Water pump, help neede..

I need some help with my water pump replacement. As I removed the old water pump, several bolts sheared off. Five, actually. They all sheared off right at the head, so the stubs were sticking out once I finally got the pump out. I squirted PB Blaster on it for 24 hrs, but when I tried to remove the broken bolts, they sheared off flush with the timing cover. I stopped after shearing off 2 of the five. Wondering how to remove the remaining bolts without further issues and how best to deal with the two that are broken flush with the housing.
I’m hoping I don’t have to go deeper into the motor at this point with an all new timing cover.

All suggestions and insights are welcome.

 

You'll be better off to just pull the cover and get a new one, your only 20min from it being off at this point

 

Yeah, I torched the first one pretty good before attempting to remove. Then , of course, it sheared off when I was twisting with vice grips.
Thought maybe I had burned the PB Blaster so I tried the second one cold. No difference - still sheared off.

Looks like TA Performance might be getting more of my money real soon ...

 

So if I’m going to center punch, drill and tap the flush-sheared bolts, I guess it has to come out?
I don’t think there is enough room for me to do it in place, even with the radiator out.

 

I use Kroil, and "back and forth", and all the patience I can stand. (I have tried PB Blaster and where it almost always fails, and Kroil has worked.) Kroil is pretty much acetone and ATF. It is effective as both a solvent and penetrant, and the time to start breaking the corrosion bonds, and the "torque" applied in increasing amounts, almost always works.

I try not to apply anymore torque than necessary. If I am near the point that the tool is going to slip, or the fastener is going to fail, I stop, apply more and wait.

The other thing is to apply heat and then repeat the process (with Kroil). I have spent several days on really badly frozen fasteners and almost always am successful.

If it took 50 years to get stuck, a week of effort is nothing compared to that.

Heat has both physical and chemical effect on stuck fasteners (breaking the bonds of the oxidised component and thermal expansion).

And it is always a balance of replacing a part if it is ruined in the process vs the time and expense of trying to salvage a part. For instance, a block or head is worth more effort than a water pump.

Good luck.

 

next time i'm working on that I think i'll try installing studs in the usual problem child areas .

 

Same thing happened to me when I first bought my Buick. At the time I assumed the timing cover was part of the block, so I was hyper paranoid about having to drill anything out. The secret wound up being an old corded power drill.

I chucked the bolt stubs directly in the drill and slowly backed them out. The drill had enough torque down low - Came out like a dream. May not be the answer here, but it worked for me.

 

be grateful there is a TA

 

Everyone forgets about a few easy raps with a hammer on the bolt head to get the penetrating solvent to sneak into the threads and bolt body, before attempting to twist the heads off.

 

I will use the hammer strategy on the remaining sheared off bolts, as well as the bolts for the timing cover.
I can't believe I forgot about the hammer strategy - I should know better!
Snapping the timing cover bolts off now would only compound my challenges ...
At this point, getting the bolts out that have sheared off flush is not something I can do while it is in the car, so I've decided that the timing cover has to come off. I'll see what it looks like once it is out and cleaned up.
This has turned into more of an adventure than expected, but that is about par for the course, I guess.

Thank you everyone for the help and advice. Hopefully I'll have something positive to report in a day or two.

 

Right Angle Drill - more toys!

 

While the covers off replace the timing set.

 

I’ve been considering that too. Quite the rabbit hole, this project.
Where do I stop?

My intention is to do a complete build later this year when the new heads are released. Just don’t know how much I really need to do right now.

 

chances are that its been changed at some point ( timing set ) . if a steel set , seems tight and looks good probably ok for awhile if just some basic cruizin' is planned . if you are gonna jump on it a little then buy a good set - done .
and , while in there , do your homework on oil pump setup .

 

Quick update, progress is a bit slow but I have removed the remaining 3 broken bolts successfully with a combination of hammer raps and a propane torch.
Wish I’d done that from the start.

Working on removing the timing cover and can’t figure out how to get the rear bolt off of the fuel pump. The shop manual says it has to come out before the timing cover can come off. I can’t figure out how to even get a wrench on the back bolt.

Anyone know a good trick?

 

Thanks, was hoping to leave the power steering pump mostly alone. Guess not. I’ll get busy on it tomorrow after work.

Really appreciate all the help

 

You will not have to remove the pump just unbolt it and set it aside. Leave the lines attached