Water Pump Disaster Bolt Heads Broke Off help?

1973 Buick Lesabre 350. Original water pump.

Starting leaking a few days ago real bad. Got the pump and the coolant. Out in the driveway today. I had a rough time getting the old pump off. Two bolt heads came off the small bolts. No problem just slide the old pump off and then grab the broke off bolt and unscrew it. Pump still wouldnt come off. One of the bolts had corroded to the aluminum pump and was holding it on without even a head on the bolt!! I tried tapping, wiggling, shifting, finally I got the dremel tool and carved around the bolt until it couldnt hang on anymore. Finally off comes the old pump.

Now I am facing two bolts without heads and I am afraid I will not get them out and break them off and risk damaging the distributor housing.
Can someone please advise me a way to get these headless bolts out so I can just finish the installation. This is my only car and I simply dont have the money to give to a mechanic to come and get it and finish the job.

I have wire brushed the bolts and applied penetrating oil to the front and back. The lower bolt is a blind hole and I cannot access the back with penetrating oil. I have not heated it because I am afraid to melt or warp the aluminium distributor housing. I can double nut the lower bolt because the threads are still good. The upper bolt is quite disfigured from the vise grip.

Please advise.

Thanks
Gary

 

I also thought about welding a nut on the bottom bolt but I didnt know if the heat would mess up the aluminum distributor housing. If not then I could weld two stripes on the upper bolt and maybe get on it with a small pipe wrench. Can it be heated with a propane torch without damage to the aluminum?

 

I was going to suggest heating the bolt with a propane torch as well, but I didn't know how it'd do with the Aluminum.

 

I have used Sea Foams "Deep Creep" with much success. I only use when nothing else works. The directions say to heat up the part then to spray it. Sounds crazy but it does work. Can is $8 though. Good luck

 

Use the heat just dont get crazy with it. Wiggle it back and forth untill it breaks loose. When you reassmble use and anti seize compound on the bolts. Where in Fl do you live?

 

Venice, 20min south of sarasota

I thought about take a short piece of 1/2 flat stock, drill a hole in the middle and weld it on to the stud. Hoping the heat of welding it on (MIG) will serve as the heat I need and then quickly tap the T with a small hammer to unseat the stud before it cools. My vise grip is so long I can really turn it or get a good grip on it.

 

Set a nut around the bolt left sticking out so that it surrounds it then weld the 2 together this will give you both something to turn the bolt with and heat the bolt at the same time. We do this all the time on aluminum ford heads where the exhaust manifold studs break off leaving a short piece sticking out or if its even with the head we build it up till a nut can be put on it .

 

ok so the heat from welding the nut on on will suffice or will I need to also heat it with a propane torch? Note: I will only be able to weld it from the front, wont be able to get behind it.

 

right the heat from welding the nut on is all it will need .The heat from welding is confined to the nut and bolt whereas heat from the flame is spreadout .

 

Ok and then while its still hot, quickly get the 6 point socket on it and tap it or jus apply gradual pressre until it turns?

 

That top bolt is the one on my 455 that caused me to buy a new timing cover. My engine was out, but that bolt rusted and seized on the aluminum something fierce. I heated, sprayed penetrant, hit it with a hammer, you name it. Finally gave up and just ground thru the timing cover after a few hours effort and broke off the bolt, then welded a nut to the remainder and still fought it out. The center part of the bolt is STILL stuck in the timing cover housing, with a half inch on either end missing and half the aluminum housing ground and cut off the bolt.

Good luck, you are going to need it.

 

yes while its hot gradual pressure you will probably be able to see it move

 

so you were able to get it out with the weld a nut on method? If part of the bolt is still in there how did you fasten the pump to the cover at that spot? Im a little fuzzy on trying to picture it what you did. The top one is pretty crusty. Im going to try it first thing in the morning.

 

We started doing this on 5.4 ford pickups several years ago. The exaust studs break off in the head we usually do 3 or 4 per side sometimes it takes 3 or 4 nuts before we get a good weld between the nut and the leftover stud .We have even built up the studs when broken off flush to the head to give us something to weld the nut to . The other alternative is pull the heads to remove the studs 15 to 20 hours labor plus parts. So now we try this method on all broken bolts,studs before removing the part has worked nearly every time .

 

The head broke off and I welded a nut onto the end of the broken bolt that was fairly flush with the front of the aluminum housing. That continually failed to work. I could wiggle the timing cover housing about a half inch, but it would NOT come off the engine block.

That was when I went all in and just ground off the aluminum housing and then broke it off. This left about a 1/4" of bolt sticking out of the cast iron block, which I was then able to weld a nut to and back the bolt out. The rust/corrosion inside the aluminum housing around the bolt just would not let it come off.

 

heres a utube vid of the same thing being done to a rear end componet instead of removing the part to drill out.If this doesnt work and these bolts go all the way thru the timing cover housing into the block the only choice left will be to replace the timing cover and bolts ford has a similar problem and you end up replacing the timing cover. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6T0qegbNlnY

 

Ok I get it. That is exactly what happend to me with this water pump. Even with all the bolts out except two with the heads snapped off, the water pump would simple not come off. I had to use the dremel tool to carve around the headless bolt until there was simply nothing left for the bolt to hang on to. Then the water pump came off easily. (after several tries removing progressively more and more material). So now I have two headless bolts looking at me determined to stay put.

Im going to try the welded nut trick.

 

I've twisted off many a 1/4" water pump bolt on Oldsmobiles and Buicks in my career as a mechanic. Try Kroil to loosen up the threads.

FWIW, if I got the water pump off and replaced it, and sealed it up, it was repaired. Worrying about perfection should stop once the car leaves the showroom floor. YOMV (Your Opinions May Vary).

 

where can I get Kroil within walking distance? Walmart? I put liquid wrench on it and it will be on overnight. Is kroil that much better? What about this stuff PB is that much better than liquid wrench PO?