the reason im asking is because im going to be doing a H/C package soon and was going to buy one, but they scare me a little knowing that they can cutout without me knowing until the damage has been done.

 

There are safety kits to warn you with enough time to pull over and shut off the car before damage can occur. Get a kit that is reliant on engine temps not fuses, volts and other things. They are sold on impalass forums. I can get a link later.

I thought it was worth it. I bought a brand new GM mechanical WP and less than a year later it was leaking. I said screw doing that again and put in a CSR pump. With well over 20k on it, I am happy with the move. I felt a huge gain with it, I consider it one of the top 3 mods done to my car. Who couldnt use 10 more rwhp/rwtq?

-Dustin-

 

I second that it is worth it, and if you wire it up right and set up warning systems then all is good. When I did mine I searched and found a couple wiring diagrams that included warning lights, give that a shot...

 

I'm interested in the link also, I'm not a member of the Impalass forum so I can't search.

 

In my opinion, the best reason to use one is because it lets you shut your engine off and still pump your coolant, in order to rapidly bring the temps down while you are in the pits.

Does that describe your situation? If not, just stick with the mechanical drive. It really doesn't suck all that much power.

 

The mechanical pump will quit too. The warning is about the same,when the guage is in the RED.
Ya will get 8-12 HP out of an electric pump.

 

thanks for the help guys. im gonna go ahead and get a meziere.

 

Mechanical pumps RARELY quit they usually begin to leak as the first sign of failure so they do give warning. The "new" GM pumps also have the highest failure rate I am aware of on LT1 pumps, I have about 70K on a $36 NAPA remanufactured unit sofar.
If you go with an electric I would suggest buying 2 because when the first eventually does fail you probably wont have the car somewhere where it can sit for days while a new one is shipped to you, after the initial conversion swapping the motors is supposed to be VERY easy. Mechanicals as noted fail slowly and are MUCH easier to get ahold of replacements. If you go electric and remove the WP drive then putting a mechanical on as a repair is not an option.

 

Since I had an electric waterpump blow a couple of headgaskets and (in my opinion) lead to a cracked block, I will never put one on my car again. 10 whp is not worth possibly trashing an engine to me.

 

FWIW every motor I build has a electric water pump on it. The better timing chain is worth it to start with and the warning lights make it MORE reliable than the stock setup with the soft timing gears that fail.

Bret

 

Some positives I like about mine:

Awesome power increase. Documented 10rwhp/11rwtq.
Timing chain set has many more options, also less strain on this part of the engine. Newly available timing sets can save money in the long run.
Cooler Running Engine.
Being able to run it when I am in the pits. Works great with a fan switch since you can run both a really cool your car down between runs or at stop lights.
Less drag on the whole engine.

BTW I like CSR a bit more than Mez. From what I have read they are contructed better. It's also smaller.

-Dustin-

 

Thats sort of the reason I went with one. The timing chain. Yall have a link to the warning lights and what not?

 

ive read you have to really modify a few things for the csr to fit and less of a hassle with the meziere. im gonna do a search i guess, but i hear negatives about both. not real sure which one would be the better route.

 

I've used the CSR a lot and have no problems with it.

I've also seen some stock timing chain failures and with something good like a Cloyes or Pro Gear TC your not going to have any TC related failures.

Bret

 

Any recommendations for the best warning light setup?