Packard Forum Index » Pre-War (1899-1942)

It sounds like your water pump bearings failed. They are "permanently lubricated", and when the lubricant gets old and stiff, or the seal fails, the bearings will wear rapidly and may seize. This is often accompanied by coolant leakage, but not always. Do check the fan to pulley bolts, they could be loose, or the fan or pulley could be cracked. If there is any play in the water pump shaft, the pump will need to be rebuilt or replaced. It's possible that an other than Packard kit would work.

AG Rebuilders also does a great job on water pumps; they are up in MA.

If the Kanter pump you ordered is the newly manufactured one, apparently the castings are thin enough that they are not rebuildable, at least on the '35-'37 style. Not my personal experience, but I heard that from a rebuilder.

You could also post a wanted ad here on the site, it's possible someone has a spare they would part with. Good luck!

I have a new Kanter water pump on my '37 120. It has the original style packing and bushings. It has worked well for thousands of miles over the last year. It does not seep or drip. FWIW, the casting looks good, but I have no accurate way of checking the section thicknesses. It seems to weigh about the same as an original pump, and the exterior of the casting actually looks smoother than one of the originals that I have.