Front Wheel bearing replacement

Never heard of hub buster just take the the 3 fasteners loose on ball joint undo the rod end and two strut bolts and CV nut . And hub falls on foot.

 

That doesn't happen in places that have salt. Corrosion will lock the bearing in the knuckle.

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Yes that's why I'm taking the whole aluminum knuckle off the strut and the three fast ers on the lower joint to arm . Bring whole thing to two 4x4 pieces kroil and dead blow hammer . Pretty quickly that bearings falling out of they're. I've also plenty of loose aluminum hub assys just laying around . Haven't used any yet . Usually keep two loaded at the ready

 

Every so often I'm compelled to be the class clown:

So you're saying the bearing is unbearable...

 

I changed the fronts on my Gen 2 twice. They use salt on the roads around here. It's not the problem it is in the North East, but the bearings are fairly well stuck in the knuckles. I've got a process to get the bearing out without taking the knuckle off.

• After removing the axle nut, tap the axle to loosen the spline/bearing junction (use a punch or something to protect the threads on the axle.
• Unbolt the brake caliper frames and hang the calipers out of the way (I fold up cardboard and tuck it in between the brake pads to keep the pads in place. You don't need to unbolt the caliper from the frame either - unless you're doing the brakes at the same time. There's a lot of videos that miss this).
• Remove the disc.
• Tap out one of the lugs to use the hole.
• Take the lug to the hardware store and find a bolt with enough threads and is just a bit smaller than the lug you tapped out of the bearing (the bigger, the finer the thread the better. A grade 8 bolt would be best, but those won't usually have enough threads so you may be into the carriage bolts to get enough threads, which are going to be the softest). Get a nut or two that fits the bolt, and maybe two bolts too. Also, get some thick washers, and some scrap metal (or more thick washers).
• Remove the 2 nuts and 1 bolt holding the ball joint to the lower control arm.
• Pull the lower control arm down and lift the knuckle out and off of the axle. Hang it out of the way (bungee cord to the spring. Make sure the brake caliper and axle are fairly well secured - you're going to do a bit of pounding).
• Bolt the lower control arm back to the knuckle.
• Pop out the dust cap.
• Take out the bolts holding the hub in place.
  • Use the hardware store bolt, nut, washers, and scrap metal to pull the bearing out (see the video referenced below for the general process)
  • Crank in some pressure on the hardware store bolt, There's a place that's either top/bottom or left/right where the dust shield is up against the steering knuckle. This is where you want to crank your bolt into. The bolt/nut won't work by itself - it'll pull the bearing apart.
  • With the axle out of the way, I apply some heat (MAPP gas torch) on the inside of the steering knuckle (the knuckle can take a fair amount of torching. (The knuckle has enough mass, the material conducts heat fairly rapidly, and the MAPP gas torch doesn't apply that much heat. You're trying to expand the metal of the steering knuckle and loosen the galvanic corrosion, so it doesn't help to heat the bearing, just the knuckle around the hub.)
  • Loosen the hardware store bolt and move to the other side and crank in some pressure. It also may help to give the "ears" of the hub where the bearing bolts go through (with a punch or an air chisel).
  • I keep the torch moving and go all the way around the bearing a couple times each top/bottom (or left/right) cycle.
  • Alternate the sides often (top/bottom) - one little tick at a time (especially at first). If you see the hub is pulling out unevenly, correct the tilt by pounding on the part of the hub that has the lug studs going through it, or move to the other side with the hardware store bolt and nut.
  • Expect the bearing to just give a little at first - one little tick at a time, especially at the beginning.
  • It's sort of a race between pulling the knuckle out of the hub and pulling the bearing apart. If the bearing pulls apart, you lose. (Then you'll have to pull the knuckle off, you really won't lose much with this method, and if it works, you'll gain not having to do a wheel alignment).
• Eventually, you can pound in a screwdriver or a chisel between the hub and the steering knuckle. Keep going from side to side, top to bottom, but at this point, you've won the race.
• (I've never tried this, but you might also get a used 14mm socket from a thrift store or pawn shop cheap) Instead of removing the bolts holding the bearing to the knuckle, loosen them a couple of millimeters. Then use the old socket to protect the bolt head while you pound on them with a hammer to pound out the bearing from the inside. I'd also still work the torch around the knuckle before pounding. With the axle out of the way, you can get a good enough swing with a hammer on the back side.

It's sort of a modification of this process:

With the modification that I use a piece of scrap metal to keep from "gnarring up" the dust shield. I also pull the axle out of the way so I can go at the inside of the knuckle and heat the knuckle with a torch. This is the secret sauce to pull the hub out of the knuckle before the bearing separates - what makes this work.

 

I just find it seriously quicker to have the hub the big aluminum hub thing off the car it's just to quick and then you got all the room I world to do whatever . And no grease on axle nut no need

 

Then you've gotta take it in for a front-end alignment.

 

ABsolutley not . You're tie rod ends pops out no loosening the adjustment. The two bolts hold strut to hub that assy get pushed in then tighten . Every time I bring my car after doing hubs and whatnot to my alignment buddy he throws heads on it and says you know better bud . It's like I set it last time. So removing hubs installing bearings etc do not move alignment . At least enough to talk about with my alignment guy.

 

Might also depend in part on whether your camber-adjustment bolts are the ones from the factory or later ones put in for adjustment.

 

Yes of crash bolts are installed and obviously all bets are off because you're undoing the crash bolts to remove the knuckle assembly most of mine have no speciality products camber bolts installed that was back in autocross days. But if that case use you're magnetic camber gauge before you bust the bolts loose get ya real close . Within a 1/16 inch if careful .

 

I believe the Timken bearing is actually the same as the OEM one. It is one of those instances of this company bought that company but they still use both names. I don't recall the details beyond that.

 

It's the strut to knuckle bolts that throws off the front end alignment more than anything else. Taking those off affects the alignment more than the lower ball joint or the tie rod end. Some alignment shops do a simple toe and go. Others do a little more and actually try to get the camber adjusted too. Some just say they do, and it's hard to tell if you don't see what they actually did.

All I know is that I can loosen those two bolts, apply a little pressure to the axle with a jack, and it will change the position, or drop the pressure and the position of the knuckle within the strut changes again. What's the right answer, up or down? I believe the correct answer is wherever the camber matches the alignment specification the best.

Many ways to skin the cat. Your car isn't my car. I don't have to live with the things someone else does, just what I do. Same for everybody else. Some guys don't have the galvanic corrosion that others have to contend with.

When I first did this repair, I watched a few YouTube videos to see how to do it. Now, I see those same videos and I gotta laugh at some of them.

• They unbolt the caliper, then unbolt the caliper frame. if you're not doing a brake job, just pull the frame bolts and take them both off at the same time.
• They start pounding on the hub - then there's a gap, then the video starts again after they've got the bearing out. Almost like it falls out by itself. Yeah, I didn't notice that part before I did the job the first time. The second time I did this repair, I figured out how to get the axle out of the way and add some heat to the knuckle. The first time I did this, I ended up replacing the dust shields as I pretty much mauled them up getting the bearings out. The second time, I was able to clean them up and reuse the dust shields.

I also developed a trick or two when it comes to the dust cap that presses into the bearing from the inside of the bearing and protects the tone ring on the axle.

 

When you put the bolts back into the strut all you got a do is push in on assy. Tighten . Slop always gets pushed in . The ball joint is undone at bolts nut at arm . And tie rod ends is popped out a tapered hole. So no adjustments unless out fore starting

 

Yes you have the idea