ATCzMustang

So I was replacing a bunch of cooling system parts on my 2000 Mustang V6 today which included Radiator, upper/lower hoses, water pump, and thermostat. I got through all the 'difficult' parts like removing and reinstalling the power steering pump pulley and removing the stubborn bypass heater hose from the old h2o pump.

I was doing everything methodically trying to torque bolts to spec including the nuts on install of the new water pump which said between 51 and 70 ft/lbs torque according to the manual. Well... my Snap On toruqe wrench which has been calibrated, didn't stop on these nuts and I SNAPPED OF A STUD and the nut at the top. These are the studs that protrude from the block and come through the water pump. They are not bolts screwed into the block. I snapped the one on the bottom-left when looking at the installed pump.

I am so mad at myself and depressed I was saving all this $$ doing the job myself and I made a dumb mistake that I can not fix myself. What's done is done and now I need advice on ideas on how much something like this will cost to fix? Will a place drill out the remaining stud and helicoil it to allow screwing in a new bolt as opposed to a stud? I would think this could be done with the pump still installed. Will they want to completely remove the pump (after I spent all this time installing it ) to charge me for R&R labor and weld it back together and make new threads? Something else?

This just happened a few hours ago and I am not done, so I don't know if it will even leak without that nut holding on the pump.

I feel awful and moneys tight (when is it not) so anyone who can tell me best course of action: go to the Ford Dealer because of the delicate nature of the block? go to another mechanic? see if it even leaks and do nothing?

Please advise and refrain from any comments about whatg I *should* of done about that stud. I can't believe I made such a huge mistake. I just need help on about how much something like this is going to cost to fix and what to ask for to know I am not getting scammed.

Thank you,

Chromeshadow

This kinda thing happens to all of us, don't beat yourself up. Did you use silicon on the gasket? which stud did you break? If you are close to completion, there is no harm in seeing if it leaks. btw 70 lbs seems pretty high for water pump bolts

ATCzMustang

Yes I used silicon on the gasket. I am not that far of getting the pump back off the car - do you know if the studs that protrude from the engine are removable and replaceable or part of the engine welded in?

blkside

Post a picture of what you are talking about. I doubt there are any studs welded where the water pump mounts.

There are many ways to extract broken studs. Drill and extract would be the easiest but you def need a good quality extractor.. You should oil pen it before you try to extract it to make it easier. If that fails let me know and there are a few other things to try...

Xemeth

The spec is 70 in/lbs. 70 ft/lbs is head bolt territory. There's no way a little water pump bolt is going to hold up to that much torque. It's kind of ironic that you're paying all this attention to detail and overlook something like that. This is where common sense should have come into play and said, "Wait... there's no way these little bolts require almost as much torque as a lug nut..."

But your best bet is to remove the pump, cut the stud off as close to the block as you can, drill it out, and helicoil it. This isn't really that hard, but is I were you, I'd take it to someone to do is based on the information I gathered from reading this.

Chromeshadow

Is the stud broken off flush with the engine or is there enough to get a grip with vice grips? I believe these are screwed in, and the block is iron.

ATCzMustang

So to catch up... I took the pump back off, bought some PB Blaster and a IRWIN 'Power-Grip' 7-piece extractor set. It actually goes around and grabs the outside of the threads (not a typical drill bit extractor set) and came right out with a drill and the extractor attachment!! PB Stuff and a knock of the hammer worked great!!

I checked FordParts.com today after having difficulty finding the proper length M8 x 1.25 bolt in town yesterday; longest one I found was a 110. After putting in my VIN and going to Cooling -> Water Pump and Related Components, and then click "View Image" next to the water pump part, and selected sub-category: "Front cover & water pump assembly fasteners", I found the right part!! It's part #3 in the diagram a STUD M8 x 1.25 x 137.

I called my local Ford Dealer and it will be in by tomorrow morning for $12! Still a bit pricey for a stud, but hey it's the OEM part. So my little mistake cost me $32 for bit extractor set + $6 for PB blaster + $12 stud. The bit extractor set and PB blaster are reusable so not too bad overall.

Now for why this all happened... My bad rookie mistake. And you know what: I made the same mistake about 7 years ago and vowed to never let it happen again, but I did. It was 51-70 inch pounds of torque not ft-lbs. Ooops. Being a 'Sunday Mechanic' and not doing it as a living I am prone to some of these mistakes I guess.

Thanks again for all the help and hopefully this thread is start to finish 'a fix' for anyone else down the road that has this happen to again or something similar.

Chromeshadow

Glad to hear you got a handle on it!