quality of parts.

What is it with water pumps these days ?

Every advice I read with regard to any & every make/model advises changing the 'pump every few years & certainly in tandem with timing belt replacements.
A couple of years ago the 'pump on my (then) 32 year old Range Rover started to leak, but considering 2 of the mounting studs sheared during removal there's every chance that the unit was original.
Is there something different about the cooling systems of modern cars, or just that the 'pumps themselves are junk ?

Old pumps meant larger, heavier castings with bearings to match. Today its light alloy and lighter duty bearings so there's got to be a trade off. Not much call for things to last many years now, unfortunately!
John

A lot of them have cam belts that need to be changed which are also running on the pump drive. The price of labour these days make it cost effective to change the belt and pump at the same time thereby avoiding double labour costs.

As above if the pump fails it could destroy your engine.. The pump often comes as part of the timing belt kit anyway

Thank you gentlemen.
As always, 'fings ain't what they used to be

norseman said:

Every advice I read with regard to any & every make/model advises changing the 'pump every few years & certainly in tandem with timing belt replacements.

Click to expand...

I wouldn't say you had to always change the water pump/idlers/tensioner when doing the cam belt. A cam belt is rubber and mileage is only one of the factors in a belt degrading. The rubber can age/deteriorate even without use, but it's also subject to heat. So I always change my belt every five years even though it's nowhere near the maximum mileage specified for belt change. But with water pump, idlers and tensioner I reason that these don't really age with time like a belt, but with use and mileage, and wear and tear.

Last year I only changed the belt because the pump, idler and tensioner had only done 12,000 miles in the 5 years since installation, so negligible wear. Also they were OE parts from the dealer so I think they should be good quality. If the mileage had been a lot higher, I would have replaced the whole lot. Another reason I didn't change pump was because I hadn't long flushed my cooling system and added a good, strong solution of Prestone antifreeze which is good for 5 years. Didn't want to lose that. Tight as two coats of paint.

However, I will be changing the whole lot next belt change whatever the mileage, as it would be false economy to stretch it too far.

I see your point, mine is a chain drive set-up so I keep a close eye out for any signs of coolant loss from the pump & stipulate than my local garage does the same whenever they have the car in the 'shop.