DIY- Front Wheel Bearings

Would this cause play in the rotor?
and how would one go about fixing it?

 

Okay so you got the inner race off correct? Cut and chisel?

You put the new seal on the bearing then pressed the hub into the bearing with the seal sitting against the back side of the hub correct?

Then you put on the backing plate and o-ring and bolted the hub/bearing assy into the knuckle (spindle)?

Then on the back side of the knuckle you replaced the oil seal?

Inserted the CV through it and tighten down the nut to 173 ft lbs.


This is the back side of the knuckle where you'll tap in the back oil seal.


This is the seal.

 

If there is play in the rotor and you've got the wheel bolted on and the caliper bolted on and the hub bolted on and everything then something isn't right with the bearing/hub.

 

how can you get the new wheel seals on without messing them up. I just tried it and the ruber got all jacked up . I just got new ones how can I put them on without that happening

 

I put the bearings in the freezer for a few hours and they went right on, thanks Gas Monkey Garage glad i was watching tv.

 

Like I said earlier somewhere in this thread, the way Steve pounds his on is not correct and will damage your seal. Use a brass drift and tap around the metal lip evenly until you get it fully seated.

 

Been almost 2 years so far with no issues.

 

Sorry man, no offense. The rest of the write-up is great but watching you whack the faces of those seals makes me cringe.

 

lol. No offense taken. I was only a spectator in the replacing if the bearing. I have never changed one before so it looked good to me when he was doing it. Even if it was wrong then it's still clean and working now after many many time in the mud and woods. Had it taken apart for the brembo brakes and all looked good then as well.

 

Good, glad to hear it.

 

Hi Guys,

Sorry in advance for this very long winded question.

The front bearings on my 2007 4WD Tacoma need to be replaced. They're growling. It has about 80,000 miles on it. I'm the original owner of the truck. Its had an easy life. No sandy beaches. No significant off-roading. No modifications. It sleeps in a garage every night. Fully, and lovingly maintained. So, its disappointing that I would have to change these bearings so soon. But, that's probably a different thread.

I've watched the video posted to this thread, and read all the posts. I have decades of mechanical experience. So, I'm not anticipating any problems doing this job. It looks straightforward. My biggest concern is ensuring I order the right parts, and all the parts, so once I get it apart I have what I need to finish the job the same day. I'm a little bit confused by some of the discussions. Guys seem to be using different terms for the same parts. So, I'm hoping some of you can clarify a few points for me.

From what I can tell, there are four components that need to be replaced, per side: the bearing assembly, outer seal, inner seal, and o-ring. Am I correct in understanding that the o-ring is not being categorized as one of these seals? When I look up the parts on various on-line web sites (e.g., Rockauto), I see inner and outer seals, but no o-ring listed.

There seems to be reference to guys buying a separate bearing versus a hub-assembly with the bearing attached. I'm thinking the bearing is the assembly with the flange attached. The bearing is in the flange. That flange has the holes through which the four bolts pass that attach it to the steering knuckle. The hub is the the piece to which the wheel bolts. It has the lug bolts sticking out of the front of it. The hub has a hollow collar which sticks out of the back of it. That collar is pressed into the inside of the inner race of the bearing, which sits in the bearing assembly, right? I will need to separate the bearing assembly from the hub by pressing that protruding collar out of the bearing assembly, right?

I get confused because some people refer to a separate bearing, while others refer to being able to buy a complete assembly. When referring to buying an assembly, are they referring to buying the bearing and the hub already pressed together? Or, are some people removing the bearing itself from the above described bearing assembly, inserting the separate bearing into the assembly, then pressing that assembly (with the new bearing) onto the hub? If so, this might explain why some guys talk about cutting out the race. I cant see how, if I just pressed the new bearing assembly onto the existing hub there would be any need to cut out the race.

Finally, I'm confused about packing the bearing with grease. In the how-to videos, this looks like a sealed bearing. When a poster explained that Timken said it had to be greased, he posted a link which takes you to the Timken technical bulletin illustrating an old style tapered bearing. Those types of bearings require routine maintenance, including cleaning, packing and adjusting. But they are easily accessible, not pressed into place like those on the Tacoma. In my experience, that isn't the case for bearings pressed into place like those on the Tacoma. Just wondering if I'm thinking correctly on this.

