Well, just as the title says, I have a GATES water pump fail on me with 872 miles on my freshly rebuilt VQ35DE. If this was my CA18DET engines that I specialize in, I wouldn't have much to write about. But this VQ35 engine is an expensive pain in the butt regardless of how much money you have to throw at it. So my question to you guys is, did any of you have one of these GATES pumps fail on you before? I'll be honest, I'm pissed because when I rebuilt this engine, I changed everything including the pre-cats, the main cat, all o2 sensors, coils, plugs and I assembled it like it was some perfect specimen of an engine to be displayed at a museum. Seriously, I commend some of you guys who are crazy enough to boost these engines because if anything fails, you are talking massive labor and down-time. I love my 2002 MAX, but my 2000 MAX with the VQ30DE-K was much more reliable than this dang-on VQ35DE powered trouble maker (just venting).

Dee

 

Why didn't you just get an OEM water pump?

 

Time and time again all I see are problems with aftermarket water pumps and thermostats. OEM is the only way to go with those.
...and I have seen trouble on Mazdas, Fords & Toyotas, not just Nissan.

Doesn't look like Nissan or even the VQ35 is to blame on this one, just sayin'

 

You know i had a problem with GATES high pressure power steering hose (it whines) and think about it, its just a hose and i had a problem. i wouldnt trust them with a mechanically moving part. oem is better for some parts but somebodys gotta find out the hard way and let everybody else know, so thank you for sharing with us. How exactly did the waterpump fail? Pictures would be awesome!!

 

I know it's been a month since someone replied on this thread, but to answer DjHackStyle's question, the engine started running hot and I happen to be nosy and look at the gauges only to discover the temperature needle heading towards the "H" mark. I immediately shut the car off and started looking for leaks, but found nothing. I refilled it fluids, drive the car some 28 miles to my home and the temperature went up again. It wasn't until day 2, that I saw fluids dripping down behind the A/C compressor. Eventually that dripping turned into a pour and that time and after reading a few posts from the ORG and around the internet, I decided to change the water pump. Unfortunately, I believe in supporting the aftermarket and willing to be the guinea pig to figure out what works and what doesn't work. So far, the aftermarket pump I have in there now is holding up just fine. Changing it wasn't as bad as some made it to be, but if you are not mechanically inclined, this is definitely not work for the novice wrencher to attempt to put in. One last thing guys, sometimes the OEM parts are not always the best way to go, either. Case in point, OEM components that fail prematurely such as the rings in the VQ35 engines. Just because it's in a box with Nissan/Nismo on it, doesn't mean it's the holy grail or doesn't meant it wasn't made in china and sold under the nissan name.

 

Me too, after my troubles with the Gates/Edelmann hose whining I was really wishing I'd just spent the extra $80 or so for the Nissan hose. The only aftermarket parts I trust completely now are Beck-Arnley. I recently installed one of their thermostats, and I NEVER install aftermarket thermostats, so I'll keep the forums updated if I have any problems with it.

 

dude you didn't read the thread about fans staying on after aftermarket thermostat installed !! i'll PM you with more info