I recently helped my sister-in-law by replacing the leaking water pump in her 1998 Dodge Intrepid with the 2.7L engine. It’s a terribly designed engine in that when the water pump shaft seal goes (as they are prone to do), the leak dumps coolant into the crankcase and fouls the oil. Chrysler seams to think that a simple weep hole is sufficient to catch any leakage and dump it outside, but, I’ve read too many stories about that being inadequate. BTW — the weep hole location is on the left side of the engine block, near the front, about half way up the block. It’s easiest to locate when looking from underneath the car.
The following is not meant to be a complete step-by-step on how to do the job. I intend it to be informational with things that I learned along the way that might help others. I would not attempt this without some kind of service manual(s). I have omitted many important details that are covered in a service manual (like torque procedures). If nothing else, after reading this you should get a good sense for the amount of work involved and why a mechanic is going to charge you north of $500 in labor to do the job.
Tools that you absolutely must have that might not be in the average tool box:
- 12 mm allen wrench
- 3/8″ breaker bar — for cam shaft positioning. DO NOT use a socket ratchet!
- 3-jaw puller
- Set of Torx bits (for the coil-over-plug removal)
- Torque wrench (duh!)
Recommend, but, I managed without them:
- Chain style locking “pliers” to hold crankshaft pulley when removing/installing crankshaft pulley bolt.
- Crankshaft pulley installer
Enough lead in, let’s get started with the tear down:
- Remove the intake Plenum — Disconnect all wires and hoses to the plenum, including the EGR tube. Disconnect the throttle cable(s). Unbolt and remove the plenum with the throttle body attached. Stuff rags into the intake ports to prevent anything from getting dropped in. Use a couple of zip ties to hold the wire bundles over the center of the engine
Remove the valve covers — Remove the coil-over-plug assemblies. I used a sharpened putty knife to carefully slip between the head and the cover to loosen it enough to pop it free without damaging the cover gasket. The cover gaskets are rubberized and reusable if care is taken.
- Remove the cross-member above the radiator.
- Drain the cooling system and remove the upper radiator hose.
- Remove the fan assembly.
- Remove the drive belts.
- Remove the power steering pump — There’s no need to disconnect any hoses or drain the system. It simply has to be pulled aside. Take note that there are only 3 bolts holding the pump in place and ALL of them are accessible with a socket wrench through the holes in the pump pulley. If you are struggling to get at one of the bolts, most likely the bolt is holding only the bracket and not the pump. The farthest inside bolt has a spacer that is pressed through the bracket and against the pump. This spacer needs to be pried away from the pump in order to free the pump enough to remove it from the bracket.
- Now that the pump is out of the way, all the power steering pump idler bracket bolts are a cinch to get at. Remove the bracket.
- Remove the bolt in the crankshaft holding the main pulley in place. If you don’t have a proper tool to hold the pulley, you can manage by using the tab at the bottom of the timing chain cover as a prop for a screwdriver through the pulley spoke.
- Remove the crankshaft pulley using a 3-jaw puller.
- Remove the timing chain cover.
- Remove the spark plugs to ease rotating the crankshaft.
- Rotate the crankshaft around until “colored” links of the timing chain are oriented with the respective sprockets as shown in the photo’s below. Additionally, align the crankshaft position with the arrow on the crank case (it’s actually the oil pump housing) on the left side of the engine. I found the “dark colored” links to be very difficult to see. Also note that from the factory, the timing chain marks on this engine were NOT lined up with the chain — they were all off by 6 teeth in every location (the photos below show the correct line-up used during assembly).
Note that the crank position does not look correct in this picture — partly due to the camera angle, and partly because it really is off by a little bit…
- With everything in alignment, remove the timing chain tensioner. Take note of the extension of the timing chain tensioner before removing it. This will be useful for gauging the wear of the cam chain later.
Remove all the timing chain guides. Note that this requires removing the large plugs in the front of the heads using a 12mm allen key. I did not have one and my local hardware store was conveniently out of stock when I needed it, so, I made one from a long coupling nut as shown on the right. The coupling nut was 1/2″ wrench size with a little work on the grinder reduce it down to make it ~12MM. No sir, I’m not too proud to admit any of this!
- Remove the cam shaft sprockets. Be warned: I had a problem with the cams not staying in the exact location once freed of the chain. Use caution when removing the bolts since the cams may spring violently once the sprocket bolts are removed (ask me why I know about this)! Use a 3/8″ ‘breaker bar’ that has a non-ratchet head so you can ease the spring pressure in either direction after removing the cam sprocket bolts. Do NOT hold the cam shaft with a standard 3/8″ ratchet since it can only apply torque in one direction!
Remove the cam chain enough to clear the water pump.
- Finally, the water pump can be removed. Once I got it free, I found that the gasket was disintegrating. The rubber material was literally crumbling into pieces upon removal. Arielle was very lucky that the gasket had not started leaking coolant into the crankcase.
- I urge you to drain the oil at this point since, undoubtedly, coolant dribbled down into the oil pan upon removing the water pump.
