When replacing a front wheel bearing, what is needed? Just a replacement bearing, or do I need to purchase new hub seals along with it?

 

Yep, you'll need seals too. I just did mine (well, actually I removed the hubs and took them to a machine shop to have the bearings pressed). But if you don't get seals (which I completely forgot to do), the shop you take the hubs to should be able to get a hold of the proper seals to finish the job.

 

The old seals can let more dust, dirt and road debris in to the face of the new bearings then the new ones will. Same with the rears.

 

How involved is it for me to remove the hub myself? What tools will I need? Any chance you can walk me through it? It would save me a TON on labor costs!

 

a hammer and like a 28mm socket lol. wheel bearing's are one of the nastiest jobs to do on a car next to cv boots uhhhhh

 

1.trac control censor



2.caliper bracket mounts



3.lower sus bracket



4.LCA



5.UCA



6.Tie rod? *not sure what these are called. anyone?



Start by placing the front of the car on jack stands *please pull ebrake
remove caliper, caliper bracket & rotor off hub assy
*zip tie caliper out ov the way & be careful not to put any stress on brake lines
unbolt 1, 2 & 3
remove pins and nuts off 4, 5 & 6
*pay attn to where each of the pins go. they are different sizes and lengths


Im saying it now, theres the EASY way or the MANS way, choose which works for u.

easy way--->>>>>There are tools u can use on 4, 5 & 6 that would make removal easier, Joint removers. auto zone, pep boys, advanced auto parts, napa. Most automotive retailers have em in stock for a rental fee + deposit which u get back after these parts have been returned.

But that'll take forever so theres
THE MANS WAY

I cant rem what order i took, so find out what works for u as u go along
smack the sides of 4, 5 & 6 one at a time with a hammer or mallet.
u might have to put a lil muscle behind this
*be careful not to damage the threaded parts on the joints as u molest the sides
if ur lucky all three joints will pop out easily,
but if uv got my luck you'll be close to tears many a times during this process.

if needed the sus assy can be removed to give u more room to work with.

i hope this helps, just rem take ur time & start early. this mite take all morning and most of your afternoon

 

What is the advantage to swapping out the wheel bearings? What would compel one to go through with such a swap if it is such a nasty job?

Thanks.

 

them going bad, thats what compelled me to change them haha. I have had 2/4 wheel bearings go bad on my car, first it was the left rear so I replaced the entire hub assembly with a used unit. Now its my front right, looking to do the same and swap the entire hub assembly with a younger one a.k.a. less mileage.

 

yea i think thats the easiest way out .when its time for me to change mines im just gonna get used hubs

 

thats how i feel, rather than take the chance that a bearing gone bad may have ruined the entire hub (this is what happened on my left rear, the bad bearing ate the metal around the hub and the hub had to be junked), cause if thats the case you are going to have to pay for labor twice and then have an extra wheel bearing sitting around after you get another hub (unless you buy a brand new hub, which comes without a bearing).

 

what is the manifestation of a wheel bearing going bad? Can you feel it? hear it? see it?

 

im thinking you hear it and feel it .your light will be shipped today blizzy

 

oh yeah, you can hear it big time. It's a rotational rubbing/scraping kind of sound coming from a particular wheel. Especially noticeable at low speeds and when coming to a stop. You can't see it with your eye, but there are ways to check for it when you remove the caliper and rotor. If you jack up the car and grab the wheel at 12 and 6 and your lugnuts are tight, the wheel should not have any play in it. With a bad bearing, you might be able to move the wheel when you rock it. Also, you will hear a clunking sound inside the cabin at certain speeds, a sound that may disappear altogether when the steering wheel is turned in one direction or the other. A humming/howling sound inside the cabin might also emerge, can be confused with engine noise, but it is a symptom from a bad wheel bearing.


I'll get my camera when I get home from work and record some sounds for you guys

 

yea ive been through some problems with mechanics who just butcher cars who knos they might press it in half way and sooner or later your wheel is gonna be following you down the road.i dont know if my bearings are bad but sometimes i feel a grainy feeling on the highway .does yours feel the same?

 

Not really, on the highway I can't even tell that the bearing has gone bad (for the front one anyway, i can hear a slight howling noise in my cabin though). Everything feels normal on the highway.

Previously, when my rear one went bad, even on the highway I could tell. I could hear the clunking from the rear of the cabin when I let off the accelerator, and eventually as the condition worsened, I could feel the vibrations in the gas pedal from the rotational noises that I was then able to hear loud and clear even over my music inside the cabin at highway speeds and at lower speeds. At lower speeds it was a nasty grinding/scraping noise. Definitely noticeable.

aanother possible symptom of a bad wheel bearing is the loosening of the lugnuts on that particular wheel, but this doesn't occur too often.