How to: 2002 Explorer rear wheel bearing replacement (pictures)

[naz123]

Dealer had a Hard time removing
They said they left the hub puller on heated and use penetrating liquid and finally it popped out in aloud bang.

 

[Pontisteve]

I once had a 15hp lawnmower that needed a rear tire. I went to pull the wheel off, which was just slid over a keyed smooth shaft, and snap-ringed on the end. For the life of me, I could not get the wheel to slide off of that shaft. I figured it must have been completely rusted, frozen on, etc.

I applied a puller with as much strength as I could without totally destroying the wheel, and nothing. I heated it with a torch, nothing. I soaked it overnight in PB blaster, heated it, left the puller on for a couple days under pressure, and nothing. Finally, it capitulated and came off.

When I looked inside the wheel and on the smooth axle shaft, I was amazed to find... nothing. Not a damn thing. The only thing I can figure is that the keyway gets ****ed into a binding position somehow. I would have thought the beating on the wheel that I had tried at one point would have been enough, but I guess not.

When I installed the new tire, I lightly polished the shaft, lightly anti-siezed it, and it slides on and off like snot. To this day, I cannot understand how something so undamaged, unrusted, and straight and smooth could have given me such a hard time coming off.

With the first hub bearing I did on my Explorer, I had the spindle in a 10 ton press, and I was hanging off the handle, and it didn't budge. I finally had to cut half way thru the race, and then put it in a press. The press then broke the race, and out she came. I believe they use loc-tite for bearing races from the factory. Either that, or the press fit is just too darn tight.

 

[Kerminator]

Super write up.... Great pics and description...

 

[jedds fury]

i have a 02 explorer and the drivers side wheel bearing melted. i got it all apart and got the new parts pressed in. my question is on the torque for the axle nut. did 175 lbs work of did you end up having to adjust it?

 

[danwheler660]

Just did today to my 2002 merc.It took me 3 hours with all hand tools and no press I cut my bearings with my dremil then hit them with a chisle and they break and fall apart.But that was not my problem.I still have the wine in the rear so i guess i have to replace my diff bearings next.I have 245000 miles on my truck so it will be a fun job I bet....

 

[borderbuster]

Thanks to all you guys that shared your experiences, specially the details and photos. I recently changed out both front and rear bearings in a 2003 EB 4wd following the advice on this thread and the front hub thread.
Taking off the rear bearing carrier assemblies was a piece of cake. Pressing off the old bearings and pressing in the new not so easy. One hub and bearing pressed off and on fairly easy but my little 20 ton press wouldn't budge the other. I ended up taking it to a local shop where it required close to 60 tons and some heat to break the old bearing loose.
All back together now and have a very smooth and quiet ride.
I got my hubs and bearings from Rock Auto, Timken USA front and Timken Canada rear.

Randy

 

[fedyfedz]

a few tips. I did this job yesterday and it went easy and sucked at the same time. My hubs practically fell off, i did not need a hub puller or any tools to get the backing plate and assembly off.

1.Air chissel was a must to get ball joints out easily. (Mine were rusted badly)

2. Ask shops before you do this to see if they will press your bearings, make sureyou tell them its an explorer. I went to sears and the guy did one halfway and then told us to leave.

3. 5/32 drill bit in parking brake hole is a must to get those stupid parking brakes off. That took the longest.

I drove around at 3:00 asking shops if they would press out old bearing and pressin new ones and as soon as I told them it was an explorer he said no way.

Finally found a machine shop charged 95 for both casue he also knew that these are the worst hub/bearing design ever. It took 18 tons to get one of them out. he said god himself couldnt get these out.

 

[PDXplore]

How exciting (sarcasm), I get to do this tomorrow.


Glad I had the motivation to do a tire rotation before getting on my way to towing a vehicle 120 miles. Obviously I postponed the tow. I think i just dodged a bullet!

 

[magsnwill]

Is it possible to just slide out the axle and take it somewhere to get the bearings pressed in/out??

 

[Pontisteve]

No. You have to pull the ball joints loose from the spindle, pull the steering joint loose from the spindle, use a hub puller to break the axle splines loose from the hub, and then the spindle comes off and goes to the machine shop to be pressed out.

