wheel bearing going out

[Lee]

dropping my truck off this morning to get a new wheel bearing put in, because one of mine is on its way out.

couple q's. . .

when i turn left, the noise disappears, when travelling straight or turning right, it reappears.

is there a way, based on that info, to know if its:

1) just one bearing?
2) what side its on?

from what i gathered asking around, it seems that the answers are no, and no.

apparently you cant tell what side its on because it may be making noise when there is weight on or off of it?

i picked up one bearing for a little over $60 yesterday :clap:

[MTL_4runner]

I've found the answer is not really because the wheels can actually get weighted turning into or away from the side that potentially has a bad wheel bearing. The way we used to do it is the old fashioned lean out the window, drive around the block and listen for which side was the loudest method.

[Lee]

i tried that, my tires are too loud for that :(

or im. . . getting. . . . old. . . . . . THANKS JAMIE :(

[MTL_4runner]

You may find a shop that has a wireless chassis microphone setup that can diagnose it better but really I'd probably just jack up the wheel and check for slop. Change the one with the worst slop first and if the problem continues, change the other side. If one side went, chances are the other isn't far behind.

[Lee]

I dropped it at a shop this morning. I drive about 60 miles a weekday, 90% of which is on the highway, then if im wheeling its a lot more than that... usually about a 1.5-2 hr drive each way. I also live in an apt in boston, so I have no garage, and no room to work :(

so considering all of the above, I felt very unsafe driving on it much more than the 4 days I did already... so I just dropped it at a shop I trust.

I was just looking to get more info. Thanks Jamie!

[bamachem]

i'm really surprised that you're having issues so soon. how many miles? i have almost 160k and still going strong. probably 60k now or more with a lift & larger tires installed, too.

[MTL_4runner]

No prob Lee, let us know how you make out.

[Lee]

i'm really surprised that you're having issues so soon. how many miles? i have almost 160k and still going strong. probably 60k now or more with a lift & larger tires installed, too.
i have 117-118K or so. put the original lift and larger tires on at about 65K or so i think.

i have been wheeling A LOT in the last 6 months... dont forget how wet and snowy and muddy and icy it is here.

i think it sort of makes sense, but perhaps you're right.



No prob Lee, let us know how you make out.
will do.

[MTL_4runner]

The old harsh winters may play a factor in it's early demise too.

[Lee]

yeah

in the last 2 months, i lead/ran in front of 3 snow runs, that means i was breaking ice on some pretty deep and pretty muddy water crossings too :(

[Lee]

turns out it was the drivers side rear wheel bearing that was failing.

the guy said it wasnt really all that bad, it sounded worse than it was, but it definitely was on its way out.

damage looks to be around $175. :(

oh well.

[localmotion]

thats not too bad. I paid 75, but my parents friend did it(he owns a great import shop).

[Lee]

so you paid for the part and no labor basically?

nice. :)

[Lee]

i cant wait, i am looking at apartments to move to in august and it one of the ones im interested in has a little garage... i can park in front of it and work inside :thumbup:

[localmotion]

hahaha, I had to buy him a soda pop...LOL

Garages are key! My new apartment will have a garage for rent for only 30/month.

[MTL_4runner]

I remember working out in the parking lot before I got a house.....no fun at all. Once you have a house and a garage there are still obstacles to using it (ie all the 19 billion kiddie toys all over the place that you have to move first before you can even think of pulling a vehicle in there). My next house will definately have more than one garage bay.

[Lee]

they specifically forbid it in my lot. they fine you $50 per incident and there are old people on the prowl for it :chair:

[localmotion]

yea I hear ya. They told me that if I get caught the first time, its a warning, the second is $100 fine, the third is eviction.

[Lee]

yeah i changed out my battery in that lot and the f-ing super walked out at the moment where i was throwing the new one in :(

he walked over and said "look i dont care, but the building does, and they will report you so dont do this again, you can get evicted" :gay:

[oly884]

Gotta love rules!

Lucky for me, I don't have any issues at my apartment, then again, it's Montana, so there should be no issues pretty much anywhere!

I've also got a huge shop at work where I can work on the truck.

[d0ubledown]

is wheel bearing re & re a DIY jobby job? im guessing presses are required...hmm. jamie..how many hours labour would/should a shop charge to do it?

[MTL_4runner]

is wheel bearing re & re a DIY jobby job? im guessing presses are required...hmm. jamie..how many hours labour would/should a shop charge to do it?


It's not the hours required (R&R might be about 2 hrs per side or so), the major PITA is pressing the bearing out of the spindle since it's a sealed bearing. If you don't do it correctly you can damage the new bearing, spindle or both. This would be one of the few jobs I would not DIY (at the very least bring the spindles to the dealer to have them press the bearings in/out).

[d0ubledown]

ok, so to bring back this post...got an apt with the shop for my bearing. i thought for sure it was the front PS, but now ive got quite a whir coming from what seems like the back...but with buzzy tires, its hard to tell. it just resonates all throughout the cab. its definitely wheel speed, but not load dependent...like my ujoint vibration. would a pinion or carrier bearing have the same sound as wheel bearing whir?

out back...is there any way to tell whether its left or right? i read that the rear off the ground, fronts blocked and in D at idle speed, pulling the left and right ebrake cables to see if ones louder than the other? does that work? i dont want to spend more than i have to...

[20005spd]

if you have access to a lift, put the truck on a lift and use a stethescope for best results or a long screw driver or prybar against the hub or as close as you can get to the wheel bearings. you will be able to tell immediately which bearings are louder. you could do this on a couple jack stands if you dont have lift access. this should work for the rear as well.