GMC / Chevy Truck 6.0, 5.3 & 4.8 Water Pump & Thermostat 

3:14 a older guy asked me to replace his water pump on his 6.0. I'm just a diy guy and haven't done one on these trucks so i looked for a video hoping you had made one. Glad you did, thank you!

"Drama free" is why I watch this channel. This is a "real life auto repair show." Television car shows are nothing but ads and fake tension. It's all "DEADLINES" and "ANGRY CUSTOMERS," "CHECK OUT THIS BULLSHIT FROM LINCOLN TECH!" Odds are, I'll never do 60% of these jobs, but I still watch because you've got the touch, and you're damn skilled. Keep it up.

I just had the joy of doing this water pump today... In my driveway. Two plus inches of wet snow on the ground which changed to rain falling. Joyful!

This video seven years old, and I just learned how to take those plastic pins out of the radiator shroud. I see those plastic fasteners all over the truck. Some of them are torn off. Thank you for your insightful video, sir!

Just finished replacing the water pump in my 2002 Silverado as well as the the belts,tensioners, and radiator hoses. All went very well thanks to your video. Thank you very much for taking the time and effort to educate us diy'ers.

That's what I admire about Mechanics, they are some smartest people I know. Good job Dr. O

Eric I watch a lot of You Tube maintenance. You make the best videos of them all. Your filming is great showing what you are doing and how to get it done. Your maintenance practices are also spot on. Thanks for the effort.

Have to say it.. Especially with this time of year.. "Every time a bell rings an angel gets its wings" The water pump version.. Liked this repair. It's nice to see not everything has to be a pain to fix.

BTW know this vid is a few years old but scene your helper quite a few times watching your videos. You got a special little helper there, that's awesome. I've got two little girls of my own that love to help me when 'Dad' is wrenching on something. In that moment you know you're a rich man.

Might be a millon videos on this but guess which one i would only watch

OMG, I was just doing this job laying on the front grill. My chest still hurts. Never thought about taking tires off.

my 01 2500HD is now up and running. Thank you

Thats what I love about the Chevy trucks. Lots of room in the engine bay with that LS engine.. or SBC for that matter. Pretty easy to work under the hood. Every manufacturer has its issues, and common fails.. at least this is pretty easy to fix yourself. Thanks for the great video as always.

225,000 miles on my 4.8, just now doing it's first water pump. Still factory AC and main Serpentine belts on it too. I bought truck new, so I am 100% sure they have never been changed. Done every oil change etc on it myself since it was new. Only replaced 1 O2 sensor and the rear Brake Calipers and Pads, added 1 quart of Synchromesh to the trans (5 speed manual). That's all, ever, so it's due for some wrench time I suppose.

Why I just got the recommendation for this channel I will never know, but glad I found it. Great content!

Hello Eric! My 2001 Chevrolet Suburban LS, 5.3L, purchased new, 307000kms., original water pump!

now that was smart taking the tire off...will have to remember that next time working on my super duty..thanks

That's pretty good. Hannah mixes coolant and Sheba provides entertainment! Cool Video!

That Pontiac Grand Prix was a nightmare ...holy cow. The Pontiac Video is one of my favorites.

I have a 2003 GMC 6.0L I'm trying to get back on the road after sitting for a few years. I'm slowly making progress. This video helped a lot. I have a starter on the way, and then a water pump next. I'll try to see if I can get it running after that. Fingers crossed.

The best honor mechanic, Eric O the man.

Hi Eric, you are a true American and a great skilled technician. When I would change water pumps I would draw an outline of the pump on a piece of cardboard and make holes where the bolts came from so I would not mix the bolts up. If you can do it many DIY can do it.

Sheba looks like she is in charge and supervising your work. She is a beautiful dog!

Got that truck beat , mine a 1999 gmc sierra 5.3 v8 with 154000 miles on the clock . still on the factor water pump . Seen on you tube . Doctor D907 said the go out about 150000. Got a new one ready from 1A Auto ( kit - pump thermostat, gaskets )Just waiting for the weather to get warmer here in Minnesota .

I watched your video about three times. I have an 01 chevy 2500hd. Had the engine replaced about 60,000 miles because of the piston slap issue. I have 210,000 miles on it and replaced the water pump today. Not as fast, but took me about 4 hours, including a trip to the store.

Super helpful video, found out exactly where that weep hole is and how to take those pins out of fan shroud, might even take up tip on using that lower hose for drain instead of messing with radiator... Thanks for the pro tips!

That pulley has the same "ding" sound that the old timey gas stations used to have when someone pulled up to a pump...

I have to swap out mine on a 6.0L. this is the best video I've seen so far on here. THANKS! I can't wait to get my hands dirty now!

Yep. The water pump on my 5.7L Vortec leaked out the weephole. Was a breeze to replace! Love that ding it does... DING! Fries are done!

