In a typical water pump application, the clutch is mounted on the input shaft of the water pump. Since the clutch has an integral pulley, a belt is used as the input to the clutch. This belt is normally driving directly from a gas or diesel engine. When there is no power to the clutch, the water pump does not engage; however, when power is supplied to the clutch, the water pump is engaged to provide water pressure.

In this type of application, the water pump and clutch are mounted together. Sometimes the clutch is mounted directly to the pump (there needs to be a special adapter face on the pump) or more commonly, an adapter plate is used.