vs
Water pump Gates or OEM Volkswagen
Reviews
With these cars, it\u2019s less so staying on top of the regular service items from the dealer - and more so staying educated on all the little unspoken chickenshit maintenance items that VW doesn\u2019t outwardly talk about.
Cons: unspoken maintenance items
Vehicle:
Volkswagen
I actually just changed the pump on my 2018. With the pump/thermostat assembly, and a collection of specific tools, it cost me ~$900. I was quoted 2k by a dealer so I saved a good chunk of change. All-in-all the job is straightforward, save plenty of headache with disconnecting hoses and wire clips.
Pros: straightforward job
Cons: disconnecting hoses, wire clips
Vehicle:
Volkswagen Golf
I put a gates on my 2005 in August. No issues so far.
Pros: no issues so far
My 17 S is sitting at 108k. Only issues I\u2019ve had outside of normal maintenance has been a water pump at 102k and cam magnets at 103k. It\u2019s been the model of reliability and its nearly still as tight as it was when new.
Pros: model of reliability
Cons: water pump, cam magnets
Vehicle:
Volkswagen
Mileage: 108000 km
No problems other than the water pump
Cons: water pump problem
Vehicle:
Volkswagen
Mileage: 59000 km
Welcome to the club of probably needing to replace your water pump & thermostat housing \ud83e\udee1
Cons: replace water pump
Vehicle:
Volkswagen
During COVID, that water pump was on backorder from Ford so I used one from Gates. I guess Gates had a bad batch and 2 of their's failed in the span of less than a year.
Cons: bad batch, failed quickly
The only one to really avoid out of the 5 choices on Rockauto is the Gates, because of the cheap stamped impeller. Personally, I would not go with an aluminum pump body in this application, but that's just my opinion after working on vehicles for a living for 45+ years.
Cons: cheap stamped impeller
I used a Gates pump the first time and it leaked. I uninstalled it, cleaned everything up, regreased all the seals, and reinstalled it it... still leaked. Turns out the Gates water pumps for the ecodiesel are just garbage.
Cons: leaked repeatedly, poor quality
I have Gates start leaking within 10k of installation.
Cons: leaking, short lifespan
Mileage: 10000 km
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Comparisons
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Which water pump to choose — Gates or OEM Volkswagen?
If choosing water pump across many manufacturers, check the part ranking. If your choice is down to two brands, the PartReview part comparisons help.
We compare water pump across these categories:
- PR Score.
- Overall ranking.
- Vote balance.
- Average rating.
- Number of reviews.
- Feature ratings.
- Car owners’ choice.
Which water pump are better — OEM Volkswagen or Gates?
In March 2026 on PartReview, water pump OEM Volkswagen were overall better than Gates.
- Gates received a PR Score of 32 out of 100, and OEM Volkswagen scored 44 points.
- Gates ranked 12 in the overall ranking, and OEM Volkswagen ranked 9.
- The average rating is higher for OEM Volkswagen (2.7) than for Gates (2.1).
-
Water pump OEM Volkswagen have better feature ratings than Gates:
- Noise - owners believe, that this property for OEM Volkswagen is better than Gates.
- Leaks - drivers claim, that this property for OEM Volkswagen is outperforms Gates.
- Overheating - reviews suggest, that this property for OEM Volkswagen is preferred to Gates.
Which water pump are more popular — Gates or OEM Volkswagen?
In March 2026 on PartReview, water pump OEM Volkswagen were overall more popular than Gates.
By vote balance, water pump OEM Volkswagen surpassed Gates:
- For Gates, the ratio of positive (62) to negative (128) votes is -66 votes.
- For OEM Volkswagen, the ratio of positive (210) to negative (258) votes is -48 votes.
By number of reviews, water pump OEM Volkswagen surpassed Gates:
- For water pump Gates there are 61 review: 16 positive, 7 neutral, 38 negative.
- For water pump OEM Volkswagen there are 146 reviews: 50 positive, 30 neutral, 66 negative.
Which water pump do car owners prefer — Gates or OEM Volkswagen?
In March 2026, according to PartReview, water pump Gates and OEM Volkswagen have not taken top places in car-specific ratings. You can help by adding your review about these manufacturers.
Other comparisons of water pump
If this comparison didn’t fully answer your question, there are many others on PartReview.
For example, comparisons of water pump Gates with: OEM Audi, GRAF, AISIN, Hepu, Pierburg, OEM FORD, OEM BMW, OEM Toyota, GMB, Saleri.
Also available: comparisons of water pump OEM Volkswagen with: OEM Audi, GRAF, AISIN, Hepu, Pierburg, OEM FORD, OEM BMW, OEM Toyota, GMB, Saleri.
You can also see who is better among other water pump manufacturers: OEM Audi or OEM Volkswagen, GRAF or OEM Volkswagen, AISIN or OEM Volkswagen, Hepu or OEM Volkswagen, Pierburg or OEM Volkswagen.