aaron7

iTrader: (7)

Ok, I know the job is a bit different than on the 85+ V6 engines... something about a plate that opens up the whole front of the engine block??

Mine's making noise so it's time to go. Just want to make sure there aren't any special things I need to know!

CamaroManBlack

It's a straight-forward job with minimal differences. I think the only difference for you will be the clutch fan that is mounted to the water pump.

I converted a 1988 MPFI engine to the carbureted setup back in 2006 (the 1984 motor spun a rod bearing). So it's been a few years, but I believe the only differences were:

• MPFI motor had electric fans instead of clutch fan
• MPFI water pump rotates in opposite direction due to the serpentine belt, so I had to change the timing plate that you referred to. It's a casting that separates the water pump from the timing chain & gears. Absolutely no reason to mess with it during a water pump job, unless you need to replace a leaking timing cover gasket or the timing set.

I used a crescent wrench to remove the clutch fan from the water pump. The hardest part of the whole job, in my opinion, was trying to hold that water pump pulley still while breaking that clutch fan nut loose. Otherwise, it's pretty simple.

aaron7

iTrader: (7)

Thanks for the reply. Still waiting for my parts to come in from Rockauto!

And thanks for clarifying that I don't need to dig into the timing chain area. I read that the 82-84 blocks had a separate cover in the front that opened up the entire front of the block... just didn't want to remove something I shouldn't!