Newbie Chim Owner, Water Pump Leaking!
Discussion
Evening all,
I have just bought a 4.0 Chim and am extremely excited about owning one of my dream cars as a teenager. Picking the car up next week cannot come soon enough! It's a big jump up for me as i've not had anything like it before (if there is any car that is "like" a TVR...)
There is one problem with the car; the weep hole on the water pump has started, well, weeping. Not a lot but i'd say a drip every 10 seconds once the engine is up to temp. So I understand the seal/seals have gone on and this is a warning signal to save the bearing. I need to drive 110 miles to get it home and was contemplating making sure it is well topped off before setting off, keeping a keen eye on the temp guage and getting recovered if it becomes an issue. Is this madness or should I try and get it repaired before picking up? I'm just not sure how much warning you would get with this before complete failure. It is a private sale.
Any help or advice would be great!
Cheers
I have just bought a 4.0 Chim and am extremely excited about owning one of my dream cars as a teenager. Picking the car up next week cannot come soon enough! It's a big jump up for me as i've not had anything like it before (if there is any car that is "like" a TVR...)
There is one problem with the car; the weep hole on the water pump has started, well, weeping. Not a lot but i'd say a drip every 10 seconds once the engine is up to temp. So I understand the seal/seals have gone on and this is a warning signal to save the bearing. I need to drive 110 miles to get it home and was contemplating making sure it is well topped off before setting off, keeping a keen eye on the temp guage and getting recovered if it becomes an issue. Is this madness or should I try and get it repaired before picking up? I'm just not sure how much warning you would get with this before complete failure. It is a private sale.
Any help or advice would be great!
Cheers
Hi guys,
Thanks so much for all of the help and advice. I must say i'm pretty nervous about the whole thing now as I have paid for it in full and 'just' need to pick up. It is a 1998 (I know, white chassis.....) 4.0 in Imperial blue.
It looks to have been really well looked after and is cosmetically beautiful, totally fell in love with it when I saw it. Tonnes of history and receipts and all work carried out by specialists. It had a brand new radiator from a specialist near Kidderminster just 3 weeks ago, I forget which, so I am very hopeful that they would have spotted if the bores were porous / a liner had slipped. I am just hoping to goodness that the car hasn't overheated when the radiator failed and that has, in turn, caused some sort of issue internally with warping from high temperatures.
Excitement has now well and truly turned to terror. I have just about justified the purchase to the other half, so several thousand £s to instantly fork out is not going to go down well at all! And although allowance has been made for bits and bobs, as I expect there to be problems here and there and intend to see it as a classic car, but a major problem before I have picked up the car is not something I want to contemplate!
Thanks again for your help, you helpful people. I will post pictures when I can!
Pete
Thanks so much for all of the help and advice. I must say i'm pretty nervous about the whole thing now as I have paid for it in full and 'just' need to pick up. It is a 1998 (I know, white chassis.....) 4.0 in Imperial blue.
It looks to have been really well looked after and is cosmetically beautiful, totally fell in love with it when I saw it. Tonnes of history and receipts and all work carried out by specialists. It had a brand new radiator from a specialist near Kidderminster just 3 weeks ago, I forget which, so I am very hopeful that they would have spotted if the bores were porous / a liner had slipped. I am just hoping to goodness that the car hasn't overheated when the radiator failed and that has, in turn, caused some sort of issue internally with warping from high temperatures.
Excitement has now well and truly turned to terror. I have just about justified the purchase to the other half, so several thousand £s to instantly fork out is not going to go down well at all! And although allowance has been made for bits and bobs, as I expect there to be problems here and there and intend to see it as a classic car, but a major problem before I have picked up the car is not something I want to contemplate!
Thanks again for your help, you helpful people. I will post pictures when I can!
Pete
I have just called Central TVR to see if I could get some info as it was they who changed the radiator a few weeks ago. Seems it was just something that got picked up on an inspection and it wasn't as though it dropped its coolant and overheated etc. The cooling system was pressure tested and all was found to be normal. This gives me great hope! 
Thanks very much for your help. Feel much better now I've spoken to Central. They said they pressure tested the cooling system so that is also extra piece of mind. The seller seems very genuine and I trust him, it's just that too much forum trawling can make you a tad paranoid! Especially when you have handed over the cash already and don't have the car (don't ask!)
Can't wait to get it now and enjoy it. I haven't heard one for a few years. Looked at many on YouTube over the past few weeks so when I heard it fire into life it made me very happy! It sounds like a force of nature with its sleeved exhaust. Bring on the nice weather! (Or even just some dry weather....)
Can't wait to get it now and enjoy it. I haven't heard one for a few years. Looked at many on YouTube over the past few weeks so when I heard it fire into life it made me very happy! It sounds like a force of nature with its sleeved exhaust. Bring on the nice weather! (Or even just some dry weather....)
I wish I could do that but I can't get time off work at the moment and I doubt they work weekends... So it will be an evening trip from the Wirral down to Kidderminster after work next week. The guy I spoke to from Central said it was quite normal for them to sometimes weep so I shall make the journey, keep an eye on it and the temperature gauge and take some water, just in case.
Thanks very much for that offer, Paul, very kind. I am actually going that way so i'd be grateful if you could message me your number, just in case the worst comes to the worst and I need some advice. It's going to be a late trip as i'm going after work, so i'll be leaving Kidderminster around 7.30 / 8pm. Hopefully all will be well but I will keep monitoring the temperature gauge and of course the expansion tank.
Thanks again, you helpful folk!
Pete
Thanks again, you helpful folk!
Pete
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