, but everything was fine, or so I thought. A few hours later driving back on the fwy, my car started to really overheat like crazy so I pulled over.

Now I'm at home, fixing the problem. I got a thermostat and the housing because the 2 plastic clips that hold the thermostat in were missing. I also got a gasket for that. Well, when I looked down by the water pump I saw maybe 5 very small cylindrical barrings. I think those were from the water pump. Also, the part that comes out of the water pump that you attach the circle thing to that the belt rests on was really loose. Obviously I need a new water pump.

The problem is, I can't get the stupid water pump out! I removed all, 4 bolts and read the tutorial on pelicanparts.com that said to use a screwdriver and a mallet to tap it out. I mean, this thing is stuck. It almost feels like there are more bolts attached but I got them, all, the 3 regular ones and 1 long one. I really want to take a crowbar to it but I don't want to kill my car. I could really use some info on how to get this out. THANK YOU!!!

Is this on your E36 318is? You should only have 2 bolts holding your water pump in:

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...=11&fg=35&hl=2

There are four holes, because two of the holes are used to remove the water pump. The extra two holes are simply tapped bores so that you can insert an M6 bolt in each, tighten each bolt a little bit a a time (try to keep them even), and force the water pump off. Use the bolts that hold the thermostat housing in place.

From the diagram from realoem, it seems to me that the holes on the top left and bottom right are the ones for the bolts that hold the pump in place. The other two are the tapped bores for the M6 bolts.

^^^+1. Listen to the man. You won't get it off without threading two M6 bolts in there to push the pump out.

Thank you. I was confused because there were 4 bolts I had to take off when I removed the pump. I'll try it out now. Thanks again.

Hmmm. Weird. there are 4 bolts on the 6-cyl models, but there are an extra two holes to be sued in the removal procedure.

Good luck. Ket us know how it goes.

Ok, I was doing what you said and while I was tightening the bolts, evenly I might add, the top part of the water pump BROKE OFF!!! The pump is still stuck in there. I'm trying to tighten the bottom bolt, but it's really hard for me to fit my ratchet in there because it is bumping into the bottom part of the water pump. I'm trying to tighten it as much as I can fit my ratchet in there but to no avail. Now I'm going to home depot and getting a crowbar. What do you think?

==> Water pump broke off while I was removing it...
 

I was using the M6 bolts and tightened them evenly to get my water pump off, but the top of the pump broke, the part that you put the top M6 bolt into to pry it off. This water pump is STUCK in there, it won't come out. Next step is to get a crowbar. What do you guys think? Thanks!

Have u sprays it with anti seize spray of some sort ?

^^ Yeah, try some stuff like that. I would be very careful because you don't want to damage the mounting surfaces. Try getting a little more violent with the rubber mallet :dunno

Never try to force something if the tools won't work correctly. You gotta take the time to do things right, or you run the risk of a bad outcome like this. Anytime you're in a problematic situation, take a step back and review your options. Use extensions or u-joints with the ratchet and socket if it won't seat correctly. If you're gonna use the crowbar, put a rag between it and the mating surface of the engine block.

do you have a pic of how it is right now?

I logged in just to ask exactly the same thing. Try to get a picture (or a few, from different angles). That would help us immensely as we try to troubleshoot over the Internet.

Ok, here is one for the books... I FINALLY GOT THE F---ing water pump out!!! I tried the M6 screws, but the pump just laughed at me. Then a mallet. No such luck. How about a crowbar??? Not a chance. Just when it was looking like I brought a knife to a 3 day gunfight, my friend had a suggestion. He had one of those Remmington handle tools that you put a .22 bullet into one end and then put the other against what you are trying to obliterate. Then he hit the tool with a hammer like you are supposed to so it sets off the bullet... BAM!!! A little piece of that pump flew right off! BAM, BAM!!! After 2 more times of reloading and firing, guess what? The pump finally came loose. I was soooo elated I can't even tell you. The thing that is killing me though is that my car is a '96 with 180k miles on it. All I've been doing is reading on the net about how the original pumps with plastic impellers break all of the time and you should replace them. My car had a pump with a plastic impeller! Do you think that it was the OEM piece? I just can't believe it lasted that long if it was. Anyways, now that I have it out, I'm just fishing out the rest of the plastic pieces out of the block.

The good thing about this was that it did show me that I can fix my bimmer without dropping tons of paper on it. If my old company didn't shut down and this happened, I probably would be up to $1,700 by now at the auto shop. I wanted to thank everyone that helped me on this. You guys were awesome. Now hopefully when someone else comes across a more than stubborn water pump, tell 'em to pull out the Remmington. Just so you know, when I pulled that water pump out I smashed the *!@#ing life it never lived out of it.

Glad to hear it! :clap

Sweetness :)

I doubt that the water pump would have survived for 180k miles. It probably got replaced a long time ago, with a plastic once. Is the plastic orange or black? The black ones are made of a new composite material that is not really plastic -- it is actually the best water pump available for your car.

The pump was probably stuck because the engine had overheated and probably melted the gasket.

And yes, working on your car is ust a matter of doing some research beforehand, getting a hold of a few tools, being patient, and jumping right into it.