Removing Front Wheel Bearing- Trouble Shooting

Got a pic of how you're using the puller? Would probably save a lot of typing

 

There are some pics in this post
http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...heel-bearing-hub-replacement.html#post1090292
and descriptions in the same thread

Good luck and welcome to priuschat!

 

the bearing can be pressed out with a hydraulic press, and you can press the one in. This is what i did on my 2001 Prius using the original hub. BTW i paid 21 bucks for each bearing at the toyota dealer online. Both bearings were pressed in with a hydraulic press, hopefully you can find a shop up there that would do it for you for a not so steep price.

 

I assume that you were successful in removing the hub and bearing assembly. I do not believe it is possible to remove the bearing from that assembly (the Classic design is different so that the bearing can be replaced.)

 

i beg to differ on that assumption, the NHW11 hub and bearing assembly looks exactly as the setup on the NHW20, most bearings can be replaced. i believe the only bearing that cannot be replaced is the rear hub assembly bearings.

the hub assembly can be pressed out from the knuckle. once the hub assembly has been removed the bearing is exposed with a huge snap ring on the side where the hub assembly is removed, once the snap ring is removed you can either press the bearing out or use a hammer and break it into a bunch of pieces. Then you can put some grease in there and press the new bearing in and do everything in the reverse process.

many people dont do this because it requires a hydraulic press or a special tool that removes the bearing.

 

Well, here's the reason that I made that assertion: The 2G repair manual shows the front hub and bearing as a one-piece assembly, and you cannot buy a separate bearing from Toyota parts depts.

At Champion Toyota-Houston for example, the price of the Classic front bearing is $23, compared to a price of $68 for the 2G combination hub and bearing. It's probably worth $45 not to have to take the hub to a machine shop to have a new bearing installed...
http://www.trademotion.com/partloca...rius&year=2004&catalogid=1&displayCatalogid=0

 

It's much quicker and easier to replace the hub and bearing. No need for all that cussing if you don't have a hydraulic press. Even then, they tend to want to stay rusted together. It's worth the $65 more for the new hub and lock nut.

 

The complete hub assembly can be removed by using a drift to drive the assembly out of the Strut assembly while still on the vehicle. Some can be troublesome and require the whole strut to be removed and placed in press but I have done many still on the vehicle.

Hope this helps

Gavin Craske
Auto Electrician, Perth | Current Tech Auto Electrical

 

The Gen2 Prius uses a "bolt in" bearing/hub assembly.
Just swap the entire unit, no need to mess around with a press etc. (like you need to on Gen1 prius)

Hub/bearing looks like this; Timken HA590064 Front Wheel Bearing and Hub Assembly : Amazon.com : Automotive

Remove the axle at the wheel side
-unpeen 30mm 12pt nut, remove 30mm nut (this tool is helpful Lexus/Toyota 30Mm Front Axle Skt Kit 12Pt : Amazon.com : Automotive)
-remove 3 lower ball joint fasteners 17mm
-pull strut away from axle (tap center of axle to free up from bearing/hub)
-remove brake components that are in the way
-remove entire bearing/hub assembly

 

Slightly off topic but involving the front hub, can anyone confirm either way if the gen1 and gen2 outer CV joints are interchangeable.
I have a supplier that lists the same complete drive shaft with inner and outer CV's as suitable for both models.
Now the only difference I can see is that the gen1 uses a cotter pin through the nut while the gen2 uses a staked nut.

The reason I ask is because after market CV joints for the gen1 are £15 $23 while a gen2 CV joint is £80 $120. The spline count and ABS ring count is the same but I cannot find any listed dimensions for the two joints.

John (Britprius)

 

Hi John,

I do not know. However note that Toyota has established different part numbers for the Classic vs. 2G front driveshaft components. See toyodiy.com which shows part numbering for North American Toyota vehicles.
ToyoDIY.com
ToyoDIY.com

 

Thanks Patrick, Interesting to note all the prefix numbers are the same. Might be worth spending £15 just to find out if the difference in the nut locking is the only difference. Also left and right CV's have different part numbers if I am reading correctly.

