water pump mechanical seal vn1500

[Youngwarrior]

Hi all,
wondering if anyone has replaced the mechanical seal in water pump on a 99 vn1500?

problems: 1) leaking coolant near rear of water pump (behind idle screw bracket)
2) leaking coolant from water pump overflow/breather

This is a new bike to me and I have or intend to do all the work myself.
However, I spoke to a local kawasaki dealer mechanic who HAS NEVER pulled a vn1500 water pump apart.... but claims that MOST/ALL bikes he has done this job on require the seal to be replaced via clutch cover...is this right? I didn't get that impression from the manual.

He claims that usually you need to replace the shaft as it gets a groove warn in it, is that true?

He claims the coolant won't leak into oil, only out the breather/overflow (which it is), is it true it won't go into oil?

I currently can not inspect water pump as after removing 4x bolts I CAN NOT get this cover off..It seems like it is glued on...any ideas on how to remove this? I have be hitting it with a rubber mallet with no effect. It seems if I tried, I could pull the bike over by pulling on the water pump, its that..stuck on!

Any help would be great, and appreciated.
-cheers