I replaced the water pump on my 2001 dodge dakota and I still have a leak coming from somewhere. I don't know if i put the bolts in the wrong holes or what. Some bolts were long and some were short. Is there a diagram that shows where which bolts go where?
2001 Dodge Dakota Water Pump
Dodge man and dave are correct as far as finding the bolt locations and sealing the threads. I have same eng in my 2000 dakota. I did the same as you. I chased a leak for months, Like you I replaced the water pump. That did not fix it. I was told by several people that the intake gaskets have been known to leak. So I kept adding coolant until I had the time to tear it down. The water pump can be replaced with out removing the bracket that holds ac compresser, but the little bypass hose, that connects to the top of the water pump, you have to carefully remove that bracket. Once you do that. you can easily replace the bypass hose, make sure to clean hose nipples good. While that bracket is off, you can easily see evidence of any other possible leaks. Anyway, It only took a few hours to complete this job, in the back yard with a few hand tools. That's been about 9 months ago, and haven't had any problems since. and the little bypass hose was like around $7 at O' reily. Anyways good luck and hope this answer helps.
There are 4 long bolts that go all the way through the pump and and timing cover into the engine block. The rest are shorter but all the same length which seal the pump to the timing cover. You cannot put them in the wrong holes. The 4 long bolts do screw into water passages though. What has probably happened is you neglected to put sealant on the threads of the 4 long bolts that go into the coolant passages. If you put those 4 bolts in without sealant the coolant can weep right past the threads even if the bolts are tight and leak. Remove just those bolts 1 at a time and coat the threads with RTV or gasket sealing compound and re-install them then pressure check the system. Best of Luck!
check for leaks in the system, the water pump may show signs of leaks or perhap even make a noise, flush out the radiator, it may be stopped up preventing good circulation, make sure thermostat is installed properly, if there is no signs of leaking,or no noise such a a bad bearing, or water pump not loose when you try to shake it, most likely I would change out the heater core.. and also replace the radiator cap so the system is properly pressurized.
no their isn't any diagrams on it but there is a way to identify them, just run them in the hole dry and see if they bottom out and do them one at a time,as a rule i always mark them when i remove them then this doesn't ever happen,but you can get them figured out by dry testing them and also look at the difference in the thickness on the water pump,good luck on it,
