Questions on Replacing Front Hubs/Bearings (4x4)

When replacing the front wheel bearings, do you also replace the hubs? Is there a source for OEM parts that have the bearing already pressed into hub, thereby allowing me to easily replace the whole assembly? It appears that there are two oil seals, is that correct?

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ2sOfVrnhU

I purchased new hubs from rock auto. There is no assembly already pressed together. They can't be installed that way. Watch above video to bet a better idea.

 

I saw Timmy the Toyotaman's video on his youtube channel, but I have an '04 with the 'push button' hubs, not manual. I don't understand why Toyota doesn't sell the whole assembly and then I could just bolt it on to the spindle without removing it.

 

I just got down with front wheel bearings on a '98. It was not fun. Most shops were wanting $200 just in labor for 1 side. I opted with the 20 Ton press from Harbor Freight and DIY.

 

The 20T press did the job? I’ve heard the front wheel bearings on the 1st Gen are a challenge for even a 40 or 50.

 

All 1st gen tacomas have press-in style bearings. They are pressed in to the steering knuckle just like on the older manual locking hub tacomas. There is no "bolt on" hub assembly like there is on 2nd & 3rd gen tacomas. You have to do press work just like in Tim's video.

 

The Harbor Freight 20 ton press can do it no problem. I've used my press for 3 sets of wheel bearings with a 100% success rate.

 

If you get a 20 ton maxed out and nothing is moving. Take a 3 or 4 pound sledge and wack the top of the press, right were the jack piston pushes against it.

 

i think that there is a snap ring that is holding the bearing in place. in tim's video i believe they remove the snap ring before pressing the hub bearing in/out.

i believe that i have read elsewhere some shops just press the out the hub till it explodes past the snap ring ( i think this is where you need 50+ tons of press power).

can anyone chime in on this.

thanks for the video tim!

 

You have to press out the hub (part with the wheel studs) to gain access to the snap ring. When I did mine the hub was so tight it deformed the snap ring. I had to press the bearing back into the knuckle a little to release the snip ring. It was pinched in the groove tight. The bearing came with a new snap-ring.

 

What you experienced is the same thing I've seen on all 3 sets of wheel bearings I've pressed out. During the process of getting the hub out, the bearing gets pushed against the snap ring making it impossible to get out. On the first job I did where Jordan and I made the video, we were able to just hit the snap ring and bearing back with a hammer to drive it back enough to free the snap ring from the knuckle. On the next two times, the snap rings were really loaded up and I did exactly like you did and used the press to drive the bearing back into it's fully seated position so I could get the snap ring free. And, even when the bearing was fully seated, the deformed snap ring fought me a little to get it out.

 

Someone estimated that changing over to manual hubs will increase gas mileage about 2mpg for not having the drag of the CV joints and axle constantly spinning.
If you calculate that 2 mpg saving over 125k miles, at say $2.5 per gallon, the projected savings will be over $1400, which about pays for the conversion if you do your own labor.
When I considered the conversion (over 150k miles ago) I did not think I would have the vehicle long enough to justify it.
Little did I know my vehicle has stayed in such a condition I have never wanted to replace it.
I could kick myself for not having done the conversion back then.

 

I think that estimated MPG gain is very very generous. I've done the manual hub swap on my 98 4runner and the difference in mpg isn't noticeable. It's not like the difference I saw when adding bigger all-terrain tires and adding aftermarket bumpers, skids, rock rails and other heavy stuff. If there is a gain, maybe it's .25-.5 miles per gallon. Think of it this way, there would have to be a huge drag from those CVs turning to equate to a 2 mpg loss. There's no load on those CVs when you're in 2wd. They're just merrily spinning away with the speed of the wheels. The estimated 2 mpg gain sounds like somebody trying to justify all the money he spent on this mod. I did all my own work and when it was all said and done, I spent around $800. $400 for the used knuckles and CV axles and $400 for the bearings, seals, snap rings and 2 CV reboot kits.

The real reason to do this mod is the following:
1) You save wear and tear on your CVs because they are not turning all the time. This is especially beneficial for lifted trucks where the CV angle is more extreme causing excessive wear to the joints and causing boot ribs to rub together and tear prematurely.
2) If you 4wheel and you break an axle, you do have the option of just unlocking your hubs and driving out in 2WD if the terrain allows it. With an ADD axle, you're forced to do some sort of trial repair whether it's swapping out the axle or cutting the middle part of the shaft out so you still have the wheel bearing supported and gear oil isn't going to spew out of your front diff.
3) You have an additional gearing option. You can put it in 4Lo with the hubs unlocked if you're climbing a steep paved grade. Steep sustained grades can spike your automatic transmission temps very quickly. When you have your transfer case in 4Lo, you can drive steep paved hills all day and have your trans at a perfect temp. For example, think of a long steep paved driveway or road to someone's house in the mountains. Or, think of a pulling a boat out of a steep boat ramp. That extra low gearing would be nice to have and is now available because you can unlock the front hubs and not worry about damaging your front diff if you have to make turns on the pavement.
4) Finally, you look really cool when you're mall crawling and your fans will give you all kinds of accolades.

 

I did a little research Timmah! after your post.
There are yays and nays on gas savings for manual hubs on the other Tacoma forums I reviewed.
Some say they get up to 2mpg... others say negligible difference.
The nays do seem to dominate... so agreeing with you.

 

Can someone please help. I have a mangled nut on the back of the hub.Any advise on how to get one off

 

I mean, it's been said many times....pictures

 

My camera is messed up on my phone at the moment but will get some up asap

 

I've got a 95 TacomSR5 and was wondering is there anyway to do a conversion to a gen 2 wheel hub assembly to avoid all the press work with the gen 1 wheel bearing, most shops around me won't even attempt it anymore and those that will all say same thing, we'll try but if wheel hub breaks we're not responsible. And if there's no straight up conversion kit (like to manual hubs or tundra rotor and brakes conversion kits) would a gen 2 upper/lower A arms and hub assembly be able to replace mine in a gen 1 with out significant alterations..... PLEASE HELP IF POSSIBLE