'03ag said:

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They can't find the bolts? All my Audis I've never had a problem getting any bolt of any kind. I just call them up and tell them where it was and they can get them within in a day.

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Got some bolts at the dealer and the harbor freight torque wrench. I'm debating whether to tear into it if it doesn't start leaking. So far it's as dry as a bone. I may see if I can extract the bad bolts without removing the pump and try to put the new ones in while it's intact.

If you do, do it one at a time. Take one out, put the new one in and torque it down, then move to the next. That way you aren't removing the pressure on the gasket that is making the seal and you have less of a chance of disturbing it.

Okay, renewing this thread. I'm the idiot who didn't know the difference between ft-lbs and inch-lbs.

Edit so you don't have to read my OP: I badly over-torqued 3 out of 10 bolts when replacing the water pump on my son's '12 chevy cruze. Stripped them. It didn't leak at first but has started leaking again.

Anyway, water pump has begun leaking again as I suspected it might when the weather got colder. The threads in the block are indeed stripped on 3 of the bolts. I'm going to get back into it and re-do the repair soon.

Right now I'm looking at removing the water pump, using a right-angle attachment to drill out the stripped holes, using heli-coil type inserts, replace gasket and try again.

I think the difficult part will be threading at the correct depth. There are actually 3 or 4 different lengths of bolts (out of 10 total) on this damn thing so setting the right depth on the inserts will suck.

Before I tear into this, and understanding that this (high-miles and cheap) car doesn't get driven all that much, can anyone think of a less invasive, easier solution to this problem?

Yes I screwed it up, it was my fault, and yes I'm looking for an easy way out.... Duly noted.

Buy a stud that is the same threading and coat with JB weld and run it in there, then use a nut to secure it? That depends on if you could seat it with studs in place really.

Otherwise, helicoil. Measure the depth and mark it with a sharpie or tape on your bit and tap.

Hey, that might work. Thank you.

I did the same damn thing on my Honda Fourtrax on a head bolt. I know damn well the difference with torque specs. I didn't pay any attention to the 10mm head, which is not the same as a 10mm bolt, and confused 10 inch lb with 10 ft lb. fortunately, the head twisted off and no other damage occurred.

This is going to be a valuable experience for you OP and it will very likely serve you well and save you from very very expensive errors later. The only people that haven't screwed up as bad as you are ones that haven't worked on enough things.

I'd get the best brand new pump I could buy, helicoil or timesert that thing with anti seize on the threads and move on with life. Don't worry too much.

Jack Cheese said:

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2012 chevy Cruze 1.4

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Obligatory "stopped reading right there. There's your problem."

For the broken bolt you can do a couple of things. What has worked for me is I will get a left handed drill bit and drill in the center of the bolt. They generally spin right out. Second option is an easy out, they work fairly well. Go slow and be careful you will get them all out. Replace one bolt at a time until they are all in and then torque. You will be just fine then.