Thread: Discussion on wheel hubs

Saw a post about wheel hubs again and it got me thinking. What do we know about why our hubs fail?

We might think they are cheap or poorly made and sure there is some merit in that line of thinking. Lower cost hubs typically do have a higher failure rate. What else causes them to go though, the W body cars have a high failure rate overall for wheel hubs. Some of the 00+ H bodies do the same. The H's dont' seem to have as much of an issue though.

I'm thinking that some of this may be drive line angles, etc. Surely as we lower our cars, cradle space, and change dogbone length we are changing the geometry. Maybe most of our problems are caused by us?

I'd like to hear thoughts, ideas etc or if you've experienced more/less issues based on mods.

i can only give a suggestion or two as to why our wheel bearings fail so often:

- our cars are heavy, it takes its' toll
- lowering only compounds the axle geometry problems we have in stock form

I've heard countless times people who don't correctly torque them lead to premature failure rates...since most people think since its in correlation with the wheel or suspension...its on the German Tq. Spec scale...goodentite

Bonneville: A fatter heavier.. less prone to failure of wheel hub car. I like your thoughts... the 92-99 or previous wheel bearing design failed much less than the 2000+ (which looks a lot like the W body).

Geometry, undoubtedly.

Torque: I'm with you. Knowing that most hubs put on by a mechanic (or me) are Goodntited and the lack of problems experienced on the majority (non W body) do lead me to the same conclusion. As well as understanding of how the hub/torque etc is used.

1. These cars are getting old so the factory ones where out
2. Most people by the cheapest thing they can
3. Most on here probably don"t have an accurate torque wrench.
4. Lowering, changing drive line angles ect.

Now at work I have only done a couple bearings on w-bodies. Most are the Montana vans, ford f-150/expedition.

Also...to add. Timkin bearings or nothing.

I absolutely agree that modified cars could cause premature failure, but my personal opinion is that GM used poor quality or under designed bearings on these cars and others they make. On my last Grand Prix (totally stock GT), I replaced 3 of the 4 wheel bearings. Two for speed sensor failure and one for the bearing getting loose. I have done both front bearings on my current GTP due to the bearings getting loose. One of these was done before lowering and the other one done shortly afterward. I have also had to replace one of the front bearings on our Grand Am due to howling. The Grand Am uses a very similar design to the Grand Prix. I have done both front hubs on my brother in laws Silverado. It also uses a similar design to the GP's, but obviously larger. With the number of these I have had to replace and the number of posts I have read about failed hubs, I can only assume that they are poor quality or poorly designed. Just my two cents.

national bearings at $190 a piece anyone?

made in korea too!

I'd like to hear someones opinion from canada on this one since i'm limited to very few brands of bearings.

Blue...whatcha think about SKF?

I'm mostly with you Heath, I feel they didn't overengineer them enough for daily driving.

Skfs seem to be decent. I have only had one come back for warranty at work.

Just replaced three on my car...two on mom's H-body. Make it a grand total of five in one month.

I put a national on mine a few months ago...with no problems yet.

3 timkens here

I've had a bad bearing since August :/
It's the same one that went out previously and I think I had the shop just get the cheapest one (not knowing at the time) so I'm going to pick up a timkin this time around. Going to have a shop do it again cause I don't have sockets for the axle nut nor a torque wrench.

Originally Posted by dirtmaster88

I've had a bad bearing since August :/
It's the same one that went out previously and I think I had the shop just get the cheapest one (not knowing at the time) so I'm going to pick up a timkin this time around. Going to have a shop do it again cause I don't have sockets for the axle nut nor a torque wrench.

You could buy those two tools with the money you'll save over having a shop do it and then you'll have them for next time.

so i was told by a mechanic recently my bearing/hub is loose on my front driver side. i know this is "noobish" but how does this affect the drivability of my car, and how time sensitive is this repair. im strapped on a budget so im just trying to plan out what to fix first. is there anything i should be listening/feeling for when driving? found the part on rockauto, ill probably replace both the front ones together. thanks guys

Originally Posted by Silver GTP

You could buy those two tools with the money you'll save over having a shop do it and then you'll have them for next time.

lol torque wrenches aren't cheap and I'm not going to bother getting anything cheap like harbor freight. But I do understand where your coming from.

Edit: and the guy I go to if I need it is dirt cheap

normally wheel bearings just make noise and the car doesnt 'roll' as well because of the bearing being toast. normally you can drive on them for a good amount of time, but the risk is there that eventually it will bust and cause some major damage. ive personally driven on a bad wheel bearing for over a year or so before i changed it out, but dont follow in my shoes because i break things a lot.

youll notice a groaning/humming when youre driving, sometimes around certain speeds. the real tell is by grabbing the tire and it will have a little give when moving it side to side or up and down. the car obviously has to be off the ground to tell this.

Originally Posted by Bio248

normally wheel bearings just make noise and the car doesnt 'roll' as well because of the bearing being toast. normally you can drive on them for a good amount of time, but the risk is there that eventually it will bust and cause some major damage. ive personally driven on a bad wheel bearing for over a year or so before i changed it out, but dont follow in my shoes because i break things a lot.

youll notice a groaning/humming when youre driving, sometimes around certain speeds. the real tell is by grabbing the tire and it will have a little give when moving it side to side or up and down. the car obviously has to be off the ground to tell this.

That's a perfect description. Can't really hear mine until 40mph. It get progressively louder as you procrastinate on it.

Also if you're suspecting a certain bearing is bad you'll notice it more if for example the front drivers side, when you're turning right there will be more weight on that side and you can hear (and feel in my case) the bad bearing get worse.