Thanks,
Rob

 

My 08 Tacoma has 125k on it. I start hearing a hum/whistle coming from the front passenger side wheel at approximately 60mph. The hum goes away when it take right hand turns or curves on the highway at the same speed and returns when I straighten out. Is this the tell that your bearings have gone or are going?
Thanks in advance for the help.

 

Yes. Even if you jack it up and try to move the tires that always doesn't always show it, mine had no movement.

Both my fronts were replaced yesterday under warranty, 07 Sport 4x4, 44K. I was hearing the howling for quite some time.

 

I just want to update my experience.

So far since I replaced the bearing by re-using the existing hub, I have had no troubles at all! It took quite awhile to get the bearing out of the hub, i needed the help of my uncles vehicle to drive to the local garage and he actually had to torch it off because the press wasn't successful at pressing it out; I guess there was a bit more corrosion than expected. I knew the mechanic so he gave me a break and charged me $60 (normally he charges $80 for single tasks that are less than 1hr. The oil seal got burned a little bit by the torch, causing a small gap, so I'll probably have to replace the bearing sooner than expected.

So generally expect ~some~ additional costs. extra stuff I didn't already have:
- a mechanic/garage to remove old bearing and insert the new bearing
- a torque wrench capable of at least 173 ft.lbs. for that big ass axle nut
- and of course a 36mm socket for the axle nut itself which aren't too expensive
* most people should have everything else, the wrenches and most other simple tools.

I think someone already said this earlier up above^; if you have access to all the equipment (as in a huge garage, the press especially) this is a great alternative. Otherwise you're best off buying the whole hub/bearing assembly here......

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2n...s-4x4-sale-complete-best-price-ever-save.html

or...... from http://bluepitbearings.com/index.html
Which is what I just did last week, the unit arrived yesterday I now have to change my front left (the front right is what I did back in nov/dec of 2012 as you can see from my above comments

Now that I will have an extra hub from this weeks work, I will keep the hub and buy a new bearing and press that one on without urgency, and it will be all ready to go when my right front needs to be replaced again (because of that damn burned oil seal) After that it looks like I'll never need to change the bearing hubs ever again - should outlast the life of the vehicle.

.....Did I miss anything? any questions about my experience?

Thanks again ST3VE. Best instructional thread video I've seen so far!

 

Here's the hub/bearing that arrived yesterday. ready to bolt on as is. From bluepitbearings.com
Canadian $ it cost a bit more ($300 +/-) depending on the exchange rate and then there was a $50 shipping fee for Canada only.

the first link i posted I can't actually vouche for. But it seems pretty legit.

 

Thanks man. I like watching videos on how to do things instead of pictures. The YouTube video has over 50,000 views. lol

 

Hello everyone, i'm from quebec city. I change my front bearing yesterday using a complete hub/bearing assembly. However, I had same same wheel loose (1/4 inch). I had the same loose in the rod on the other side of the Wheel. The 36 mm Wheel nut seem to be correctly thigten. Do you know what happens?

 

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I just put in 2 complete hub assemblies from Kevin (NJ676) for $330.
What a difference in noise. There isn't any now.
Some pointers I learned:
Bang on the rotor with a sledge, then rotate it 180 degrees and bang again. This finally popped mine off.
You will need to change the steering position from turned full when pulling off the brake assembly, to straight ahead when putting in the hub assembly. It helps. You have to slide the hub onto the splined axle, and if it is at an angle you end up pushing the axle out of the back-side. And at an angle, the bolts have trouble lining up.
Put the Taco in 4WD, with one wheel on the ground, so the hub stays stationary.
You can't get the 17mm round head around all the hub bolts unless you rotate the axle. Lift up both sides of the Taco so you can rotate it into a position the wrench can fit between, then set the other side's wheel back down on the ground.
It was 35 degrees when I did this in the garage. My old hub assembly was so tight, I couldn't bang it out. But, you can place a thick piece of metal between the hub and its bolt. This makes the bolt you are taking out push out the assembly as you unscrew it. Takes a while with a hand wrench, but it worked better than ineffective banging.
It was tight going in, so I slowly tightened each of the 4 bolts in a round robin until the bolts pushed the hub assembly fully into position.