Inspection
Take a close look at the wear on the cam chain guides. Arielle’s engine had been replaced and we don’t know how many miles it has on it. The deepest wear on the worst cam chain guide was only ~0.020″ deep. We decided not to replace the guides.
Installation
Even after reading the procedure in the manual, one of the most confusing things to do was to “reset” the cam chain tensioner before installing it. There’s a special tool that might help you with this, but it is not really required. The trick is to release the check valve ball while compressing the tensioner so that the trapped oil can escape. I used a tiny allen wrench to apply a small amount of pressure on the ball while firmly applying compression to the tensioner body. It’s moderately tricky and you are not done until the tensioner wants to spring back on its own after being released from compression (see UPDATE in step 2). If it does not do this, the problem is most assuredly because it has yet to be compressed enough to fully drain the oil out. This is confusing because once all the oil is removed, it will actually “click” into a fully compressed state and not spring back. However after applying compression again, it should then spring back into the extended position. I’d be wary of using a vise for compression due to the difficult in gauging the force applied (it can easily be done by hand). It’s also very messy and the oils squirts all over — wear eye protection!
- UPDATE: after completely draining the oil from the tensioner (as called for in the service manual I was using), I think this later caused a problem — the timing chain would lose tension at idle when the oil was up to temp. So, I likely screwed something up (also, there was a commenter below that seams to have the same problem). My theory is that releasing the tensioner after installation fills it with air, and that air gets trapped, ruining the hydraulic lock that is probably needed at lower oil pressures during idle. Dennis, did the job and suggested only compressing the tensioner just enough to reinstall it, thus, leaving nearly all the oil in the tensioner. He reports this has worked great thus far. Thank you, Dennis, for reporting back on this.
- Install the water pump. Follow the torque procedure in the manual.
- Install the cam chain and cam shaft sprockets. Get the chain alignment with in a tooth or two, but, don’t sweat it just yet.
- Now the really fun part — aligning the cam chain to the sprockets while installing the guides. Start installing the cam chain guides one at a time. For better or worse, I started with the one on the right side of the engine (i.e. the side with the tensioner), then the two around the water pump, and finally the left side. I knew the crankshaft was very close to the correct position, so, I correctly aligned the right-side cam to the chain and found a spot that it would rest at without constantly holding the cam. After installing the guides around the water pump, it took a bit of cam positioning to get the chain aligned with the left-side cam shaft. This one did not want to stay in position on its own and I had to use the 3/8″ breaker bar (as mentioned above, do NOT use a normal 3/8″ ratchet for this!) to hold the cam in the correct position while also positioning the chain around the crank shaft sprocket and also installing the final guide on the left of the engine. It really helped to have an extra set of hands for this operation.
- Once the chain and sprockets are aligned, install the cam chain tensioner. Once installed, compress it with a small pry bar and it should spring out against the guide.
- I then took the opportunity to spin the crankshaft around by hand for several revolutions to make sure nothing clanged.
- Install the timing chain cover and torque appropriately.
- Install the crankshaft pulley. The correct way to do this is with a special tool that threads into the crankshaft and then pushes the pulley onto the shaft. I tried getting one from the local auto parts store, but, they didn’t have one with the correct threads for the crankshaft. Naturally, the bolt that holds the pulley on the crank is too short to be of any help for the task. I wound up heating the pulley in the oven to ~250 degrees and then tapped it onto the shaft using baby sledge hammer. Not exactly elegant, but I was out of options on a Sunday afternoon and had to proceed. Before you scream at me, remember that this is done in very cramped space and I could only get about a 3 inch swing of the hammer, so, there was no heavy pounding involved — even though it was a 3 lb hammer. I used a backing board against the radiator to prevent damaging it during the backward swing.
- The rest of the installation is the reverse of the the tear down.
- Don’t forget to connect the hood latch release cable when installing the radiator cross member — yeah, that was an “ohh sh!t” for me (managed to connect it in place, but, twas a pain).
- Also, don’t forget to refill all the fluids — engine oil (you did drain it, didn’t you!?!) and coolant.
When it’s time to start the engine the first time, be prepared for quite a racket until the oil pressure comes up — the cam chain tensioner needs to be “pumped up” with oil before it will hold the correct slack on the chain.
If you found this helpful, please leave a comment saying so. Enjoy!
Not replacing the chain / guides is how these engines end up jumping time, and later its called a POS and gets a bad rep. Yes, the tensioner had extra travel remaining in it, but I find that the ratchet mechanism inside the tensioner,only works up to the wear indicator. To further explain this, if you release the tensioner all the way, and compress it to re-set it (don’t forget to unseat the check ball on the bottom of it as its being compressed), you can slowly release the tensioner and try re-compressing it before its fully extended and realize that it is impossible. Release a little further, and you’ll catch another of the ratchet mechanisms, a little further, and another ratchet mechanism until you get to a point right around that wear indicator where you no longer get bites on the ratchet mechanism. This is where mechanics go wrong. Say the tensioner gets way towards the end of its travel due to timing component wear, its still working, except if it bleeds down while the engine sits for a week or so. Its free to bleed down towards its nearest ratchet mechanism, which gives the chain enough slack to allow it to jump time. Owner goes to start it up, and WHAM pistons meet the valves. Or if it gets way towards the end, any compressing it will initiate the re-set procedure of the tensioner, compress it to a certain point where hydraulic pressure inside will not push it back out, and same thing happens. Replace the necessary components if that wear indicator on the tensioner is showing.
