So I picked up this 88 GT from a lady a month or so ago, 100K and pretty darn clean. Expecting to do some normal stuff I was a happy camper until today. The water pump started leaking and squealing, a week ago, so I post the ? about tips to change it. Got 2 great responses from Jazzman and css9450 and I remember thinking " Alright, I have all of the tools, I only need the parts and the time.
Well when it came to the #30 Torx bolts I couldn't find my Craftsman socket, I made a call to the local Sears, no socket, nearest one 30 miles away. Jump into the Formula, go to the Kragen in my neighborhood and pick up their set of torx bits. No problem, just some little #30's, right? NOT right. I went in on the bolt in the center, right along the pulley and MAN that sucker was tight. So tight that when I thought that I had it loose, what I had done was twist that bit into a spiral and screwed up that bolt BIG TIME.
After cutting a hole in the fender well to hammer a new #30 socket bit from Sears, with a 3/8 adapted to a 1/2 drive, and a 12" extension, into that bolt head; hoping that the hammering and the big drive would break it loose I felt the rest otf that star in the bolt give way.

Well what I ended up doing was taking my 90 degree grinder and a cut off wheel to that bolt and cutting and grinding the head off of that bolt so that I could get that pump off. Add in 2hrs to this job.
The moral of this story?? Use QUALITY tools. I probably wouldn't have had to go through all of that if I had made that drive to get that that socket in the beginning, and the new pump would be installed instead of still sitting on the bench [I swear I can hear laughter coming form the bench]

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fasteddie_91932

I have purchased tools from Harbor Freight with good luck as I am not a professional mechanic but stay away from their Torx bits also. They failed me on a strut R&R. Shattered like a pretzel.

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RickN
White 88GT 5spd
White 85GT Auto

[This message has been edited by RickN (edited 09-25-2004).]

I have also twisted star bits----I have found that they prefer an impact to loosen---but obviously with a water pump-that is difficult.

My 2 cents, when you are taking things apart use a six point socket, it is the best fit on bolt's, nut's. It will not twist or slip as easy as a 12 point,goes for metric and standard. Good tools make a lot of the jobs easy.

Jim

Please use some anti-seize when you install your water pump. The timing cover is aluminum and the bolts will gall to it.

As far as tooling, I've found that Stanley is the easiest way to go. They too have a lifetime warranty, but unlike Craftsman, you don't need to go to the mall. Many hardware stores carry Stanley.

I think that I'm gonna throw those star bolts away and put in some stainless, after I run a tap into those holes. If I ever have to pull that pump again I sure as heck don't want another day like yesterday. I never had a bolt kick my butt like that before.
Now it's back to scraping the rest of that old gasket off. What's up with that gasket? Any tips on getting that stuff off?? I was looking forward to having this weekend off from work, now work seems like the lesser of 2 evils.

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fasteddie_91932

Torx bits are evil. They'll all bend or shatter when you need them the most. The 2-tone craftsman ones with the chrome bottom and black bit I've found to be quite resilient. I'd never settle for anything less than lifetime warranty on torx bits.

Actually the ones from Kragen are lifetime, however that still didn't save me from an hr of hell grinding the head of that bolt off. Maybe that bolt was one in a lifetime. As small as the thread is, with a 7lb torque requirement and with the white anti-sieze that was on it, it shouldn't have been that tight anyway. The other 3 came right out.

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fasteddie_91932

I agree with useing quality tools.You cause more damage then good useing cheap crap (stay away from princess auto tools

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1987 FIERO GT soon to be L32

I've been through at least 3 different kinds of Torx bit sets.

Observation: The set made by Lisle is worthless.

The single-material style torx bits and hex bits fail VERY easy. Craftsman makes a set that is chrome with black Torx inserts. In my opinion that's the set to buy. Sears wants $40.00 for the set BUT you can find them on ebay for 1/2 that price. I got mine on ebay for around $19.00 shipped. That's cheaper than the worthless Lisle set.

-Jeff

p.s. If anyone knows of a good E torx set for studs I'd appreciate a PM. It's the last cheap set of anything I've got left in my tool box.

quote Originally posted by JeffMN: Observation: The set made by Lisle is worthless. The single-material style torx bits and hex bits fail VERY easy. Craftsman makes a set that is chrome with black Torx inserts. In my opinion that's the set to buy.

Interestingly, I noticed that the Lisle T30 had kind of a rounded tip that tended to slip out of the bolts way much easily. The Craftsman T30 fit much better and was less likely to slip out just as I was starting to put a little twist into it.

As for the water pump, the one little bolt closest to the pully was the big trouble for me. I couldn't get the pully bolts off ahead of time, so having the pully in the way meant I couldn't use a regular socket on that one stupid bolt. I had to get a nifty little racheting thing that uses tiny 1/4" bits, and even then it was a tight fit. The other 11 water pump bolts all came off with regular 3/8"-drive sockets - at least once I had the correct shorty extensions that let me fit the socket wrench in there !

As for the old gasket material I found removing it the toughest part of the water pump change. I used Chisel gasket remover, spraying it on and letting it soak....it required many applications and a lot of scraping. You want the mating surfaces as clean as possible.
I once bought a brake caliper bit, a 47 I think at a local hardware store....twisted it like taffy... found it was made in Taiwan probably never hardened correctly. Now I buy only Craftsman.