The outer bearing race doesn't like to press out. It's easiest to tell the machine shop to score thru the outer bearing race (with a small cutting wheel), but to not cut into the spindle assembly in the process. Then, when you press out the outer race, it will shatter and come out MUCH easier. If you use too much pressure from the press, it's possible to break the spindle.

The ball joint pinch bolts must come completely out, and you spray in the hole with PB blaster, then wait a few hours so it can soak in. Then, using a baby sledge, gently smack the SIDE of the control arm until the ball joint pops out.

You don't have to cut the brake backing plate in half either. You can remove/install the backing plate at just the right time during the pressing process, and that way you can keep it intact and whole.

 

[magsnwill]

Thanks. I didn't think it would be that easy, but one of my gearhead friends swears up and down that all you need to do is slide the axles out.

 

[jakerooni]

I know it's an old post but thank you for this write up. I have to tackle this job. Just ordered both Rear bearings off line ($54 for the pair) and will tackle this as soon as they get in. I have 190K on my 2002 explorer. Replaced both fronts about 2-1/2 years ago and have been driving with this grinding noise in the back for about 2 years now. Figured it's time to finally change them out. The fronts we're super simple and took about 20 mintes each. Hoping these back ones go as smooth or as close to it as possible.

 

[trahan625]

Well, this post has been going on a while, Glad to see how active it actually is, I as other's have a 2002 Explorer XLT, I bought it in 2005 40K Miles on it, within the first year of having it, Ford had replaced both front and the driver side wheel bearings/hubs under warranty; 6 months after they ended up replacing the passenger side rear wheel bearing and hub. after another year warranty was up and I heard the grinding noise again. I took it to my local shop to find out the driver side rear was going bad, I had them replace it; That lasted about a year and a half and it went bad again. Once more I paid to have it fixed. Then shortly after, the passenger side went out and actually busted on me driving home.. that sucked. I replaced that just to find out Driver side was going bad again. I've been replacing these damn things what seems left and right all the time. This guide actually helped me, when I last did them as I under torqued em, but I didn't use a Torque on it, Just guessed... but seems to be bad again.. hard rubbing in the rear.. anyone know if the Torque specs in this forum are good? or is anyone still having issues.. Ford screwed something up in the design of these..

Any other recommendations besides buying a new car lol?

What other thing's could cause the bearings to wear pre-maturely?

Bad Ujoints?

 

[Pontisteve]

I used the proper torque specs and genuine Ford bearings, and have not had a reoccurance on either rear bearing since replacing them myself. I would be nervous about under-torquing them. You should not guess on this job, since your life could depend on it.

Do you tow a boat with this truck? Im guessing that regular trips backing these wheel bearings down into the lake might not be too good for them. You could also check to make sure that the dust seal thats pressed onto the outer axle shaft is good, and seals against the back side of the spindle well. This would help prevent water from getting to the back side of the bearing. Probably wouldnt totally help if you're submerging the bearing in lake water though.

 

[trahan625]

I have never put this truck in Water before, I have towed maybe 3 times within the last 5 years, just pulling a trailer with stuff from friend's houses when they were moving. I am unsure about the dust seal, as I always have had the bearings pressed in at the shop and never checked. One thing though, that I think might be a problem is, I live near a lot of dirt roads, and and when it rains it gets muddy, and we have a lot of snow in the winter.

I'm going to replace my Driver Side bearing again, and check my passenger, this time I will torque it properly and make sure the dust cap is on there. I used Timken bearings when I replaced them before, I heard they were the best aftermarket bearings to put in.

Another funny thing though, my father-inlaw and my wife's aunt bother have the same trucks as I, and they both have the same problems, my father-inlaw is on his 3 bearing and i'm not sure if the aunt has done.

 

[Pontisteve]

The bearings do pretty much suck, but I would think replacing them once every 75 - 100k sounds more like it. National, SKF, and Timken should be good. Ford uses National or SKF, I believe. All those bearings are probably $100. It's the China bearings for $40 - 70 that I would be worried about.

Pressing them in can be a problem too. You have to use press tools that focus the press pressure on the race, not the bearings. Putting tons of pressure on the bearings could be a cause for premature failure. I remember when pressing them in, that this could be easily overlooked by the installer.