The water pump weep hole is plenty sufficient to allow coolant to drain. The cause of coolant getting into the oil is like you mentioned; the gasket deteriorating. Every new gasket I install now I spread RTV on the metal surfaces of the gasket to help seal it.
As for the reason these engines have rod bearing issues? Too much oil in the cylinder heads. Read other internet sources that say this and that, and I find them all to be untrue even with some water pump gasket leakage. With all the oil in the heads, it doesn’t give the crankcase enough when the oil is neglected. Try running one with the front cover removed and watch the oil level in the pan drop as RPMs go up! Almost every single overhead cam engine I’ve had apart has some kind of oil supply restrictor to the cylinder heads. The 2.7 does not. Yes, you can change it all you want but if it consumes 3 quarts in 3000 miles and you never check oil level in between, you have a problem. Maintain the oil with quality oil and they won’t sludge, and most of all, maintain the oil level. These things will run forever if you do that. Oil is cheap. Engines are expensive. You can replace whichever you want.
Thanks for the comment Paul. I think there is some real experience we can all learn from in there…
Driving home from work, near the end of my first semester of college, I came up to a stop and lost heat in my vehicle. Just down at an idle I experienced no heat, but at cruising speeds heat returned. Next morning I checked it out, was a half gallon low on coolant. Damn. Fired it up and noticed it was leaking coolant. Found out it was the weep hole.
Finished up school and knew the first big project for the summer was going to by changing the water pump in my gold old intrep. I purchased the vehicle from my father at 110,000 miles, and the pump went around 144,000. The vehicle has never let either of us down in the past, so I figured I’d fix it right, and see how long the thing lasts me.
I work at NAPA, so I purchased a new water pump, timing cover gasket, valve cover gaskets, and a chilton’s manual to aid me in the project. I know a few mechanics, and one of the local garages was nice enough to loan me a low profile harmonic balancer puller made just for Chryslers.
(This was over three months ago, so it is somewhat fuzzy in my head)Tear down was easy. Lined up the timing marks, took the guides out, and only the passenger side cam sprocket. Was able to remove the chain, and take the pump out. The old pump gasket was still in great condition. Every piece of rubber molded on the metal gasket was still there, not all rotted like the picture above. The design on the pump gasket must have changed slightly… quality of material wise… when Chrysler introduced the different chain tensioner in 2002. On older 2.7l models… from 98-01 they used a tensioner that threaded directly into the head. From what I read online they redesigned the tensioner “under the radar” so to speak to the one that is held on with the plate on the side of the head. The older design on the primary chain tensioner was prone to failure… great when you break the chain running down the highway.
I’ll spare my story.
Here is what I found useful.
Use a threadlocker when you install the water pump, it reeks of loctite when you take the bolts out. So install the old bolts with some sort of threadlocking compound on them, they came that way from the factory for a reason.
Instead of reusing the old chain tensioner, buy a new one. I went to two chrysler garages and asked for their opinion on the best way to reset it. They told me to toss it and buy a new one. Whenever they change a pump on a 2.7l they always install a new primary tensioner. Thankfully aftermarket makes it, I got one through work(NAPA) with my employee discount for $90 or so.
When installing the primary tensioner into the head, use a few dabs of grease to hold the o-ring in the groove on the retaining plate. I used a white lithium grease. I failed to do this first time around, pinched the O-ring, and blew a quart of oil all over the front of my motor. Great for those new drive belts.
Anyways, I had to rip the valve cover off, and take the retaining plate for the tensioner off the head, and try again.
After getting the tensioner installed correctly, use a pry bar to force the chain guide into the new tensioner, this will spring the plunger out against the guide, putting the tension on the chain.
I changed oil after I changed my pump before initial startup, and for the first oil change in my life I filled the filter with oil prior to installation. By doing so, you will not have to wait the extra few seconds for the engine to get proper oil pressure.
It seems a lot of people are worried about the engine skipping time in this crucial first start up stage. By the time I turned my key and the motor cranked over a few revolutions before it fired, my “dry” or not primed tensioner seemed already filled up. Before I could even get out of the vehicle the chain quit slapping. That was a matter of two seconds.
Like what Paul T said in a previous post, use a high quality oil and oil filter. My father owned my intrepid from 30,000 miles to 110,000 and he always took it in for oil changes. I knew he never checked the oil, but he always got in changed between 3-4 thousand. Since I bought the vehicle from him, I have been running full synthetic Pennzoil with a NAPA Gold (WIX) filter. After 144,000 miles, beneath the valve covers and timing cover, everything was very… very clean to my surprise. Check the oil once a week, and adjust it accordingly. These engines are not cheap!