It's been said an engine needs three things to run properly: fuel, spark and compression. They forgot the fourth thing: brake parts cleaner.

Helpfull! I figured it was not too tough and video is faster than reading the service manual. My buddy showed me a long time ago about pulling tires off. We even use old steel wheels with no tires for long term projects so you can roll them if needed. Did my diesal injectors this summer. Built over top creeper for that project it's perrty handy to .

I've got to get those fan clutch tools. I've done 4 of those jobs in the last 3 months and used big Channelocks and a pin (usually an allen wrench) slipped through a hole in the pulley to keep the thing from turning. Guess I should go ahead and invest in the right tools.

Chevy/GMC rings my bell.

Every time a water pump pulley chimes. . . . an angel gets his __________

A job without drama? I didnt know that was possible! Thanks for the vid!

I appreciate it Eric. Followed this video to a T and it all went smooth. Inherited my dad's trucks not long ago and these videos are a huge help. The absolute best part: you actually show how you put it back together, instead of the ol "now just do it in reverse". A fella's a bit slow and needs the guidance lol

my pump went out today so thanks for your video, im a welder not a mechanic

love your videos I'm a mechanic at a shop in Craig Colorado named quality repair and I watch your videos every time they come out cuz you've showed me tricks I would have never thought of. nice shop man. glad to see there's another honest shop out there!!

@eric o I have done this job twice on my 2004 Yukon XL 5.3L. First time it was about a week after I bought it used and it was the OE gasket that failed. The next time it was at 160K and the pump puked the Dexcool dramatically out the front of the shaft seal. It is a very easy job.

Awesome vid thanks. I would recommend picking up a vacuum coolant tool. to refill the system. They are great and stop any air pockets and eliminate those hard to bleed systems like a Subaru. I use the Mighty vac MV4535. Its a much needed tool.

Thanks for the video. I just bought a 2010 2500 HD 6.0. Just a matter of time before I'm under there repeating the process.

Did two water pumps on our 2005 Yukon Denali 6.0 liter engine; that vehicle had electric cooling fans though. I remember when buying the WP that I asked for a 6.0 liter water pump, had my leaky one with me. Guy said good thing you didn't have a Denali, different WP, and I said - actually I do, and he brought out a different part number WP, same price. So here had all three WPs on the counter, could not see a lick of difference......all had threads so could be used for engines with a belt-driven fan.

Again thank you thank you thank you! Replaced the hydro boost last night with your videos help and now the water pump and thermostat today with your vids help! I appreciate you! Thank you!

Taking the tires off to make it easier is one of the pimpist things I have seen in a long while 😅. I love it. Great Video

It's an old video, and you may not see my comment, but you can usually replace the adjustment screw on pliers like those with an eye bolt. It would allow you to bite the clamp and turn the adjuster to open the clamp up better. I have a set of Milwaukee pliers that have an eyelet on them, but I've seen DIY fixes just by using the eye bolt from a hardware store.

“Probably a million videos showing how to change a 6.0 water pump “. Yeah, but I sought out this one. And it all started more than a year ago with the Fusion/Milan vibration which turned out to be the transmission mount. Aces. All day long. Aces.

6.0 is the best small block chevy ever made

I have a '94 Chevy Silverado 4x4 I bought new, still has the original belts, hoses, water pump, fuel pump, etc. at 120,000 miles I'm curious how long they will last before I have to replace. I've kept the maintenance up to date like oil changes, brakes, etc. and it's been the most reliable truck I have ever owned out of a list of trucks like '78 Jeep J10, '79 Ford F-150, '85 Toyota, '89 Dodge. The Chevy is probably the last truck I will ever need to own since it's so reliable, and if repairs are needed the cost of parts is much cheaper than the new trucks.

I did this to my '06 5.3 about 10 months ago and it is different than that 6.0. Either by year or just block. My thermo housing didn't have that extra bolt hole, pump gaskets didn't have 2 opening (just the square for pump galleys) and of course being newer it has electric fans which made it WAY easier. Doing numerous amounts of these pumps, I am jealous of the easiness you had removing that fan Eric!! lol. But thank you for keeping more Bowties on the road and trucking.

He was actually disappointed he didn’t snap a bolt off that’s a true mechanic. I snapped bolts off in the engine block for fun!

Hard to beat those LS engines. Some are saying they will go 300,000 miles easily if regularly maintained. Seems to be a great idea to do both belts, both tensioners and idlers when it's time for a water pump especially with 100k on the factory ones even though the part bill may be a tad higher, those issue won't likely be a future need. Not sure how long upper and lower rad hoses last but after 100k and some years, those could be a good item to replace too. Nice clean replacement job Eric. Also, loved the pulley chimes every so often.

For whom the bell tolls? For Eric O. The wrenchinator!!!

