Was changing the oil today in my 01 and noticed some mud was wet.My waterpump gasket is leaking.Is there an easy way to change this.Whats the steps?

pretty much same as doing a timing belt..have someone help you. i got a new water pump in in about an hour. use some rtv as well

Ok it is bearly leaking so i should have some time before i have to do it.

how many miles on the engine and how new is the pump and timing belt? if they are over 60k miles each.. replace them both. if u replace just the belt it will finish the pump off and you'll have to go back and replace it anyway. take it from me

Not really sure that's the case, I'm on my forth belt at 249,580 miles and still the orig pump!! <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/nana.gif" alt="" /> I inspect it each time for leaks and it seems to be fine. Now, if cash isn't an issue for you then by all means replace it. Better off safe than sorry while your already in there. I'm basically a cheap bastard. I flush the coolant every other year and change the Eng oil every 2500 miles and can't seem to kill it. It also isn't burning any oil yet! So, maybe each rig is different or mine wasn't built on a Friday close to beer thirty!!

Most important is replacing that belt due to it being an interference motor. For those of you who don't know what that means, when the belt goes there is no longer anything to keep your pistons from B**** slapping your valve train!! Thus needing some serious engine repairs that would likely exceed LKQ assy replacement. So, change those belts before 60k for sure and pumps when needed. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/patriot.gif" alt="" />

info is wrong. snapped a timing belt not an interference engine. mine had no issues .05% of people do. dont mean to sound rude.in class sneaking a response.

I'm a Insurance Appraiser and had a customer who claimed their engine failure as a result of a belt issue. I then had a regional Kia rep tell me they were "interference motors" and this was a maintenance issue not a claimable loss! He then described to me exactly what I stated earlier. So I will do some more research for my own knowledge and if I'm incorrect I will change my statement.

ok. here is a good place to start. this is where i found out i still had a fighting chance at keeping my sportage alive when i snapped the belt. i have experience with this. i actualy replaced my belt in a tech school parking lot and it ran ,and up until a few days ago (unrelated issue), was running like a champ. its called and interference engine because there is a possibility of valve damage but it is more common that there is no damage done by the belt snapping. but trust me im not testing my luck with this one i dont want my kia to be that slim chance ya know?

Well, here's what I found out. I just got off the phone with a Master Tech at my local dealer. This guy supposedly builds turbos for this specific engine and knows it well! He said that the 95 Sportage was "considered" a true interference engine. 1996 - 2002 are not considered interference engines by Kia. He then said that even though they are not considered to be a interference engine they have still experienced valve dmg after belt failure! Even with his depth of personal experience with this engine he could not provide a solid answer as to why?? All I'm saying at this point is that Kia recommends the belt be replaced every 60k so why take the chance? <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

I have Factory Service Manuals and they state that the FE3 engine in the Sportage, both the SOHC and DOHC, are non-interference engines. This subject has been discussed many times on this forum.