4000 miles after my water pump replacement everything is running smoothly. And with the new tensioner, I am not experiencing a chain rattle at a hot idle like some have.
This was an extremely frustrating project for myself, but it was well worth it. The satisfaction of doing everything right yourself and saving hundreds in labor did it for me.
I recently replaced the water pump on my GF’s Intrepid w/2.7. After 5 mechanics declined the job I decided to do it myself (some mechanical experience)…long story boring…finally finished…ran well for the afternoon and the next morning. Thought, wow “you da man”…so I decided to wash the engine. OOPS! Would not start. Disconnected all the electrical connections dried the best I could…used ether to help dry them. I let everything stand open for about two hours…put it all back together and it started but ran like sh*t…two days later still like sh*t…paid two mechanics 100.00 each to tell me “it runs like sh*t..”lol. One cleared all the codes(7) and three came back. He said it was running on 3 cylinders. Both said the computer was fine…one said it had jumped time. Took it all back apart to check the timing and it was/is dead on………My question…does anyone have any clue as to what could have happened…where did water get that it should not have gotten? Coincidence? 2 weeks later everything should be dry. Any ideas?
Thank you for a thorough, well documented procedure. The pictures are very good and clear. Please DO BE Proud of making your own tools when it is necessary. I find that some of my home made tools may not be pretty, but work better than store bought tools ! And thank you for explaining the reasons behind your procedures.
thanks so much for this post and your thorough details and pics. we’ll try to get firestone to do the job, but im kinda thinking it’d be better to do it myself to make sure all the crucial steps are followed. i unfortunately have no confidence or trust in any other mechanic(and i used to be one).
HELP. I replaced the water pump on my 2000 Dodge Intrepid. Now trying to start it, it just turns over and does not even try to fire. HELP< HELP< HELP !!!!!!
When setting the chain on the sprockets, have the cam sprockets loose on the camshafts (no bolts in them) Once all your marks are lined up, adjust the cams by rotating them to the cam sprockets bolt holes and instal. Cam timing is a breeze this way! The sprockets will “float” on the cam shaft hubs until bolted in.
That’s genius. I wouldn’t have thought that the sprockets would stay on with the bolts out, so, I never tried it…
ANyone find a water pump nwith metal fins or impeller on it? mine keep exploding, not fun to do multiple times
instead of removing the entire power steering pump it is only required that you remove the pumps pulley and only one side of the timing chain sprockets needs to be removed to perform a new water pump install, but overall this was very informative, thanks
If you remove the P/S adjuster bolt you can rotate the pump out of the way and remove the bracket and the pump together. +1 on leaving the cam sprockets loose on the cams. The BOSCH pump has a steel impeller. and good luck to anyone trying this job on a transverse mount motor vehicle (ie. Stratus) The differences are:
1) The radiator support does not need to be removed
2) The right side motor mount bolts directly to the timing cover and must be removed prior to cover removal (support the motor with a floor jack while removing the mount bolts. Slowly lower the motor until it is hanging by the other mounts (it will only drop about 1.5″)
3) Be ready to have an intimate relationship with the right side wheel well
4)I do not waist time removing the spark plugs (the crank rotates easily enough with a 1/2″ drive breaker bar)
5)I cannot imagine attempting one of these laying on the floor (it is difficult enough to reach the P/S pump and tensioner with the car on a lift)
Good luck to anyone attempting this job
-AF
Hey i just buttoned up the new water pump outlet housing and new thermostat. Now its leaking from the weep hole again, any ideas? Everything was sealed correctly with new gaskets and sealant.
your waterpump is leaking though the weap hole so is mine
I used to work for Chrysler and have done hundreds of timing chains and water pumps on the 2.7L engine and it is not and easy engine for the back yard mechanic to work on, it is a ZERO clearance engine and if you are out by even one tooth in the chain or you stop cranking before the engine is running after you have replaced the chain or water pump, the engine will kick back and jump two or three teeth and the valve damage will occur (that is experience speak) cause I have done it. So the price that the repair shop is worth it unless you have lots of spare $$ to spend on a valve job!!
Pretty good post. I hope you create more in the future..
Darn, I didn’t know there was a timing chain mark on the oil pump. I lined up the cam sockets and the cutout on the crank gear. Wish I would have known about the mark before I put all together. Would have reassured me it was put together right. It isles fine in my garage, but I didn’t drive it yet.
Ps. Your dodge dealer has an update for these engines. It comes with new sockets, chain, water pump and guides. This is a good deal at only $250. Don’t forget you will need new plenum, valve cover, spark plug hole and timing cover gaskets/seals. Also, the chain tensioner is a must. I did min myself and still had $873 in the project. There are also quite a few specialty tools that will shave hours off the total time. Just keep that all in mind. If your local shop will do it for $1000 and stick to that estimate you might be better off.
Tell me why water would be leaking through the weep hole after the h2o pump has been replaced?
