RE: People that have replaced Wheel Bearings

[dosh8er]

Yes, I have a few questions about this whole wheel bearing thing, besides the fact that it's a bitch to do.

First thing: Those that have replaced and had problems with their wheel bearings, did you notice a decrease in gas milage AND decrease in power ?
Second, did you feel vibration while braking, and was vibration from the wheel bearings intermitten (as in, not all the time while driving, but it would shake more at certain times) ?

These questions are obviously stemmed from a concern of mine. I have done a thorough brake job, so no 'you have a brake problem' crap. I noticed the braking issue is a slightly similar vibration to the, what I think, is the wheel bearings. I've replaced Upper ball joints on both sides, CV joints on both sides, and as I said before brakes ALL the way around (yes i did have a cracked rotor, but i think that was an isolated thing on that wheel).

I'm stumped. I THINK it's the wheel bearings, since i get this fscking terrible vibration (in steering as well as felt throughout the car) that rears its head up intermittenly. I know it's not my driveshafts now, after all that work, and much time spent.

[cruznz]

what about a wheel balance?

[dosh8er]

ah $hit, forgot to mention that... tires are fine. I had them checked not too long ago... they were checked for balance and such. Tires aren't even that old.. maybe 7000mi on them. I thought that was it as well, but no luck.

[MrBen]

Verify your ball joints are working properly. Otherwise I would think it is the bearings. Unless your rotors are warped.

[dosh8er]

this vibration problem is not only at braking, but when crusing down the highway at 55... 70... intermittenly.. just starts this craziness.

[ACCORD EX]

well i did this job before !
the symptos are ! vibrating above 60 mph ( not rpm related )
wheel vibration , vibration when brakig , a very loud soud like a the sound of a performance muffler ! and yes i had a decrease in performance above 60 mph ! now my car run much smoother !

BTW i changed only one side !

MIKE

[dosh8er]

ok, that's what I wanted to know... but now I have to figure out WHICH side is the problem... any easy suggestions? I think I could throw an indicator on there, but I'm not good with tools like that... (i could be if the time comes and that's the tool of necessity... but you know how that is) So, how do i figure out which side ?

[SiR]

The easiest way to see if its the wheel bearings is to jack up the car and hold the tires on each end of it, and try to shake it. They should not be any play.

Since you said you changed the ball-joints, its easy to see if its the bearings. The whole hub, rotors, and wheel would move around when you are doing this test. If there is a lot of play, you are also wearing out you pads cuz the rotors are constantly banging aganist the pads.

[markmdz89hatch]

Originally posted by dosh8er
this vibration problem is not only at braking, but when crusing down the highway at 55... 70... intermittenly.. just starts this craziness.

You are not alone here. I've been dealing with this very same problem for about 3 mo. now. I'm just trying to postpone the inevitable until I get the major DCOE and rear disc conversion underway. I KNOW that my problem is identical in every way to yours and I also KNOW that it's my bearings. Do you get a strange howling noise out of the wheels at the 55-70mph. speeds? That's a sure indication of a bad bearing. Just don't drive on this too long b/c you'll end up trashing your brakes 35x faster while you drive on bad bearings.

Honestly, if you have to replace one, the other's almost definitly on it's way too. Just kill two birds with one stone, and do 'em both at the same time.

Good luck!

PS>> What's the pricing on a set of new front bearings? I've yet to look into that little fact.

[89dxaccord]

if you say u did the job ur self i would go back and check for any loose nuts or screws. i had that problem also. it winded up being the little screws that hold the roter on. im not saying u messed up on your job but no ones perfect.

[89NinjaAccordLX]

My wheel bearings were SCREWED... I mean, NO lubrication. They had big grooves worn into them from the balls and the edges were burnt. From 60-70 my car vibrated like a mofo and from 0-110mph it sounded like an airplane taking off inside the cabin. I replaced the wheel bearings (94 bucks from Bap Geon Import Auto Parts) and the airplane went away. The vibration went away. My pissy attitude on the highway went away. Its amazing how replacing two parts could affect all those things. If you want pictures... I can take/post some.

[markmdz89hatch]

how much of a pain in the balls is it to replace the front bearings? How long did it take? Did you need to use any specialty tools for the job (ie. press, puller, etc.)? Do you have to re-grease the new bearings before you put it all together?

[dosh8er]

hrm, i'm glad i'm not alone on this... that god awful vibration that just shakes and shakes... this may also explain why i had that cracked rotor... (that was really wierd)

Tonight I went driving by some brick walls really slowly with the windows down. I'm 98% sure its the passenger side, and it makes a squeek squeek sqeek as it slowly rotates (10mph or so).

Good thing my old man's got a press, it's something he pieced together from one of the places he worked at a while back. We'll see, i have to take a look at the manual (paul's manual)

[MrBen]

Keep us posted, I'm really curious about this.

[cruznz]

a quick way to check suspect wheel bearings is to jack the car up,..spin the wheel while holding your hand on lower suspension arm,...you'll feel the vibrations of a worn bearing

[dXsquared]

i have a worn passenger and driver wheel bearing... but tommorow and tueday, im putting the car on blocks and putting the LOWBOYZ along with new/used arms... the whole thing, with teh hub and all... new upper and lower BJ's and new CV shafts.. i have had this stuff in my living room all winter and im glad that the snow is gone... its time to make the car ride nice again!

Travis

PS.. i know what you mean about the brakes... i have gone through 3 sets of pads.. but one set was on the car, one set was from a parts car and the last set are fairly new, so they will last a while...

[bambamky]

yes I had that prob didnt have tools to take the old bearings went to scrap yard bought a used spindle(with the bearings inside) put it on and whammo prob fixed!