I'm getting ready to install the new water pump on my Ranger 3.0. Chiltons manual says torque the bolts to 84 inch pounds which is equal to 7 foot pounds. That seems mighty light to me. The bolts are different sizes but the larger ones are almost 5/16" and 7 ft/lbs sounds to light. Considering all the trouble I went through to get to the pump It would kill me to under torque it and have it leak. Also some of the bolts had sealant on them and appear to go into the crankcase. Can anyone advise me on torqueing the bolts? Recommend a sealant I could use on the gasket, bolts? This has been an aggravating job and I would appreciate advice anyone could give.

 

84inch/lb is correct, just snug is what you want

Any RTV sealant will work, just a light coat on the both sides of the gasket, it won't leak if surfaces are clean
Because of the low torque you can use loc-tite on the bolt threads if you want
And you can put a dab of RTV on the end of the threads on longer bolts that go thru to coolant or oil galleries

Just FYI, the more common leak point near water pump on the 3.0l, is the front cover gasket where coolant passages go thru it, its the timing chains cover
Water pumps rarely leaked on the 3.0l except from the weep hole when the bearing seal has failed, like all water pumps will do at some point

 

Thanks so much.

 

I torqued mine to 84 inch lbs and four months later it's still leak free. The key is to prep the surface really well and make sure no old gasket material remains.

 

Thanks. I feel more confident.