Thanks, man. I have 3 5.3s. I haven't needed a water pump yet, but when I do, I'll be all set (except for that pulley holder thingy).

You just save me $200. Thank you. Installed with new thermostat, tensioner, belts and coolant for $235 and 2 hours of my time. Thank you Sir

Very good video, I like how you went through every step with instructions instead of just saying" remove the shroud " or "remove the belt" and skipping to the next step like so many other vids ! Nicely done !

Love the video. No Gasket Maker on the gaskets Huh? Yeah, I own a 2001 Jimmy 4.3 and I did the pump, hoses, thermo, radiator, heater core, and belt. I flushed and put in the green stuff. I don't trust dexcool. Had to change head gaskets on a 1999 Blazer because of that stuff. I've owned 3 different 4.3L. I like GM.

"Just ate lunch. Don't really feel like leanin'" Love it!

since i don't have a lift, what i do is get the AIR out of the tires of my truck . works good and and faster that taking the wheels out.

I own the same truck. Cool to see stuff that I can relate to. I had the water pump replaced last year.

So earlier today I watched this video, and didn’t realize that I would need any kind of specialty tool. I went online and found various kits, mostly just the wrench, and even then, they generally weren’t in stock. By this time it was 5:10 pm, a d I knew I had to rush if I was gonna catch the only place that seemed to have the pulley holder, and of course I read all kinds of makeshift rigs to get by if needed. I’m really good at breaking parts so i was trying to do the right thing and use the right tool, the whole deal. Got the anti-seize, blue RTV, hose removal tool (which was totally worth it. So simple, so effective), the red kool-aid coolant, and was ready to do the deed on my 2006 Suburban Z71. So I was having trouble sourcing the actual pulley holder tool, so I went to go look and was gonna check to see if my big crescent wrench would work instead of a 36mm wrench. I pop the hood, and this has been my parent’s since new, mind you, it’s got almost 180,000 miles, and is in great shape. So this whole fam clutch removal issue has soaked up over an hour, and now I realize with some shock, that there is no clutch fan at all! Just two electric fans. And the new pump I got with the optional preinstalled thermostat. So since there was no need to remove the shallower fan shroud, and no clutch fan to remove. I couldn’t believe how easy it was, I kept thinking I was being pranked. Remove air breather plenum- two 8mm band clamps, minimal tugging to remove the whole airbox apparatus. Then one large and two small hose clamps. The type on the bigger hose was a royal pain if you don’t have the right tool, and apparently those too are make believe since no one at any of the stores could help. I spent an hour on just that type of hose clamp while replacing a radiator on a Milan. If you get it right though, they click into an open position, and slip right off. And again, I spent more time on that one hose clamp replacement than the whole rest of the procedure. Thermostat was preinstalled, and South Main “bolts in place to hold he gaskets in place” trick worked great. Minimal old gasket to scrape. Hood up to hood down was about 90 minutes, with pretty laid back pace and just a little trouble figuring out the serpentine belt route, even though I took pictures. I still feel guilty because it was so easy, since I didn’t have to remove the shroud or the fan. Three hose clamps, six bolts, pop or scrape, the old gaskets off the block, put bolts in water pump, antiseize the bolt tips, slip it in, finger tight the bolts, torque to whatever, 30ish ft/lbs, replace hose clamps, curse the bigger one for fifteen minutes, replace air box, :top off coolant. Oh, and a big concrete mixing type black plastic tub caught all if the coolant , no mess at all. Burp radiator.done.

I love the air hose swivels..I have ordered 4 of them..I see u have them on all your air tools...small fortune wrapped up in those..$10.a pop...butt they rock..

Awesome man! Was able to change the water pump in the driveway. Keep up the good work, and love the down to earth attitude. 04 Silverado with a 6.0l and 340km

I watched this in my van today during my lunch in a park outside Mt . Morris. while eating my tuna sandwich you get to the ac belt and I lost it, could not stop laughing.

"every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings"

Wanted to see what it entailed. Should be an easy fix for me. Thanks for the video.

Not only was the Job easy.. look at that throttle body.. clean engine bay and throttle body it's almost to make to take in 😅. Those pliers for the Clamps is awesome. I'm getting a set ASAP

I love how Shiba (I hope I spelled it correctly) is just chilling in the chair while you do your conclusion. :)

I think your videos are the best. Been here since you only had 3 or 4 videos up. Keep up the good work!

At 136+ thousands miles on my duramax I'll be keeping a check on my water pump. Thanks Eric, I appreciate your time. I'm off to eBay to look for that spring clamp tool. :)

LOL......I love how you removed the tires to lower the truck :)

I have 235000 Miles before mine went to hell. Good video helpful doing mine myself

great job getting this guy back on the road..i do contracting also..i cant afford even one day with out my van.

Never seen any RWD water pump job start by removing the front wheels ! Ahhh ... perfectly logical !

