Ask an expert

I have a 2001 Ford Mondeo. For about 2months there was a continuous rattle coming from the motor and I was re filling the radiator every second day!

It's off the road now because the water just flows straight out down below. A friend looked at it and said that it needs a new water pump and that it was the water pump that was causing the rattle.

Does that sound right to you, and do you have any idea on cost?

Kem

From the "Ask Jack" archives - 15 September 2009

Based on your email I suspect the noise was coming from the water pump bearing.

A faulty bearing left unattended, will eventually cause excessive play in the pump shaft and allow coolant to bypass the pump seal.

The noise levels a faulty water pump bearing can create can be very audible.

Cost wise, it could be a couple of hundred dollars as a rough estimate. Problem is the extra bits and pieces the repairer may find when carrying out the pump replacement job can drive the costs up.

If the cars is in reasonable condition then it's definitely worth getting the problem sorted provided you haven't let the water level drop too low and allowed the engine to overheat.