There is a dust seal that's lightly pressed onto the axle shaft. It's about $7 from Ford. Mine was missing all the rubber and was so rusty that I couldn't even tell I had one. I saw it in the Ford diagram. Once I started prodding around with a small flathead screwdriver, I could see that there was something there besides just corrosion. I worked it loose, and discovered it was the seal, with no rubber left. So I cleaned up the axle tripod with a wire wheel, repainted it, and installed the new Ford seal.

Once installed, and with the axle put back into the spindle, you can see that the seal ends up resting at the outer edge of the back side of the spindle, sealing the bearing area from excess dirt and water. It probably is not waterproof, but at least is water resistant, keeping puddles from soaking the bearing.

If the bearing is installed nice and square, and is pressed in by pressing against the race not the bearing, and if the snap ring is put back in place when done, and if the dust seal is in place, then the setup should last as long as it did the first time. However pathetically short that may have been.

I think poor installation technique (pressing on bearing), combined with lack of dust seal and improper torque specs could be the cause of premature failure in many of these cases. I printed my install instructions right off the genuine Ford repair CD. FYI, not having enough torque could cause the bearings to not have enough pressure against them, causing premature wear. Remember, they are tapered bearings! I forget the exact torque spec now, but I remember I had to use my 250 ft lb torque wrench. I listed the correct torque spec earlier in this thread somewhere.

 

[trahan625]

Another Update, I just found my records, I replaced both sides of my rear bearings this time last year, 9/18.. I went under there today, because I was going to replace the Driver's side.. But I decided to check the passenger side also since last weekend I had did my struts in the back, and the passenger side seemed fine.. Both sides were wiggling left and right.. I called my dad, and just for the hell of it, he said look at my toe link.. I did, and realized I chewed them up 2 bearings ago.. they have no grease in them, and feel like there going to fall apart.. When I grasp the end of the toe link and hold it against the knuckle tightly.. there is no play in the hub at all..

I am thinking that its my Toe Link's that are my problem this time and not the bearings..

What do you guys think? Possible..

Driving Condition's, I don't really hear my rear end grinding, just it seems like it wants to fall apart.. For instance, today when driving I was on the freeway, @ about 75 mph, it was driving fine, besides the little play back and forth (because I need an alignment). but I let go of the gas, to let the car slow down, and the whole rear starts shaking all over the place.. I give it gas, and it stops..

What do you guys think?

 

[Pontisteve]

It seems unlikely that the bearings would go bad in 1 year, unless you either used a cheap cheap bearing, or you damaged the bearing pressing it in improperly (easy to do). What exactly is wiggling? If it's the entire spindle assembly, it's certainly not the bearings fault. If the spindle doesn't budge, but the hub does, then it's the bearing. You did put the snap ring back on, right?

Without the toe link tight, there's nothing to stop the wheels from toeing in and out on their own. This might feel like a loose goose rear end, and may also show up in the tire tread as cupping, odd wear patterns, etc. Fix the toe links and see the results before condemning the bearings.

The same is true for the ball joints. Ford can't build a ball joint boot to save their life, so expect that somewhere around this age, the boots are rotting away, the grease has left, and the ball joint is running dry and on it's way to failure. This would cause squeeking, clunking, and looseness.

The 4WD models may also suffer from front axle wear (spider gears, carrier pin, etc) that will cause some shuffling going down the road. Easy to determine by simply unplugging the brown wire for the transfer case clutch, and seeing if that goes away.

You need to inspect your U-joints too, based on your description of the shaking, although they're probably not it.

 

[trahan625]

Just replaced both Toe Links tonight, Had taken it to the shop so they can align it tomorrow morning. Just with me putting the new tow links in, there is now no play in the rear at all. I will let you know how it drive's more on Friday (I need to take a 2 hr trip up north for some work).

Unplugging the brown wire for the transfer case clutch, where's that at? What does that do, by any chance disengage my 4 wheel drive, it seems that my truck is in all wheel drive at all times, I have Auto 4x4, 4x4 High and 4x4 Low. No way to just shut it off.. heh..

