1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Gen 3 (2011) front wheel bearings

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by RD350, Jul 9, 2016.

  1. RD350

    RD350 Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 17, 2013
    3
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Our 2011 w/140,000 miles has a variable front end noise that I suspect from past experience with other vehicles is a bad wheel bearing.
    I've seen posts of the procedure for replacing the Gen 2 bearings that requires the hub and bearing be pressed out and new bearing back in which would limit the DIY'er, but looking at the replacement parts diagram for the Gen 3, it appears that the hub and bearing unit is bolted in with 4 bolts and may not need a hydraulic press to install.
    Has anyone had experience with replacing these?

    P.S. I have a deep appreciation for those folks that have taken the time and effort to post repair videos. (Thanks!)
     
    #1 RD350, Jul 9, 2016
  2. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 30, 2008
    23,302
    15,094
    0
    Location:
    Indiana, USA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    It is just a bolted-in hub/bearing assembly, which makes it pretty easy to install.

    The wrinkle is, before you easily install the new one, you need to get the old one out, and how easy that is seems to depend a lot on how much salt the car's been driven in, and so on. Some people have found it easiest to remove the whole knuckle and take it somewhere with a big honkin' press.

    -Chap
     
    #2 ChapmanF, Jul 9, 2016
  3. RD350

    RD350 Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 17, 2013
    3
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Hello Chap,
    Thank you for the quick reply. That was what I suspected and your confirmation was what I needed. I live in the Northeast so some salt corrosion might well be a factor in getting the old unit out. I imagine once the old hub is out and the seat is cleaned up, the new unit should draw in OK with the four bolts.
    Thanks again for your reply.
    All the best.
    RD350
     
    #3 RD350, Jul 9, 2016
  4. Jordan7118

    Jordan7118 Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 14, 2016
    1
    0
    0
    Location:
    Hot Springs, AR
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    III
    I just replaced the front wheel bearings on our 2010. There's a really good video on YouTube that goes into detailed discussion about it. Think it's like 8 minutes long or so, but he does a good job of TALKING it over.

    Unfortunately, my experience wasn't quite as smooth, so I'll point out what caused problems.

    First, have the proper tools to do this. That means a 32mm 12-point socket for the CV stub nut. It may be a 30mm, but I think it's a 32. Found one at Advance, but most auto parts stores will have what you need. This makes the job easier. Find a good punch or some other way to de-stake the CV axle nut. If it's not completely de-staked, you will tear up the threads on the CV axle stub, and that will require a M22x1.5 die to repair the threads. Ask me how I know :-/ I had assumed that nut would be softer than the stub, so the nut would deflect to the stub - not the case. Also, I would recommend just buying two of those new CV stub nuts. They are exactly $8 each at my local Toyota dealer.

    For the bearing removal issue, I recommend a seal / bearing driver set. You can unbolt the sway bar link at the upper part of the knuckle as well as the lower balljoint and TRE, and this allows you to turn the knuckle hard to either side. Then, use the driver to knock out the bearing (unbolt it first, of course). Mine came out easily with a bearing driver and not as easy with a punch (on the first side I used a punch. Woooops...)

    One more thing that probably goes without mentioning is to put your parking brake on. With the opposite tire on the ground and torquing the CV axle nut, the car can rock fore and aft and drive off the jack. I've found the OEM Jack has a very narrow base, so I use another Jack of the same design from a different vehicle that has a wider base. Works a little better and adds some stability.

    Unfortunately, my issues weren't solved with a bearing replacement. I think it's a tire issue, so I'm just going to bite the bullet and purchase a good quality tire instead of trying to make these cheap tires the PO put on here work.
     
    #4 Jordan7118, Jul 10, 2016
  5. RD350

    RD350 Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 17, 2013
    3
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Hi Jordan,
    Thanks for sharing your experience with this. I've had a bearing experience with another car where I was "positive" it was the tires. Purchased 4 new tires and had the same noise! I needed the tires anyway but was really surprised that it was a bad wheel bearing. The car had only 70K miles. Just prior to the noise I ran over a sharp rusty bolt that didn't flatten the tire but made a thumping sound like I had a flat. I was just 1/2 mi. from home so I ran on the soft shoulder of the road, then changed the tire putting on the temp spare. That's when the noise started and I attributed it to the temp spare design. Who would have thought that hitting the bolt would have KO'ed the bearing as well but that 's what was making the noise.

    At any rate I rotated the tires on the Prius and the noise is the same. It seems to get worse after braking and hard cornering so I could be wrong (again) but ... all indications are wheel bearing.

    Hey I searched "Prius front wheel bearing" on YouTube , and ran through the first 11 pages of posts and couldn't find a Gen 3 front wheel bearing post. If you get the chance, please send the exact title.

    Thanks again for the reply and tips.
    All the Best
    RD350
     
    #5 RD350, Jul 10, 2016
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)