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Wheel bearing replacement?

G

Guitarman19853

Hard-core CEG'er
Joined
May 21, 2005
Messages
1,305
Location
Pittsburgh, Pa
I'm getting that growling noise coming from my front end that increases pitch with speed (not RPM). I'm familiar with this sound being a wheel bearing gone bad, although if anyone thinks it might be something else, let me know.

it goes away when making right turns, so I think that means its the left side?

Is this a replacement that is doable myself or should I just let a shop take care of it?
 
unless you have a press that has enough force to remove and install a wheel bearing you will need a shop to do that.

also you can pull the hub yourself and have a shop press the new bearing in instead of having a shop do everything.
 
Check the Duratec Maintenance forum's read-first thread (wow.. what a handy place for things like maintenance and how-tos!?!?) for a how-to on DIY removal, etc.
 
if it goes away when you are turning right, that means its the right one that is bad. if it gets worse when you turn right then the left one is bad.
 
Ray said:
Check the Duratec Maintenance forum's read-first thread (wow.. what a handy place for things like maintenance and how-tos!?!?) for a how-to on DIY removal, etc.
Click to expand...

Oops, my bad... I didn't think the wheel bearing would be classified under that as it's not just specifically Duratec... So I didn't even look
 
striker2 said:
if it goes away when you are turning right, that means its the right one that is bad. if it gets worse when you turn right then the left one is bad.
Click to expand...

Are you sure about that? Mine goes away when I turn left. But it definitely sounds like it's coming from the right.
 
The bearing noise of the troubled side will WORSEN when weight is shifted on to the bad side. IE a left turn places weight on the right corner..

The noise will DECREASE when weight is lifted from the bad side.


You are likely hearing the ECHO of the bad side. your left side is making noise and the sound is able to return from the right (off passenger side cars, bridges, etc.)


Try driving along a barricade, bridge or in a tunnel and you will likely hear the "left side noise at that time.

You can also just raise the front wheel(s) and do a test on them (o'clock test). Grab at 12 and 6 o'clock and push/pull in out. movement indicates a bad bearing. 9 and 3 o'clock indicates a bad tie-rod, etc. note that a bearing CAN be bad without showing movement.
 
Guitarman19853 said:
Oops, my bad... I didn't think the wheel bearing would be classified under that as it's not just specifically Duratec... So I didn't even look
Click to expand...

No worries.. Duratec Maintenance has WAY more than any other forum with regards to stickies, how-tos etc. I've actually placed links to most of the other how-to's and stickies in there as well. It was done at the time when I was only a duratec maint/troubleshooting mod so since I only had the ability to modify one forum, I just placed all I could find in there...
 
Ray said:
Try driving along a barricade, bridge or in a tunnel and you will likely hear the "left side noise at that time.

You can also just raise the front wheel(s) and do a test on them (o'clock test). Grab at 12 and 6 o'clock and push/pull in out. movement indicates a bad bearing. 9 and 3 o'clock indicates a bad tie-rod, etc. note that a bearing CAN be bad without showing movement.
Click to expand...

Two very good tips right there. I always try to get to the outside in a tunnel just to keep an ear out for a noise I've been missing.
 
I did that one time on a mazda. I was just about to take an impact gun to the axle nut when my roommate came out and started laughing at me for doing the wrong side. Sure enough we pulled the other side apart, got a bearing pressed in and the vibration went away.
 
Is it best to just replace both while I'm taking it to a shop to have the bearings pressed in?

I'm just thinking if I only replace one, how long until the other goes...
 
Guitarman19853 said:
Is it best to just replace both while I'm taking it to a shop to have the bearings pressed in?

I'm just thinking if I only replace one, how long until the other goes...
Click to expand...


the other could last 20 minutes, a week or years. iirc my 99 the passanger wheel bearing was replaced before SZ05. drivers side is still original iirc.

if you feel better about doing both so you don't have to worry about it/ as preventative maintenence then go for it. if not deal with it when it goes bad.
 
