How do I replace the water pump in a 1992 ford escort?

I have a slight idea but I would like to see what steps other people have taken. I have a 1992 ford escort that needs a new water pump, what steps have you taken to replace it?How do I replace the water pump in a 1992 ford escort?In order to replace the water pump in a 1992 Ford Escort, you will need to start by being mechanically inclined, a fairly complete set of metric tools (wrenches/sockets/etc.) - and preferably with a haynes or clymer manual for the vehicle (available at most auto parts stores).



Start by disconnecting and removing the battery. Then (this is from memory) take any other plastic junk off of it that is in the way, put a breaker bar on the spring-loaded accessory belt tensioner, remove the belt, then start taking accessories off (power steering pump, alternator, A/C compressor). You don't necessarily have to remove everything - but it makes it much easier to do, and the few minutes you take putting it back together is worth the extra time.



I generally don't disconnect the A/C - just unbolt it and use some big zip strips to hang it out of the way.



Once you have everything out of your way, the next step is removing the timing belt cover. This is actually a much bigger pain in the a** than it sounds like because for some stupid reason, Ford decided to slide the cover over bolts that stick out too far to allow it to be removed without taking the motor mounts off and jacking the engine up.



The easy workaround is to simply (carefully) break the cover so that you can remove it. I generally just break the bottom part off so it will come out, but I can still put it back over the top when I reassemble (technically it doesn't need to be there at all - at least half the ricers I know have over-sized cam gears that force them to leave it off anyway). It is nice to have it on there to keep crap out of your timing belt, but I mainly just like to have the top covered to keep my fingers out of the moving parts while I am working on other stuff.



Okay - once you have that out of the way, then it is a simple matter of MAKING SURE THE ENGINE IS AT TDC!!!!



I scream this, because it is incredibly important that before you start messing with the timing belt, that you either turn the engine by hand (spark plugs out makes this easier), or hook the battery back up and carefully bump it around until the mark on the crankshaft gear is pointed at the mark.



I usually use some fingernail polish or something to carefully mark the crank and cam positions in case something moves while the belt is off. If you aren't careful, you can mess up the engine timing (even one tooth off will do it). It isn't that hard to get back on a single-cam, but doing it right the first time can save hours of screwing around (on a dual-cam - you have to be VERY careful, but fortunately the escort won't have this).



Now - with the cam and crank at TDC and well marked, loosen the timing belt tensioner, to where it can move. Carefully use a prybar or something to release tension on the belt, tighten the bolt on the tensioner back down, and remove the belt..



Now - you can get at the water pump. Disconnect and remove it, install the new one (key word: new - you don't want to mess with used parts when they are this much work to install) then install the new timing belt (always do both water pump and timing belt at the same time so you don't have to tear it apart twice).



The timing belt should have a TDC mark on it as well - make sure everything is perfectly lined up, and release the tensioner.



It will mess up the timing - so cuss for a minute, and then start playing with it to see where you need to have the gears set when you release it to get them to both point at TDC when the belt is tensioned (again, one tooth off will prevent the engine from running correctly - this is the one part of the job that you do not want to half-azz)..



Finally, reassemble - say a little prayer to the deity of your choice, and fire it up!How do I replace the water pump in a 1992 ford escort?I got mine replaced at Evans Tires. They did it very fast same day. You can call them in advance to have them order the part so it can be there when you take your car in.



I would not risk having someone who says they know what they are doing start %26quot;fixing%26quot; things a shop is best and try to go to the same auto shop for all your needs.



Don't drive your car much you can blow your engine on a bad water-pump.How do I replace the water pump in a 1992 ford escort?if you're going to do it yourself first I recommend getting the book for the car sometimes the library will have them..you also want to be careful when changing the water pump because your timing belt is hooked up to the water pump. If you misalign the camshaft or the crankshaft pulleys or turn them independently when the belt is off you can cause damage to the head of the engine (very important: your timing will be off..you don't want that). To start with though, you will have to take off your accessory belt and the accessory crank pulley, then take off the timing belt cover and use the crank shaft pulley to line up the marks that are on the pulley and the engine (on both the crankshaft pulley and the cam shaft pulley) carefully take the timing belt off (replace the timing belt and the timing belt tensioner..trust me it'll be worth it). You're going to have to drain the antifreeze before you take the water pump off. (I would also replace the thermostat because its cheap and you already have the fluid out) The install is pretty much the opposite. (again make sure the marks line up on the cam and crank pulleys and don't turn them independently when you're putting the belt back on) (short answer: get the book and/or have someone that's done it before help) when your done you can say you did it :)