[prismatic]

First, check it.

I noticed in my other thread someone else has a hole there also. What's it doing there? My bearings are shot so i'm gonna replace it while I'm in there.

Also, can I save the pully?

 

[Pintac]

I had read in another thread (or in my repair manual) that if water comes out of the hole, the water pump is going bad. I reused my pulley. It has to come off before you can remove the water pump.

 

[egiroux]

You are correct. It is there to relieve pressure when the seal starts to leak. By the corrosion in those pictures it's been leaking for a while.

 

[danhasenauer]

You are correct. It is there to relieve pressure when the seal starts to leak. By the corrosion in those pictures it's been leaking for a while.

It's not so much a pressure relief system, it's a weep hole to let you know when the wet seal is blown on the bearing. Coolant can drip or gush out the hole, depending on the failure magnitude.

 

[Pintac]

Shortly after I noticed a bearing noise and the leak, I noticed that the pulley was starting to wobble because the bearings were going bad. Changed it the next day. Wasn't a bad procedure at all. Just loosen the pulley bolts a little before you take the belt off.

 

[egiroux]

It's not so much a pressure relief system, it's a weep hole to let you know when the wet seal is blown on the bearing. Coolant can drip or gush out the hole, depending on the failure magnitude.

It prevents the pressure of the coolant in the engine(15 PSI or so) from forcing the leaking coolant through the bearings and accelerating the failure.