Its not really that... Its that 0420/0430 was the new bearings, and history repeats itself.
:crazy:
 
You don't necessarily need a press. I have replaced several in our contours, some just pound right out with a hammer and punch. Others, not so much. If they don't tap out, you'll end up destoying the bearing and leaving the outer race in the hub, which is fine. I just pull out the wirefeed and weld a bead around the inner circumference of the outer race. When it cools, the outer race will just fall right out. One was actually stuck so hard, that I was scared I would break the hub in half while pressing it out. After welding on the race, it just fell right out without tapping at all.

You can tap the new bearing in the hub as well, just be careful when doing so as you obvously don't want to damage the new bearing. I made a tool to tap it back in with, which is basically a piece of steel tubing roughly the same ID and OD of the outer race. The worst part of the entire process is seating the lower ball joint back into the hole with the pinch bolt. The control arm doesn't quite drop down far enough, so you have to compress the strut a little to get it in.
 
Be careful when you do this though.

Mine had the same exact problem and i thought it was just the wheel bearing. Ended up being the transmission going bad.. :S
 
maddog440 said:
You might not need a press. I have replaced several in our contours, some just pound right out with a hammer and punch. Others, not so much. If they don't tap out, you'll end up destoying the bearing and leaving the outer race in the hub, which is fine. I just pull out the wirefeed and weld a bead around the inner circumference of the outer race. When it cools, the outer race will just fall right out. One was actually stuck so hard, that I was scared I would break the hub in half while pressing it out. After welding on the race, it just fell right out without tapping at all.
Click to expand...


There's no way I would recommend, allow, or even think about watching someone do this to our hub/knuckle. You NEEEEEEEEEED a press.

PERIOD.

You can hammer, weld and chisel all you want, but how do you plan on REPLACING IT? Its a press-fit sealed, one piece bearing..

Unless you just particularly LOVE replacing your bearings (and possibly your knuckle if/when you mess it up..)every 2-12K miles, press it in.
 
Ray said:
There's no way I would recommend, allow, or even think about watching someone do this to our hub/knuckle. You NEEEEEEEEEED a press.

PERIOD.

You can hammer, weld and chisel all you want, but how do you plan on REPLACING IT? Its a press-fit sealed, one piece bearing..

Unless you just particularly LOVE replacing your bearings (and possibly your knuckle if/when you mess it up..)every 2-12K miles, press it in.
Click to expand...

You do NOOOOOOT need a press if you know what you are doing and are careful. Wouldn't recommend it for everyone, if in doubt bring it to a shop and pay someone else to do it. Just remember, heat works wonders. I have access to a press, done it both ways, and the welder works best, that is if it doesn't tap out. As I said, the old bearing has to be destroyed, leaving only the outer race left in the hub. Not hard to do with a couple of taps with a punch and hammer. Only the outer race is then left in the hub, and then welded on. As the weld cools, it shrinks, pulling the outer race inward with it, and it then falls right out. Old, old trick. It's actually far less dangerous than a press and puts a lot less stress on the individual components, as you are not using force to remove the race.

The installation process is better suited with a press, but it is not needed. If you are careful, you can tap the new bearing back into place. Like I said, I turned down a piece of steel tubing on a lathe and made an installation tool so that force is only put on the outer race. I then used a press, but it is very easy to install, especially if you freeze the bearing and heat up the knuckle first. It will almost drop in.

I have put 50k on a wheel bearing replaced using this method on my '96 SE.
 
maddog440 said:
The installation process is better suited with a press, but it is not needed. If you are careful, you can tap the new bearing back into place. Like I said, I turned down a piece of steel tubing on a lathe and made an installation tool so that force is only put on the outer race. I then used a press, but it is very easy to install, especially if you freeze the bearing and heat up the knuckle first. It will almost drop in.
Click to expand...

Freezing the bearing and heating the knuckle really sounds like a great idea when dealing with load bearing metals.
 
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