Hi: Finally found time to work on my 69 Skylark that has been sitting in the garage since the heater core went back in 2014! Been working in earnest the last couple of weekends, pulling the heater core, firewall pad, carpet, front seat, hood, bumper, passenger fender, etc while ordering new parts for the replacement. Since the car had been sitting so long, I rebuilt the rochester quad, replaced the points and condenser, pumped out the old fuel, replaced the fuel line and buttoned everything back up. Was very excited when the old rod fired up and sounded awesome! Was getting ready to adjust the idle screws when the water pump seal ruptured and rained all over my excitement! Decided to take a break for the holidays and psych myself up for its replacement. Yesterday, I was down to my last water pump bolt (the left most lower bolt when looking at the water pump from the front) which goes through the timing belt cover into the block. As many have written, breaking a water pump bolt on a Buick is a rite of passage! And clearly, I can now say I'm a member of the club. It was a real pain getting the bolt out of the timing cover to remove the water pump but I persisted. The end of the bolt broke in the block leaving about 3-4 threads left on the bolt. My assumption is the rest of the bolt is either in the block or some portion is protruding from the block but is only accessible for extraction by removing the timing cover. So here is my question: Before I endeavor to remove the timing cover and all the associated components to do so, is there any reason I couldn't just leave the broken bolt in the block, tap the hole in the aluminum timing cover and use a new short bolt to secure that position on the water pump and seal? There are several (4-5) small bolts that secure the water pump just to the timing cover and 4 long bolts into the block (one of which I broke) that secure the water pump and seal. Is there any issue with not having a long bolt in that position that goes to the block? By that I mean, is there any issue with antifreeze going somewhere it shouldn't? Am I missing anything? Thanks in advance for your thoughts and experience! Jim
if I am picturing your description correctly ( busted big bolt , where you can't get a grip on it from outside of time cover ? ) - I would seriously consider stripping it down , get that busted bolt outa there and replace . might be a leak possibility perhaps ? and good time to check timing chain etc and oil pump housing/gear condition and maybe redo the pump with new gears and booster plate and pressure adjuster .
Will never seal up till you replace the long bolt, its gotta come apart,.. But yes it could and probably would piss coolant down into crankcase which can destroy the bearings. But as stated above, Noe is the time to freshen the cover, oil pump etc, I'd just replace it with a new one , if it was rusted that bad the sealing surface is probably pitted. The new 350 covers aren't much and if the budget allows get one loaded and setup by TA and it will be a plug and play deal
that bolt also seals the timing cover to the block. your plan doesn't allow any clamping force there. only the water pump to the cover.
If I read your description correctly your oil passage from the pump to the block is right there near the broken bolt. The oiling system generally runs higher pressure than the cooling system. Guess where that oil wants to go!
Thanks guys. Appreciate your expertise! I reached out to Tim at TA and will get the loaded Timing Cover kit for the 350. Will replace the timing chain and all bolts as well. Hopefully, I can get the broken bolt out of the block without a lot of drama but one never knows! Any words of wisdom on extracting the broken bolt out of the block? Thanks, Jim
I had a bolt break on my water pump years ago. I was lucky, and the head sheared off leaving enough threads outside of the timing cover. To get it out, I actually took a corded drill and chucked it directly to the bolt stub. Going slow with the high torque setting, I basically backed out what was left of the bolt with the drill. This may not work in your situation once you get the cover off, however it might be worth thinking over. Otherwise, You could try cleaning up the threads and either doubling up on nuts that fit it, or welding one to the remainder of the bolt. Either way, I'd soak the thing in PB blaster or the equivalent for a good long while.
in my experience those bolts usually seize to the aluminum in the cover not the block. i bet once you get the cover out of the way it'll turn out easy.
If you have enough sticking out, vise grip pliers would be the first try if that doesn't work or there isn't enough to grab onto then; If you have a mig welder and if the bolt sticks out far enough to get a nut on it even a couple of threads would work. Screw on nut snugly, weld inside where nut and bolt attach, let cool to just after it stops glowing and start working the bolt out then in, then out a little further, then back in. Take your time and don't get to aggressive no matter what the cheerleaders in your head say(or is that just me?) in no time you should have that puppy out. If you don't have a welder, take your cutoff wheel and grind a thin slot in the bolt for a good sized screw driver but not so big that there is no strength. Then use a torch to heat the surface around the bolt as hot as you can get it with whatever torch you have. A hardware bottle torch can be used but not as good as a oxy-acetylene torch, but if that's all you have access to try to get one filled with MAP gas, those give off a little more heat. An impact screw driver would be great to use for this, you set it in counter clockwise and simply hammer it until it loosens. Try to make sure the heat is in the block more so than in the bolt so it doesn't get soft. I hope this helps. GL
Thanks guys. Once I have the timing cover off, I'll see what I have to work with. My fear is that the broken end of the bolt is in the block. I removed the bolt from the timing cover and water pump with considerable effort, maintaining outward pressure while ratching. I removed the bolt and got the water pump off and what remained of the threaded end of the bolt was about 1/4" of thread when compared to the other long bolt indicates about 1/2" of the threaded end remains in the block. Hopefully there will be enough exposed threads to put on and weld a nut. If not, guess a lot of liquid wrench soaking and drilling with an extraction tool will be in my future!
Sorry to cut in here. I'm doing the same job minus broken bolt. What can I put in oil pan to rinse any dirt out the drain hole? Kerosene or ????. Pan is still on. Thanks Frank
Just an update: Removed the timing cover to find the bolt broking in the block. There was no bolt protruding from the block so I opted for drilling the bolt. Started with a small drill bit and took my time. Once I penetrated through the end of the bolt, I moved up to a larger drill bit, taking my time and so forth until the hole was the right dimension to tap. Took my time here as well, making sure not to break the tap in the block. Changed the timing chain which was very stretched along with new sprockets. Was surprised to see that all the nylon CAM sprocket teeth were intact. Installed my new timing cover from TA along with the new water pump and new bolts. Making progress.... Will update once job is complete and car is back on the road. Thanks everyone for your assistance.