Sorry but I was talking about on a 2004 dodge intrepid 2.7
Thanks for this page it was a huge help couldnt have done it with out it man what was dodge thinking this is a crazy pump never sen anything like it its easier to work on a acura anyway she back together running great
ok just completely rebuilt the 2.7 engine not knowing it was the water pump. all new started fine, ran great and then the coolant poured out…..freezer plugs are good…hoses are good…no clue where it is coming from…please help!
versatility. that’s what a chrysler engine can bring to the table, it has lots of ways to be repaired and one can be shown right here
I am in the process of replacing the water pump/timing chain in a 2002 Stratus.
While reviewing the discussion on the tensioner I was debating whether to use the old one or go with a new. I was checking out the mechanism. I had released the check ball and drained the oil and was just exploring the mechanism. I noticed that the check ball did not seat when I compressed the tensioner. I became suspicious that if the ball would not seat, the tensioner could never hold its extended place and self adjust. So I drilled out the ball to see what was holding it up. During the drilling I lost the ball but found other parts. There is a cap into which fits the ball. The cap is held in place with 3 tabs and sits atop a spring. There is a plunger or spacer in the spring but I’m not sure of its purpose.
Anyhow it’s possible to push the ball in-between the tabs on the cap. Once this happens the ball no longer seats and there is no way to release it and the tensioner is toast.
So I would suspect that if care is not taken to release the check ball it could very easily get stuck in-between the cap tabs. If you were not aware of this you would be installing a defective part. Maybe the special tool is designed to prevent this. I just used a nail, grinding a flat surface. But apparently at some point applied too much pressure and jammed the ball into the cap, rendering the tensioner useless.
This could explain why others have mentioned a problem when re using the tensioner?
[IMG]http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y53/Godzilla1/1.jpg[/IMG]
Some further discussion on TDC as it pertains to the 2.7. Typically TDC refers to peak position of the piston on compression stroke. This is usually for ignition timing, in other words so many degrees advanced before TDC.
The reference to TDC in the manual for the 2.7 is for the valve timing and it is actually on exhaust stroke and beginning intake. The TDC mark on the crankshaft gear is at true TDC (just after exhaust) when it is in the position of about two o’clock. When it is lined up with the mark on the oil pump, the manual says it is about 60° from TDC. But it doesn’t tell you that it is on intake stroke and the inlet valves should be beginning to open and applying spring pressure to the cam shaft. This position I would say is roughly at four-five o’clock.
With the primary timing chain removed the camshafts seem to find a neutral position without any cam lobes engaging the valves.
This discussion had me confused a little bit since I was thinking in terms of conventional TDC used for ignition timing and valve timing on older cars but not so on this vehicle.
To actually determine TDC I used a flexible shaft which was about a 10 inch piece of speedometer cable which allowed me to put the shaft into the number one cylinder which is under the Cowling and would be difficult to do without a flexible shaft.
When water gets in the oil from a faulty designed water pump, the agitation of the engine turns the mixture into an emulsion. I thought that over time the water would eventually separate from the oil but no. It eventually cakes into a hard crust, I suspect. And then the engine blows. So if you are losing coolant, and don’t know where it’s going check your oil. If it looks anything like what’s in the picture your water pump is leaking.
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y53/Godzilla1/HPIM3300.jpg
After completing the repairs with the help of this web page, the car is running but any mechanic who works on these engines, I’m sure has blown his flat rate. I worked as a Chrysler service tech (mechanic). And thank God I never got one of these. I would guess that Chrysler must be paying for some of these repairs. I called for an estimate and was told 1100 to replace the pump. Unless you have someone who specifically does 2.7s on a routine basis, no mechanic would want to touch this. It would bust your flat rate and you would be working for free. Now maybe Chrysler has a fund, for this, to keep repair costs to the consumer reasonable, but after completing this, all I can say is what a piece of flawed engineering design or to be more succinct what a piece of shit engine.
Short and simple.. BUY A NEW TENSIONER ANS MAKE SURE IT IS PRE-SET WHEN YOU BUY IT. Meaning look at it before you leave the store to make sure it is not already discharged. For those of you experincing slack in your chain after you put it together and turn the engine because the book says to do this DONT. Its already set where it needs to be as long as your cam and crank marks are in the correct postion with the marks on the chain. I experinced not once but twice the tensioner retracting on me because i discharged it and left it over night. DONT DO THAT. Discharge that thing as late as possiable. After i got all my timing set i stuffed a rag down to hold the chain in tension. Then I put everything on that i could changed the oil and at the last moment possiable i pulled the rag and discharged the tensioner. 15 min later i started the engine and had no problem. Hope this helps
GREAT INFO !!
I/my wife put on 120,000 miles on my 02 Sebring 2.7 and the car never missed a beat,until the waterpump went I thought it was better because of a timing chain and no timing belt,but the way it is designed its just as problematic,or more so !!I had a 94 Intrepid 3.5 before with a timing belt and the belt went,and said never again buy a car with a timing belt,now its no timing belt and no 2.7 !!Anyways,I changed the pump and boom,timing was set perfect and the water in the oil (changed the oil,flushed it) and the engine still failed !!
