I brought the car in to a local shop to see if they could figure out a rubbing noise issue. They could not.

While there they said my water pump needed replacing as it was making noise. I can hear some noise on the passenger side of the car. Also I have been losing a little coolant - however it is just a small amount over a period of time.

Before I do this job - is there an easy way to determine if the pump is bad and I am losing coolant from there.
Thanks for the help

 

What engine, year? A noisy pump, not replaced, precedes major damage on some engine types.

 

Are you loosing coolant from an external leak onto the ground? Or is it just disappearing without a trace for where its ending up? If the coolant leak is at the front of the engine under where the water pump is it could potentially be the water pump seal that is weeping a bit. However, in my experience coolant hoses and water necks that hold the coolant thermostat leak more frequently, so I would start with inspecting all coolant system components near where the leak is coming from (sometimes coolant can run along hoses or frame channels and drip away from where the actual leak is occurring). Also inspect the inside corners of your radiator from the back side to see if you see pink crusty stuff...which would be a sign of coolant leaking from the radiator.

With water pumps, if the seal is going bad and it's leaking out from there the leak will get a little bit worse over time and it will leak a bit more to the point to where it's obvious where the leak is coming from.

 

If you are not leaking coolant on the ground at all and the shop is telling you to change the water pump because you are loosing coolant I recommend you take the car to another shop.

 

Sorry for the late response. The water pump was making noise and though I was losing coolant it never dripped down anywhere. I removed the covers and saw some dried coolant, including on the timing belt roller. So the plan is to do the timing belt, water pump and everything else in there.

Thanks for the responses.