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The only reason I thought about replacing mine is because im gone many months at a time with the Army up at Fort Drum and if it were to fail up there id be screwed. I dont have the time when Im away to be fixing the XK because of our crazy schedule and absolutely no days off. Plus once a month I still have to drive 5 1/2 hours away near NY City for drill and Id hate to be on the side of the road with an over heating vehicle.
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I hear ya...but it's very rare that a water pump will leave you stranded... more often then not that's because someone was ignoring the leak and then it finally gives out.
Alternators and starters are just as common of a failure as the water pump that could leave you stranded. Hell, even the power steering pump can fail and leave you stranded if it seizes and ruins the belt. I know these parts are a bit more money than a water pump, just pointing out that there's quite a few other things that are replaceable as well if you really want to replace parts before you have an issue. There usually aren't any warning signs with the alternators go.... just that battery light comes on and you run out of juice.