I sure miss the old cars,waterpumps were easy to change,they had nothing to do with the timing ect..they were mounted on the block,not inside !1 hour tops from start to finish(just changed my 69 Charger 440 summer daily driver since 1992)I bought a mid 70′s RamCharger for my daily ride several years ago,300,000 miles I put on so far and runs better than anew 2.7 Chrysler or any import !
I will keep my old 440 Mopar forever,easy to work on and extremely reliable,beter than any new vehicle ! Will buy a new car every 3 years for the wife(she now drives 10k a year) just to avoid the problems of being totally screwed by being forced to take the car to the shop for common wearout problems..I really miss the reliable cars of the past,now they are expensive and complicated to repair,done soto get rid of the backyard mechanic,now you have to be highly skilled to work on most cars,that aint good for people like me who like to turn wrenches to save money,as I am not a rich man,just a working stiff !!
thanks for the info very helpfull.project a success replacing cam ten. time saving must.far as timing marks lined up rh. side and used screw driver in crank slot to line up mark then only had to mess with one cam wanting to turn. adjusted left cam one tooth at a time workin slak over sprocket wile keeping pressure on breaker bar.marks never lined up again after rotating but were always same amount of teeth off . low budget job reused gaskets .not recomended but lucky no leaks. replaced radiator water pump and cam tensioner for about 350 . wouldnt do another!!! thanks again for ur advice
hallo I’ve bought a 2010 2.7 liter chrysller. Is there improvement in motor or makin it has the same problem in the engine I would like to know thank you for your understanding
Thank you very much for this post it was the best information I could find on this very poorly designed engine. One thing I would add is that if you depress the tensioner into a bowl with enough oil to be above the bottom half inch of the tensoiner,this will keep any air from displacing the oil and also be very careful depressing the ball as not to damage the seat that the ball mates with if damaged it will leak off and you don,t want to go there.Use something flat on the end and only depress it enough to let the oil out.I only let enough oil out to get the tensioner to install against the new timing chain and this worked very well for me.Also I would recomend replacing the tensioner with a new one as well as the timming chains,gears and all the guides and also a new thermostat and seal.This will allways be a cheaper route than rebuilding or replacing the motor.After working on this 2003 Dodge Intrepid 2.7 and just finishing putting all new injectors in my sons 2006 Dodge Diesel 5.9 at 75,000 I came promise I will never own another Dodge-Chrysler product of any kind.You think the 2.7 cost alot to repair-the six new injectors ran $625.00 each for my sons 06 Dodge diesel 5.9 and were no fun to install.Thanks again, Jimmy J. in Central Texas
John
I have a 2002 Sebring After reading all these entries I see that my water pump needs to be replaced
the car has 120,000 miles on it. How can I know if there is damage to the engine. I don’t know if it is worth fixing or buying anything but another sebring… So glad I read your article.
Pull the dip stick out. If the oil is whitish or foamy, then, you may have other problems.
If the oil looks like oil, light or dark brown, then, you will probably be just fine.
Good luck!
I just had my water pump, tensioner, and guides all replaced, and the mechanic dropped the oil pan and cleaned it all out, we used all Mopar parts from the dealership, and hopefully wont have anymore problems, YEAH RIGHT, does anyone have any ideas on why I would have NO power, I can barely get it up to 45 mph, what could be causing this? Any suggestions would be so helpful at this point..
Thanks
Hi, i found this site in the middle of replacing the water pump on my 2001 sebring convt. My question is when i took my pump off it had the rubber and metal gasket on it, but when i bought the new one it came with a fibre one. which one is better to use, can I even buy a metal and rubber one. I dont even know if you look on here anymore but if you do any input would be greatly appreciated donniesteiner@yahoo.com
Becky, sorry to hear you’re still having problems with low power now. I don’t really have any answers for ya on the lack of power issue. I too just finished the job on my wife’s Sebring. I used aftermarket parts in an effort to keep the cost down to a minimum. Replaced the spark plugs, waterpump, & chain tensioner. I missed on the timing the first time, ran like crap!! Took apart again, & got the timing dead on the money, ran great but was clacking away, really loud! That’s when I realized that the new chain tensioner that I had already read from previous posts in this thread was probably money well spent. Replaced the tensioner, (after priming it first) and finally, it runs fantastic!! I couldn’t be happier with the job. This engines now runs smoother, quieter, & with more power than I’ve ever heard it since we bought the car. 205,000 miles & it runs like a little hot-rod!
John thank you so much for posting this build thread, it was very nicely done with lots of good info. I referred to it alot during this job. I had my tech manual & laptop My Wife’s a happy camper again & she loves her little car. Says it fruns like a new one now, & that’s pretty good for an engine with 205k on it!
Donny I too was worried about the gasket difference. Showed it a friend who is a real mechanic & he told me the new style gasket was just fine, In fact he said it was a really good one. I just finished mine on Sunday but so far so good, runs great, & no leaks!!
Thanks for the info Mark. will now be able to finish the job without worry.
