What things in my car could the seizing of my water pump cause? As I stated in another question, the power steering went, the red battery light came on and it over heated. The mechanic said it seized and i'm lucky the engine didn't seize. He has to look into it more. I'm just really curious as to what kind of damage i've done and the possibilities! thanks in advance.
well... depending on how severe the problem is, it could be many things. You could simply have to change the water pump, and be on your way. That's the best case scenario. Though, in really bad cases, I've heard of the whole engine having to be replaced. When the water pump stops working, the engine doesn't get cooled properly. So it heats up a ton, and things start to expand. The pistons can start to gouge the cylinder walls, and ultimately they will get so tight that things can't move. That's what the mechanic was talking about. Also, the water expanding could cause some internal gaskets to blow out. So there are a lot of variables at play here. Best case, it's nothing serious. Maybe as little as $100 for a new water pump (depending on the type of car). Or worst case, you fried the engine and need a new one. That can get quite expensive obviously. Hopefully, it's nothing serious.
If your car has a Surpenteen belt : 1 long belt runs all the componets If one of the components locks up (normally the belt will sling or break) and every thing else that is belt driven , becomes disabled. And the lights will come on.
It really depends on the car and how hot it got when it overheated. most likely you will need a new belt and of course a water-pump. Possibly you have cracked a cylinder head or warped it, this mostly occurs on aluminum cylinder heads and is unlikely if cylinder heads are iron.
Water pumps are items that sometimes wear out. It usually gives an indication before it fails, such as leaking water (coolant), or making a squealing noise (this is the water pump destroying the drive belt). Siezed water pumps lead to overheating, as you experienced, overheating can cause warped heads and/or headgasket pailure, both expensive to fix. Water pumps aren't horribly expensive to fix,usually. Be sure to replace the belt also.
Plan on the car failing completely soon...the rings probably were damaged from excessive heat...depending on how long you drove it while it was too hot. The rings on the pistons are most likely bad now and will start fouling you spark plugs....best start saving now for another car.....here's a hint..if the car is in great shape other wise take it to a dealer for a trade in..before it fails and they give you a better trade in value.
