Thanks for the insights... Makes sense. There isn't anything wrong with the system, just the unknown maintenance history. I do recall my next door neighbor when we lived in San Francisco replaced his first water pump in his '78 Diesel at the 700k mark.

Thanks again! I'm going to leave it be... The hoses were replaced along with the radiator in 2015, and look fine on closer inspection.

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Filmmaker, Dad, Citizen of the World in Asheville, NC
=== current vintage stable ===
'73 VW Thing, '09 BMW 328i Convertible, '07 Honda Ridgeline, '94 Chevy Step Van