Wheel Baerings 2002 Prius

The rear bearing are a simple self contained bearing unit. I've changed those quite easily. The front bearings have to be much more involved but I have not done those.

 

The bearing industry has come out with different "generations" of hub bearing designs. These have no connection to Prius generations, except it just happens a Gen 1 Prius has "generation 1" hub bearings in front (requiring a press to replace), and "generation 3" hub bearings in back (which bolt on). The next generation of Prius went to "generation 3" hub bearings all around.

More on what's involved in this post. In the whole thread that post comes from, there's more information on how to pin down which bearing is going.

Do all four of yours seem to be going at once? I've only had two go so far, and those were 50,000 miles apart. (And I had hit a monster pothole with one of them at 70 mph, three years before it failed.)

-Chap

 

Front bearing on gen1 Prius is generation 1 (old type) wheel bearing. So front is just bearing and it needs to be pressed in. Unless you can find assembled (used) unit with bearing in. Rear is generation 3 wheel bearing so it just bolts in (it has integrated flanges one to bolt the wheel (and brake) and one to bolt bearing to car.

 

If you're enough of an old-timer you remember the real old-type wheel bearings, with an inner and an outer that would press in separately, and then you'd have to adjust the preload yourself, etc. The "generation 1 hub bearing" used in front on this car is still different from that; it is an inner and outer bearing combined in one assembly that's just pressed into place in one go. It just isn't a bolt-on style like the "generation 3" hub bearing used in the rear. (And it's a lot cheaper to buy, but more work to replace.)

-Chap

 

Gen1 front bearings are traditional press in bearings. A good solution for DIY is to buy new bearings, remove the complete knuckles then take to a shop and pay them to press them in. Or buy used hub setup ideally from a car that was never in a rusty/salty part of the country.

 

Yes I know that type and have seen and even adjusted it. But in this case that really doesn’t matter. Important thing is that bearing needs to be pressed in.

 

I'm just trying to help keep the nomenclature straight...

• Traditional bearings (inner and outer, pressed in separately, not what the Prius has)
• 1st-generation "hub bearing" (one-piece inner+outer combined, pressed into place, this is what your 2001-2003 Prius has in front)
• 3rd-generation "hub bearing" (one-piece inner+outer combined, bolts on, this is what the 2001-2003 Prius has in back, and 2004- has all around).

-Chap

 

Just like I and ChapmanF told gen1 Prius has generation 1 wheel bearings on front and generation 3 wheel bearings on back. Upper one of your picture is generation 1 and lower one is generation 3.

 

Too bad bearing design uses terms like Gen1 & Gen3. I bet this is all confusing for some Prius owners.
Top photo is the style of bearing for a Gen1 Prius front wheel/hub. Bottom photo is for Gen1 Prius rear wheel hub.

 

That about covers it. Don't forget that, if you're doing a rear, all you need is the rear hub assembly shown in the bottom photo, but to do a front you need the item in the top photo plus several miscellaneous parts that were listed in the other post I linked to earlier.

-Chap