Ball Joints boots are on there way out, I keep greasing them though, but ruined them about 3 bearings ago when using a fork to pull them apart.

I may end up replacing them sometime down the road.

I'll let you know more on the truck.. On a side note and off topic, any idea why the Drive's side keyless entry would stop working, It used to light up when I pressed a key on it, but it just doesn't work any more, I checked the wiring as I replaced the speakers in the thing when I first got it, but I did'nt hit any wires or anything, It just died one day and never worked since. Is there maybe a fuse somewhere that I was missing?

 

[Pontisteve]

The Auto 4wd trucks, like you and I have, use a transfer case that has an electric clutch in it. The clutch, when energized, engages the front driveshaft. This happens, for example, when you lose traction badly. But engaging the clutch suddenly at 30 mph or something would create one heck of a clunk, since there is slack in the drivetrain. In order to avoid this clunk, the factory partially engages the clutch all the time.

The electric clutch is not an on-off switch. It is PWM (pulse width modulated). This means that the computer sends a duty cycle to the clutch, to determine what % it wants that clutch to engage, depending on traction conditions. This clutch is ALWAYS engaged at least 5% duty cycle, so that the slack will be taken up. This way, any time the truck wants to engage the 4wd suddenly, there won't be an awful clunk, since the drivetrain slack is already taken up.

In my case, I had a pretty bad shuffle/clunking at cruising speeds. After changing the transfer case fluid, I found that the problem lied in the front axle. Specifically, the spider gears and carrier pin were worn, causing the pin to wobble inside the spider gears some. I believe this is due to our 4wd system being constantly engaged. Or just a crap front axle design.

Either way, the fix for me was to just unplug the brown wire that goes from the transfer case clutch to the 4wd module. The 4wd module is behind the glove box. I used my de-pinning terminal tools to pop the pin out of the connector for the brown wire. Often times, you'll read about the "brown wire mod", where guys will rig up some sort of switch in this brown wire. With the switch to one side, the brown wire stays connected and the system works like stock. With the switch to the other side, the brown wire is broken, and there is ZERO duty cycle to the transfer case, making 4WD impossible. Some guys have rigged up elaborate switches/relays on their dashboard, near the stock 4wd switch panel, so they can turn off 4wd with the press of a button.

I just unplugged mine to see how it would go, by de-pinning it. I did not see any appreciable gas mileage increase. My truck gets 15.3 (its a V8) on the inaccurate dashboard mileage readout. It gets more like 14.3 in real numbers. Pretty consistently, the dash is 1 mpg too optimistic.

Unplugging the brown wire did cure my clunking/bucking problem, by basically eliminating the front axle from ever being engaged. One of these days, I think I will hook the brown wire back up, but put a switch inline in the wire, and maybe mount the switch to the inside of the glove box. This way, I can just flip the switch and use 4wd if I need it.

A light blue wire coming off the Central Security Module sends power to the keypad. A black wire coming from the keypad goes to a splice, and then to ground near the Right Hand D-pillar, which is near the Auxilliary Junction Box.

The security module is behind the rear seats, on the right hand side under the plastic panel. Careful poking around... there's airbag wiring around there too!

It's either the keypad itself, the security module, or the wiring inbetween. I can tell you now that it's probably a bad keypad. You remove it by taking out the moulding and working your way back to it. You could check all "security" fuses, just in case. If everything else works right except the keypad, it's probably the keypad or lack of power coming on the light blue wire from the security module, for some reason.

Ball joints... I figure there is 8 of them. 4 of them are upper control arms, which would need some Moog "problem solver" upper control arm replacements, at about $100 each. And 4 of them are lower ball joints, which are traditional and cost maybe $50 each. Then there's the labor of installing 8 freakin ball joints, plus an alignment. Hopefully, I can dump this stupid truck before needing all that work done. It's just too much with this thing.

One thing I hate is that the ball joints, the toe links, etc are all unprotected from using a pickle fork tool. You'll damage them if you try to use a pickle fork. You have to use really careful methods to pull, for example, the toe link off the rear spindle. It can be done, but it's a real bear if it's stubborn. The ball joints are easier, because you can beat on the side of the spindle, and the pressure on the suspension helps to pop them out.