How to Replace the Water Pump on a Ford Mystique

by Dan Ferrell

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As part of the cooling system, the water pump circulates coolant through the engine in your Ford Mystique vehicle. This helps the engine operate at a predetermined temperature. If the water pump becomes noisy or stuck, you will need to replace it to avoid expensive engine repairs later on. You can perform this repair job at home in a Saturday morning. Before you begin though, make sure you have all the required tools and parts. This guide applies to the Mystique with the 2.5-liter engine model.

Removing the Water Pump

Step 1

Open the hood and disconnect the negative cable terminal from the battery using a wrench. This is the cable connected to the post with the negative sign next to it.

Step 2

Place a large drain pan under the radiator, open the radiator drain valve and loosen the radiator cap. Allow all the coolant to drain from the radiator and then close the radiator valve. Remove the drain pan from under the vehicle and cover it if you plan to reuse it later.

Step 3

Unfasten the two bolts from the top engine cover, which shields the water pump pulley. Use a ratchet, short ratchet extension and socket. When removing the cover detach the crankcase ventilation tube from the edge of the cover by hand.

Step 4

Raise the front of your car with a floor jack, support it with two jack stands and chock the rear wheels with a couple of wooden blocks.

Step 5

Rotate the drive belt tensioner clockwise using a breaker bar with a 3/8-inch driver. Insert the breaker bar driver in the square hole of the belt tensioner. Hold the belt tensioner in the release position and lift the drive belt from the pulleys. Slowly release the belt tensioner to its original position.

Step 6

Loosen the clamps holding the two hoses to the water pump using a Phillips-head screwdriver and detach the hoses from the water pump.

Step 7

Unfasten the three bolts that hold the water pump and housing assembly to the engine using a ratchet, short ratchet extension and socket. Remove the water pump from the engine.

Step 8

Unfasten the water pump body from the water pump housing bolts using the ratchet and socket.

Installing the Water Pump

Step 1

Remove old gasket traces from the mating surface of the water pump housing using a plastic scraper. Install a new water pump gasket following the instructions of the new pump manufacturer.

Step 2

Position the new water pump in place over the housing and install the mounting bolts by hand. Tighten the bolts to 18 foot-pounds using a torque wrench and a socket.

Step 3

Place the water pump assembly in position on the engine of your Mercury Mystique and install the new bolts (part number W701544) by hand. Tighten the bolts to 13 foot-pounds using the torque wrench, short ratchet extension and socket.

Step 4

Rotate the three water pump assembly bolts clockwise an additional 95 degrees using the socket, short ratchet extension and a degree wheel.

Step 5

Attach the two hoses to the water pump and tighten the hose clamps with the Phillips-head screwdriver. Reinstall the drive belt using the breaker bar.

Step 6

Lower your Mercury Mystique off the jack stands.

Step 7

Replace the top engine cover with the ratchet, short ratchet extension and socket. Refill the radiator with coolant and tighten the radiator cap.

Step 8

Connect the battery cable to the negative battery post using the wrench. Start the engine, check for coolant leaks around the water pump and add more coolant to the radiator, if necessary.

References

Things You'll Need