water, oil pumps ..should they be changed

[neil900]

hi all

could anyone let me know what the expected ;lfe of an oil pump and water pump should be ..i ask because i recall reading a thread once suggesting the oil pump was only good for 100 thousand miles ..this didnt seem to get disputed from other posts and so i am just wondering what the consensus of oponion is.

main reason i ask is ..i plan installing a new rad this weekend, i also got a new water pump at the same time ..some people say i shouldnt fix what is not broke ..yet other say preventative maintenance is more ideal ..so now i dont know if i should change the water pump when i change the rad ..also should i change the oil pump since i'll have good access to it with the water pump out ..could anyone please help confuse me more ..the car btw has done 106,000
regards
*dilema*

[Rodentmaster]

Water pump? Make sure it's a good brand one. Some aftermarket pumps are known to be troublesome.
I tend to think that replacing the oil pump would be a touch of over kill. I don't believe that the 900's have any history of oil pump fatigue but if you are so inclined, the oil pump O ring and crank pulley seal will certainly leak in the furture, if they aren't already. The obstacle is the crank pulley of course, which may need replacing as well.

So depending on your budget and keeness, you can go from there!

Good Luck
Cheers

[Matthew]

I'd say that if the water pump's quiet in operation and has no shaft play then leave it be. At 106,000 miles your car is just a youngster

[900t]

Many cars have water pumps driven by the timing belt / chain. As it is so difficult to get in the area, generally you replace the water pump and timing belt at same time.

On the Saab it's on the outside of the engine, so not such a big job. Don't worry about either.

[Oyster]

I got 185,000 from my water pump on my 89' 900 N/A.

I just did a rebuild @ 200,000 and the oil pump gears and housing were fine....knock on wood .

I say if you are doing the radiator, it can't hurt to do the other pieces for the cooling system since you can feasably do the common "need replacing" system components for under $200.00USD....Radiator, Water Pump, Thermo-switch for the fan and Thermostat, that is.

[zolf]

I wouldn't call throwing out a perfectly good pump preventative maintanance.

[Matthew]

I wouldn't call waiting for the water pump to fail preventive maintenance either!

The idea of preventive maintenance is to replace things before they break, or to carry out work to ensure that they don't break. Replacing perished but not yet split CV joint gaiters for example; or getting rid of that clogged radiator and knackered thermostat before they break and the engine overheats.

[neil900]

thank you one and all ..your opinions have been a great help and relief

i do have an oil "drip" ..it seems to flow off some point on the scratch plate in the centre ..could this be indicative of the oil pump O ring or crank shaft pully ? ..or could it be more serious ..i'm guessing not being the oil pump seals as the drip if virtually on the other side of the engine ..its a tiny barely noticeable amount lost ..i check the oil regularly and it never seems to require topping up ..i keep the level just over the half way point betweten min and max on the dip stick

when i did first buy the car ..the oil was slightly over full ..but i've done my first oil change since and used mobil1 ...it was dripping before the change so i know it is not due to switching to synthetic i had assumed was in it anyway

its an lpt with fitted charge cooler which is why i assumed it already ran on synthetic

anyway thanks for your help
regards