Just wanted to thank everyone for the post. I was going to try to replace the water pump on my wife’s 2004 2.7 intrepid and have decided to pay the 738.38 for the repair. Just to much for me. I would advise anyone needing this repair to take the time to call around. I got 6 quotes ranging from 1200.00 to 650.00, (the lower one’s is alittle scary). So thanks to you all again.
I am still waiting to get my car back from the mechanic, he said he figured out why my car was running sluggish and not having any get up and go, we will see what happens, i think the timing was off, and Kiffin, I totally agree I am already in this car over 2k and I still cant drive it, so for sure shop around!! Any suggestions as so why it would run so sluggish, could the timing been off, and I used ALL Mopar parts.. Thanks
That is it I do not have a car for the now!!!!(My dodge 2.7 engine has finally crippled me) or how do one use the 3 jaw puller??? I have been doing this for two days now and I just stuck some screw in the pulley bolt hole.
Is there any help please??????
just want to say thanks for all the tips contained here, and to several of the commenters who added their experiences.
i just finished replacing the water pump on a 2001 intrepid and it purrrr-z like a kitten.
changed the hoses, belts, oil, anti-freeze and spark plugs while i was at it.
total parts were just north of $300 as i needed to buy a few misc. sockets to properly pull this off.
that hydraulic tensioner was quite a trick to reset, but after about :15 seconds following intial start up, i haven’t heard a peep out of the timing chain.
again, thanks to all.
@Steve – Where did you find the parts for that cheap? Looking to fix our 2001 Dodge Intrepid (2.7L) water pump & timing chain. But I thought it’d be $900 for parts…thinking of junking it instead.
Thanks man – I could have never done it without this guide!
In the middle of this job. Have a 2001 Stratus ES with over 140,000 Miles. Have it all apart and waiting on the water pump to get in. Replacing Chain, Tensioner, Water Pump, T-Stat, Plugs, and a bunch of gaskets. Definitely drain your oil when you do this job. When I took off the pump dumped a half quart in the pan so I’ll drain it before I put it back together. Also go to Auto Parts store and rent a 3 jaw puller if you don’t have one. I made the mistake of attempting it without one and chipped the edge of the inside of the pulley. The pulley is on back order until end of October. Just got the new chain today (order most parts from RockAuto), Looks like old chain had over an inch of stretch in it. Wish me luck
Well got most of the parts (still waiting on crankshaft pulley) Attempted to put Tstat and Water Pump on. Side bolt on Tstat ended up stripping the housing threads. Got a Helicoil Kit and tapped out that one. Put it back together and the bottom bolts threads strip (pratically the entire thread came out with the bolt) Using the tap and it snaps off in the engine block. Now I am trying to figure out the best way to get it out. Decided to do water pump while I was at it and ended up snapping 1 of the bolts at 15′lbs (spec is 17′ though I think I will not go that far next time) Heading out to see if I can find some new bolts for it and a new tap.
Yep, did the water pump on our 2000 intrepid. My hands are finally healed and I got off with a warning from the Sheriff about the loud profanity in public. I have a question for all who have suffered through this same ordeal; does anyone know the name of the design engineer who thought it would be a good idea to put a water pump inside the engine block? I would like him or her to say hello to my lil friend…
your photos say left side and right side but are the photos backwards? should it not be the other way?
Left/right side when looking from the rear of the car (as if you were seated in the car).
I replaced my water pump in my 02 sebring. I bought the car for 700 and found this to be very helpful in my pulling the job off. its been about 3 months now and it still purrs like a kitten. For any one reading this thinking about attempting it, if you do not know how to use a three jaw puller then this may be a bit much don’t attempt it. as for people complaining about it jumping time when you put it back together well that’s just the nature of the beast. I implore you to spin the motor by hand once you have put the timing chain on. it will jump weather you use a new tensioner or the old one it just happens. So if it does jump once you’ve spun it by hand then just count the teeth and if everything is off by the same number of teeth then just put it together you are good to go. I only took off one camshaft.
about tensioner now completely understand how it went wrong …..the deal is that the tentioner has mechanisms inside it so it will release and what not well after it has released completely it has a little more than a 1/2 inch of spring action……but once it has been realesed wich is what happens automatically when it is removed from the engine. the tentioner once in the released state can be pushed back in. and then it will release again only if you completely depress it…..the problem that accours is not depressing it enough….so ooooo once you have your chain on the marks and tentioner guides in and you are putting your tensioner in the hole if it is used the tentioner will be in the released state note if its not seeming to have any spring action on it that means you have not depressed it fully it requires force and feels thumpy going in note once you have depressed it fully it will want to open back up completly then should have that spring action but as you push it back in it loses the spring action. so the deal is you want to take your already sprung tentioner and depress it some but not all the way so it is short and no spring action occours then gently push the little ball valve in on the end of it to let the air out the best way to do this is to submerge it in oil and go in and out with it pushing in the ball valve while it is still in oil…and while still submerged get it in the shortest position you can without it releasing then take your oil soaked tentioner and set it aside …and by the way the tention guides have a plastic wear guide that is fragile and prying on it will certainly break it if it breaks it crap no good.any way the trick is to keep the chain tight and in time then put your tentioner in its hole….make sure the tentioner has an oring around it too..and start your 2 10mm bolts on the cover and tighten them! now somehow you need to completly depress the tentioner so it will pop while keeping the chain tight and in time.figure it out.
