After diagnosing a coolant leak in our 1998 XJ8 L which I initially thought was the thermostat (previously replaced), I thought I'd plan on doing it again because I'm familiar with the job from my '02 I did recently. The leak had seemed under control and I only noticed some top engine spatter near the cap and surrounding until a week ago my girlfriend was driving home and the car came in smoking from coolant burning up on the front of the engine. Saw the classic-looking "failed water pump" coolant all over the front of the engine but wasn't sure what this was at the time. The next day I went ahead and added coolant to the car while cold and began to hear and see it all pouring out on the lot from what appeared to be the pump. I don't mind ordering and doing this job myself as I'm still going to replace the thermostat, housing, crossover, etc.

Is there anything else I should be looking at with this job to prevent any other leaks in the future besides what I've noted? I'm primarily concerned with a tube at the engine head people mention also leaking down and I'm not sure how to access it, maybe I want to check this before I go ahead with the pump job?

Also, I couldn't find much about this job, and as simple as it may be, for an amateur mechanic like myself I'm not sure how to handle the belt removal/reinstallation properly, I do have a torque wrench but also I'm unaware of how many foot-pounds to return the bolts to when done. Besides this guide here which I'm following, I still would like to know how to properly reinstall the belt and know the bolt ft-lbs, etc. http://www.jagrepair.com/WaterPumpCrossoverPipexk8.htm.

If anyone can provide some insight or resources it'd be appreciated as I need to get started soon and have the car running smoothly again before the end of the month. Thanks for any help! I'll try to post some images as I go.

 

Don't over complicate it, its as simple as you your '02. I used a touch of Indian lacquer sealant on the gasket to prevent any bad casting leaks. Check your other hoses for softness, now's the time to do them. Flushing the whole system isn't a bad idea. Be sure to turn on the heater to get the heater core flushed as well.

The torque for the water pump is....8nm around, then 10-14nm...which should be about another 1/4 turn.