vinegaroon

Does anyone have a good source for front wheel bearings for a '93 LS 400?

damon

BCA / Federal Mogul Part # 510017
Ball Bearing front. $45.00 at Rock Auto

Timken #510017 also $45.00
Seal is part #1943 at 877-328-8672

Toyo 40635
$51.00 at Instockauto

Labor on this is a beast!!

hyperopt

Anyone knows the maker brand of OEM front/rear wheel bearings?

vinegaroon

Well, I can do brakes like a charm, but I don't think I should undertake changing my wheel
bearings at least until I watch somebody else do it. Just being able to find the bearings
themselves at such a good price knocks the hell out of the pricing I have been told is the
usual cost. That was in the $500 dollar range and even more at Lexus. I have such a good
mechanic who does lots of favors for me, so I surely don't mind paying him for work that is
too difficult for me to do. I mean, even they have to make a living. Just recently, some leakage from my power steering pump ruined my alternator, so, after I had the alternator rebuilt, he
fabricated a shield over it to protect it from any more leakage until the problem with the power steering pump can be tackled. It's not bad enough to negate the pump, but is obviously bad enough to ruin the alternator.

damon

Where in Texas are you?
I used the Federal/Mogul bearing when I had to replace one of my fronts awhile back. No problems so far.

vinegaroon

I have received several good responses to my question. It seems that there are good sources
either on the net or using info from you guys to get these reasonable prices on these bearings.
I can't believe prices I have heard from even very reputable mechanics in the $500-$700 range.
For God's sake, I wonder what sources are pricing them that high? It appears that using
Google as a locator, it is possible to get a great many parts for our cars without having to bend
over at the Lexus dealership. Trouble is, their pricing sets the base line for used parts too.
Thanks again.

damon

I'm in Dallas.

Labor ran about $100.00 to replace 1 bearing.
It is a good time to do other suspension work if need since so much of it has to be disassembled anyway.

Do not attempt without a suitable hydraulic press.

BTW, once you see the actual part you will not worry so much if it is the oem or not.

vinegaroon

I do not have a hydraulic press. Does this mean that I should not attempt to install a new
front wheel bearing at all? How difficult is it to take the hub off to take it to someone to
press the old bearing off and a new one on? I guess a seal is also required, right? Is it
very difficult to take the hub off? I have done this on older GM cars.

damon

No press, no ballgame. This is not home mechanic stuff unless you have quite a garage.

If you decide to "press" on so to speak & manage to get the oem bearing out, the picture should be very clear. Screw it up & be ready to buy another bearing. This is not childs play!! The bearing resides in a major suspensions part.

alsalih

The OEM bearing is made by KOYO. This is a very simple job IF you have a hydraulic press, otherwise forget it. Your cheapest option is to remove the hub assembly and take it to NAPA or a machine shop and pay them $30 to press out the old bearing and install the new one.

lorenzo816

Questions...

I've done a repack on the front bearings of a 4WD vehicle many times.
What is the major difference between that and the LS?

Can't you just repack them?
And when would someone want to replace berrings that are pretty sealed in there?
I've never replaced bearings - just repacked and replaced the seals.
I've never bothered with the rear bearings on my 4WD - need a slide hammer for that.
I just need to change the diff fluid soon on that, but anyways....

I was thinking about doing the same on the Lex, repacking and reaplacing seals - but you guys are telling me it s no-go unless I get a Press?

Hmmmnnn - any picks or further explanation would help.
thanks bros.

alsalih

I've done a repack on the front bearings of a 4WD vehicle many times.
What is the major difference between that and the LS?

The front bearings of the LS are pressed into the hub assy and do not seat on the spindle as with 4WD vehicles. The ones on 4WD are easily accessed once you remove the rotor, not the case with the LS. So you could repack them if you like but it's nothing at all like the 4WD your used to, you do need to remove the complete hub assy and press the spindle off to be able to get to them and repack them.

And when would someone want to replace berrings that are pretty sealed in there?

The ones on the LS tend to last a long time, I believe they average 150K miles and I'm sure others have gone much more beyond that. They will start to make a "rotational" noise which can easily be confused with a bad tire. Once it gets worse you will start to hear a rough sound when you make a turn which places the weight on that bad bearing.

I've never bothered with the rear bearings on my 4WD - need a slide hammer for that.

The rear wheel bearings on SOLID AXLE rear wheel drive vehicles or 4WD get their lubrication from the differential fluid. On vehicles like the LS with half shafts, they have bearings that are similar to the fronts, pressed in and greased for the life of the bearings.

denverdog

i take your post to indicate no need to replace if you aren't hearing the noise. i just turned a quarter million miles on my '93, and have no noise at all. but i was just wondering if the bearings need to be changed ever, or at any "rule of thumb" number of miles. seems like they might be important for mileage, as well as smoothness. just had the front end redone, and the tb, wp, seals, plugs and wires all done. car runs like a swiss watch. was getting 19.5 mpg in suburban, semi-highway driving. planning on keeping it til next timeing belt; probably 5-6 years. at that point i don't care what its worth. it will have served me well. bought it with 88K on it. i'd love to find a good place to get cloth upholstery, not seatcovers.