Back in May I did the waterpump on the 2009 Flex, this was a preventative maintenance project, the internet being full of sad stories about failure of the Ford 3.5L V6 water pump, so I decided to tackle the job when the time suited me, versus how Mr. Murphy schedules this type of work.
The Flex had 206,600km when I started the process, no real evidence of any coolant loss, and oil remained clear - no milkshake colour tinges. The car has seen a good routine of maintenance, the Ford Plan covered the routine stuff for the first 5 years, and I've done the work since the Plan expired at 100,000km. I change the oil and filter at 6 month intervals which is usually 8k - 10k kilometres. I've used PP 5W20 and Motorcraft FL500S filters.
I purchased most of the Motorcraft parts from Village Ford in Michigan and had them shipped to my SIL in Florida, same for the special tools needed for this work (cam locks, harmonic balancer puller, etc.)
Rock Auto supplied valve cover gaskets, 2 drive belts. Parts and tools cost me about $900 CAD. A nice driving trip in April in my 2013 Maxima to Key West allowed me to stop off at SIL and get all my goodies )
The photos:
Valve cover beauty shot:
20190717_141952_resized (2) by Ken McCandless, on Flickr
Old timing guides, showing virtually no wear, but put in new ones anyways..
20190609_131636_resized by Ken McCandless, on Flickr
Deep inside the engine lies the ticking bomb? well this is a shot of the new pump secured for the next 10 years or so..
20190605_163845_resized by Ken McCandless, on Flickr
Additional work included:
- new Motorcraft thermostat & gasket
- new Ford Specialty Green Coolant mixed with distilled water.
- Pennzoil Plat 5W20 and FL500 filter
- flushed the power steering fluid.
- new power steering stretch belt - Continental
- new serpentine belt - Continental.
The work took me an honest 29 hours to complete, I could shave 10 hours off if I had to do this again, but the space between the frame and engine is tight and cleaning and repeated practice for the installation of the big front cover added significantly to the time required. If I had removed the A/C hose on the passenger side of engine bay, I would have saved 5 hours, but then have spent more to restore functional system.
I paid for a subscription to AllData - I think this was money well spent.
The car now has 209,000km, with no leaks to report. The timing cover was a major pita to install with the special TA 357 sealant, the stuff skins over pretty fast and with the tight access I made some neighbours aware of my alternative vocabulary
Sad fact: the old water pump has virtually no play in bearing, it might have lasted another 5 years?
Added bonus: trick for installing the stretch belt: fasten the stretch belt to the small pulley with zip ties, cut a piece of 3M scotch brite green pad to fit a strip into the crank pulley at 12 o'clock, and wedge it while turning the crank clockwise. The extra friction of the Scotchbrite prevents the belt from slipping as you turn the crank clockwise. Spin the crank until the Scotchbrite is released and say "well that was easy!" cut off the zip ties from small pulley and sit back and thank me?
The Flex had 206,600km when I started the process, no real evidence of any coolant loss, and oil remained clear - no milkshake colour tinges. The car has seen a good routine of maintenance, the Ford Plan covered the routine stuff for the first 5 years, and I've done the work since the Plan expired at 100,000km. I change the oil and filter at 6 month intervals which is usually 8k - 10k kilometres. I've used PP 5W20 and Motorcraft FL500S filters.
I purchased most of the Motorcraft parts from Village Ford in Michigan and had them shipped to my SIL in Florida, same for the special tools needed for this work (cam locks, harmonic balancer puller, etc.)
Rock Auto supplied valve cover gaskets, 2 drive belts. Parts and tools cost me about $900 CAD. A nice driving trip in April in my 2013 Maxima to Key West allowed me to stop off at SIL and get all my goodies )
The photos:
Valve cover beauty shot:
20190717_141952_resized (2) by Ken McCandless, on Flickr
Old timing guides, showing virtually no wear, but put in new ones anyways..
20190609_131636_resized by Ken McCandless, on Flickr
Deep inside the engine lies the ticking bomb? well this is a shot of the new pump secured for the next 10 years or so..
20190605_163845_resized by Ken McCandless, on Flickr
Additional work included:
- new Motorcraft thermostat & gasket
- new Ford Specialty Green Coolant mixed with distilled water.
- Pennzoil Plat 5W20 and FL500 filter
- flushed the power steering fluid.
- new power steering stretch belt - Continental
- new serpentine belt - Continental.
The work took me an honest 29 hours to complete, I could shave 10 hours off if I had to do this again, but the space between the frame and engine is tight and cleaning and repeated practice for the installation of the big front cover added significantly to the time required. If I had removed the A/C hose on the passenger side of engine bay, I would have saved 5 hours, but then have spent more to restore functional system.
I paid for a subscription to AllData - I think this was money well spent.
The car now has 209,000km, with no leaks to report. The timing cover was a major pita to install with the special TA 357 sealant, the stuff skins over pretty fast and with the tight access I made some neighbours aware of my alternative vocabulary
Sad fact: the old water pump has virtually no play in bearing, it might have lasted another 5 years?
Added bonus: trick for installing the stretch belt: fasten the stretch belt to the small pulley with zip ties, cut a piece of 3M scotch brite green pad to fit a strip into the crank pulley at 12 o'clock, and wedge it while turning the crank clockwise. The extra friction of the Scotchbrite prevents the belt from slipping as you turn the crank clockwise. Spin the crank until the Scotchbrite is released and say "well that was easy!" cut off the zip ties from small pulley and sit back and thank me?