Hi all,

My sons T reg Focus 1.6 LX 105k miles has started to make a groaning/squealing noise most noticeable whilst idling. Have removed the aux drivebelt and ran engine briefly and no noise was heard. We then spun each of the pulleys by hand and found the water pump one to be noisy and quite difficult to turn. We suspect the bearings to be on the way out but have not suffered any leak or water loss

My question is, should the water pump be easy to turn by hand bearing in mind there is water in the system? Is replacement quite straightforward and could this also be causing the battery warning light to come on (see my earlier post) by creating excessive drag on the pulleys including the alternator one?

Thanks, John

Hi all,

My sons T reg Focus 1.6 LX 105k miles has started to make a groaning/squealing noise most noticeable whilst idling. Have removed the aux drivebelt and ran engine briefly and no noise was heard. We then spun each of the pulleys by hand and found the water pump one to be noisy and quite difficult to turn. We suspect the bearings to be on the way out but have not suffered any leak or water loss

My question is, should the water pump be easy to turn by hand bearing in mind there is water in the system? Is replacement quite straightforward and could this also be causing the battery warning light to come on (see my earlier post) by creating excessive drag on the pulleys including the alternator one?

Thanks, John

hi mate ,my water pump had a sqeeking noise when i removed it bearing was tight and grinding,its not hard to do just fiddly,drain,cooling system,remove serpentine belt,remove top bearing roller,remove water pump pulley,remove cambelt cover,then remove waterpump,be carefull not to drop bolts down lower timing cover as they are a !Removed! to get out,hope this helps.

Thanks for that reply but a few days after posting, the noise suddenly disappeared. I`ve told him to keep an eye on the water temp in case the impeller had broken away but so far all seems well.

I will post again if the noise returns, thanks again, John