I have an ’02 Stratus so the 2.7 is transvertly mounted. The car is immaculate and has 60k on it. I purchased it with the engine partially dissassembled. The previous owner had it two weeks when the engine started making a lot of noise so he shut it down. Had a mechanic pull the inside the valve cover and found almost everything topside on the head was fried. Cam journals (one broken in half), a few of the rockers broken and laying lose-a real mess. The engine is not sludged up at all-very clean, but the right side upper end obviously got seriously starved for oil and burned up. I got the car cheap so I can afford to put some money in it, but after reading all the entries in this blog, I have decided to sell it once it is running rather than give it to my grand daughter as originally planned. The only thing I have done so far is pull the other valve cover and some cam journal caps and everything there looks fine. The oil is full and clean. Does anyone have any idea why the top side of one head would not get oiled? By the way, found a rebuilt head at a place called Clearwater Cylinder Head Inc. in Florida for $225 complete with new cams and rockers. $25 bucks shipping, good guarantee and they pay return shipping on the core. Great outfit to deal with!!! Will probably get my parts through Northern Auto Parts-usually have the best deals. Great blog-like reading a book that answers all the questions I have before I even have them. Thanks to John and all who contributed. Appreciate any help with this-need to know what caused it so it doesn’t happen again before I can get it sold. Doug
so i went to do the water pump in my 99 intrepid had a buddy helping me got it all stripped down to the timming cover before i gad to go to work. i come home and my buddy had the new pump on , the chain off and rotated everything to what he thought was TDC i really need help figuring out where to set everything so i don’t blow my engine please ant help would be grateful
Dear John,
Thanks for all your instructions about the waterpump replacement.
My job was a succes, the only problem is a slow oil leak at the rear of the engine.
It drips on the exhaust pipe and it can be smelled in car’s interior when cabin heat blower is on.
Your advise is greatly appreciated,
Thanks again…
John Hoogendam
Two things,
My chain was also off 6 notches but if you keep rotating it by hand it eventually comes back and all dots and arrows line up.
Dealer also suggested removing the plugs and turning over the engine 10-15 seconds with the starter to get the oil flowing but not let it start.
This is definitely not a Chrysler repair that I would attempt to make on my own. It would require at least a service manual and probably some past experience. Thanks for sharing your tips!
Just bought a 2001 Sebring, only 43000 miles on Dec. 26. After a week smelled antifreeze. It took a while to figure out the coolant coming out of the side of the engine block was a weep hole for the water pump. I just bought a Haynes manual and am getting ready to tear into it in the morning. I just found this post and wanted to say thank you for the information you provided. It looks like it will be very helpful.
I would also like to add, Who was the genius that came up with the great idea of putting the water pump inside the engine, behind the timing chain…. BRILLIANT!!!!!!
I thought I was just about finished with this #@$^% job and tried turning the engine a couple of times after I finished installing the chain. It rotates fairly easily for about 1/4 revolution of the crank shaft then abruptly stops in both directions. What could I have done wrong. All the marks are in the correct spots on the primary belt. I’m stumped and depressed.
the way to stop the rockerarms from jumping is to put vise grips on round part of the rockerarms tight against engine.2 each side.that way ya dont have bother with taking chance of getting chain on wrong teeth after.dont remove them till after you have put tensioner back into engine.one let oil out of.Also had shift engine over with pry bar to get front plate to drop off.This will save ya a lot of time i hope.Very helpfull website .read a lot of stuff while doing it.2 hrs trying get front plate off before someone shifted engine for me
there is also a rubber gasket under the thermastat behind alternater that just might be the problem instead of the waterpump leaking.If no coolant in oil i wouldnt do the waterpump.After i did the waterpump ,coolant still leaked.After I removed alternator then 3 bolts holding housing on radiator hose.thermostat behind there.rubber gasket blown out.new bolts and rubber gasket no more leak. lot of work for nothing changing waterpump.I myself see no way possible for water to leak outside of engine if leaking from waterpump after ive done job of changing it.Chrysler says it can but i dont see how.After i was part way through doing job and looking at these pictures and waterpump realized i was making a mistake.phoned chrysler dealer and asked if waterpump leaking could leak outside of engine.Was informed it had a special passage way to leak.Well on 2004 chrysler sebring 2.7 engine i dont see how it can leak outside of engine.water dont flow uphills were i come from.But it can definatly flow downhill into the oil.I suggest if coolant leaking outside of engine you get a pressure tester and pressure test rad full of coolant and destinguse where water leak really is coming from before trying to fix your waterpump.After mechanic
fixes your waterpump which dont need replacing he will fix your hose or gasket or frostplug for free instead of telling ya and a repair that shoulda took hr will be about 6 hr repair bill maybe more.another mechanic scam that will sure hurt the wallett.!good luck Dave