John (Britprius)

 

Ok so after doing quite a few Gen2 front wheel bearing/hubs (many from "rust belt" states) I have this advice, remove the entire knuckle and try to dislodge the hub "on the bench". Because the bearing is steel and the knuckle is aluminum they are often fused together. Any car that's been near salty water will be a PITA.

Remove entire brake caliper assembly (two 17mm bolts to knuckle) and tie up out of the way.
Remove axle nut (unpeen and remove with Amazon.com: Toyota / Lexus 30mm Front Axle Lock Nut Remover Kit: Automotive)
Remove tie rod end from knuckle (17mm castle nut with cotter pin)
Remove lower ball joint with the three 17mm fasteners under the control arm.
Remove ABS sensor (10mm bolt) and tie out of the way.
Remove the two big bolts that hold knuckle to strut, note which ends have nuts.

Once knuckle out of the car, remove the four 14mm bolts that hold hub to the knuckle.

If you cannot get the hub out, take it to a shop with a press (min 10 ton) and get them to press out the old one.

To remove the 4 bolts that hold the hub assembly to the knuckle without removing the ABS dust shield you can use a very thin wall socket. The BMW 14mm spark plug socket like this one Amazon.com: Assenmacher Specialty Tools SP1412 14mm, 12-Point Thin Walled Spark Plug Socket: Automotive works pretty well.

You may want to purchase new ABS dust shields from the dealer, part number 43246-47010 since they often get buggered up when removing them. When you put in the new one make sure the window is centered up with the ABS sensor tip.

Clean up the inside of the knuckle with fine wire wheel, the new bearing/hub should be easy to pull in with the 4 bolts.

 

Since I can't find any wheel bearing post on GEN III I have got to ask, can this be applied to Gen III??

 

3prongpaul (and others) - thanks for the great instructions on replacing the front wheel bearing. I pretty much followed you exact instructions.

I replaced my front left wheel bearing at 88k miles, but it's been making noise for probably 20-30k miles, but I thought the noise was due to cupped tires. Turns out, it was cupped tires AND the front left wheel bearing. It's really nice to have the car be silent again!

Below are 3prongpaul's instructions slightly edited for how I did it. The whole process took about 2 hours.

• Loosen axle nut (unpeen and remove with Amazon.com: Toyota / Lexus 30mm Front Axle Lock Nut Remover Kit: Automotive). Easiest to loosen the nut with the tires on the ground, so carefully pop off the wheel center cap, unpeen the lock nut and break loose the axle nut with a breaker bar.
• Remove tie rod end from knuckle (17mm castle nut with cotter pin). Once the nut/pin are removed, you'll have to loosen it up with a hammer to remove.
• Remove the two big bolts that hold knuckle to strut, note which ends have nuts. The end with the nuts was on the front on the driver's side.
• Remove entire brake caliper assembly (two 17mm bolts to knuckle) and tie up out of the way. I used a bit of copper wire bent into a tall S-shape, but a clothes hanger would work, too.
• Remove ABS sensor (10mm bolt) and tuck out of the way.
• Remove lower ball joint with the three 17mm fasteners under the control arm.
• Pull the knuckle out of the car
• Loosen the four 14mm bolts that hold hub to the knuckle. You can use a thin wall socket like this one Amazon.com: Assenmacher Specialty Tools SP1412 14mm, 12-Point Thin Walled Spark Plug Socket: Automotive to avoid pulling the dust shield. Note that you won't be able to fully remove the 14mm bolts without bunging up with ABS dust shield.
• Carefully hammer the old hub from the knuckle. You can use a socket on the loosened bolts to help knock it out. If this fails, you'll need to get it pressed out. During this process the ABS dust shield (part number 43246-47010 if you need a new one) popped out and you can remove the bolts.
• I used Timken HA590064 Front Wheel Bearing and Hub Assembly to replace the worn hub assembly. It will easily pull in using the 4 bolts.
• Carefully tap or press the ABS dust shield back in to place making sure the ABS window lines up.
• Finish assembly in the reverse of above.

 

Do you think this "Timken HA590064 Front Wheel Bearing and Hub Assembly" would work for GEN III Prius??