Worked for my Chevy Silverado 4.8. Saved money. Thanks!

Putting the truck on the ground.: "Dam, Forrest! Your a effin Genius!"

Our 04 Yukon XL has 194k and has the original water pump. In fact, most stuff on it is original. Hasn't needed very many repairs in its lifetime. I think the most serious problem it's ever suffered was the rear main seal.

Standing ovation for floor mounted vehicle lowering device - built in. LOL with clapping at that point, sure beats the sawed off railroad ties I have to dance on. Best value done while in there too so he really got his moneys worth at SMA.

Wow! Hands down the best auto repair video I have ever seen. I moved 35 minutes from town. I definitely do most mine anymore. Anyway yours was my 5th try looking for torque specs. I landed about 13:22. You were obviously talking about something you knew. Then in about 40 seconds that torque wrench came out. I had to watch the whole thing. Figured I might learn something else.

Always nice when I job goes smoothly without issues. great video.

I use a 6" c clamp to hold serpentine belt and the water pump still to remove the fan clutch

one thing is for sure working on rusty cars will make a man of you iam learning that the hard way lol!

Headed to my shop now to ring the bell on my 01 2500HD. Thanks for the video.

Lol as soon as I see the lift up I knew you were doing what I used to do. I had always used my 18 inch crescent wrench and a screw driver

I feel your trying to hypnotize us with the bell, must watch more SMA.......................ding.......

My dad had a 2002 GMC Sierra with 418,000 km on it and all he ever replaced on it was brakes, tires, and the front sway bar

Hurry it up, get that broke water pump bolt repair video recorded, i get to tear into my brothers 2001 5.3 silverado , I saw some "rusty crusty " spots in some"", hmmmmm"" ? thats gonna suck places! The video was well done !thank you !

Smart! At first I was like, "why is he removing the wheels?" I replaced the water pump on my 06 Yukon with 32" tires. Being 5'6" was not an easy task.

LOL I just ate lunch. I know what you mean about hanging over the front end. I'm 6'3" and still have issues when I'm working on my 90 K1500.

A rare job indeed, no problems!

no drama no rust ... at least there was Brake clean hahahaha

The clutch fan for my BM Trouble U has left-hand threads so it righty loosey lefty tighty. It also uses o -rings instead of hose clamps to secure the hoses to the thermostat. Since you rarely work on Euro cars I thought I make a comment. Waiting for the next order for SMA t-shirt so I can walk around the garage in a SMA t-shirt. If you don't make another video before Christmas, Merry Christmas to you and your family and have a Happy New Year.

You and Mrs o do a fantastic job you are a top-notch mechanic man you have patience love all your barbecues

Another great video Mr SMA; I have enjoyed your GM Truck Videos so much that I had to go out and pick up an 05 Chevy 2500HD this last week: 165,000 - 6.0 with a 5 speed manual trans (most prized by me and very hard to find) in a standard cab. Now all the most common issues have manifested themselves in this truck like bad gas gauge "E", leaking water pump, airbox gate actuator failure but I know how to correct all these issues from your Videos so many thanks. Over all though a very nice Pickup. The acceleration was very impressive and the powerful thump of every cylinder could be felt. Chevrolet was finally able to improve on what has always been proven reliable in the Small Block Engine. Well done GM... ??? I do have a question about water pumps on these trucks: Delco makes the OEM -19256261, but they also have another match-19195104 for $50.00 less and I can bet your answer will be to get the OEM. I would just feel better knowing that I am getting better Bushings, Seals and a better unit overall for the additional $50 smacks. ??? I also noticed that you mentioned nothing about "burping the Coolant System" is it necessary on this model and if so how is it done? I enjoy your Videos most especially among the RU-vid Auto Repair Circuit, please keep them coming (especially the LS3 Pickup).

thanks for this video as i might be changing the pump on my 2005 4.8 in the near future. The only difference on my truck is that it has an electronically controlled fan, so i don't have to deal with removing that nonsense lol.

Those pliers are friggin awesome. Heading to Amazon or Ebay for a purchase. Beating up my knuckles changing out my 6.0's radiator. 180000 with no wheep and 1 change of the belts only. Seems it was probably done before. Into my video repair file. Thanks Eric O and Self Made Auto, .. I mean South Main Auto..haha

Thanks for the video plan on changing mine out tonight and this video makes me that much more comfortable even though I dont have a lift or any expensive tools like you do. Thanks again.

Nice straight forward repair. Dexcool is very good coolant. It's the water in it that's crap. Probably comes outta the Detroit river.

its a small block chevy,keeping it simple,not supposed to be any drama,chevy small blocks,when only the best will do

"This guy's gonna come back now". Lol, love your videos. Very informative and entertaining at the same time.

I always just let the air out of the tires by removing the valve core. Im 5'8" so I did it alot.