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

.... But if that doesn't work, rather than BREAK the spindle or the press, why not just take my advice and bust out the hub and bearings, and then cut thru the bulk of the bearing race with a whizzer wheel. Then, the race will easily break when you try to press it out, and out she comes... WITHOUT breaking the spindle.
Unfortunately, I'm 700 miles from my shop (I snowbird) or I would have done it myself. I agree with you, but this shop came well recommended and had done this before. Were it me; I would have taken ~most~ of it out with a cutting torch and as you said, scored the outer race with a die grinder & cutoff wheel, but the heat alone would have probably made pressing easier. <shrug>
Thanks for the advice anyway, and I agree with you. I'm headed home for the summer, so I'll just let the other one "sing" until I'm home, and deal with it there where I have proper tools and equipment, although, I think I just have to bolt the replacement on and run it. <shrug>

Again, Thanks.

Art
 



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I just did this job, thanks to the help from this thread. Those bearings sure did not want to go easy!! I used the Hub Grappler. The bearings just laughed at my wimpy impact gun so I took them over to a friends house with a huge compressor and a nice I.R. brand gun. It still put up a huge fight.

For the e-brake I just used a long flat head screw driver and slid it up from underneath, just behind the hub. Using the hub as the pivot point I was able to get the spring into the slot fairly easily.

Brian.
 






Thanks for the details...
Can & where do we lub the rear wheel bearings?

Had the entire rear member assy changed a couple of years ago, the front end was rebuilt last year, now with 200K just there is some occasion noise {slight whine} in the rear end some times...
 






Ya cant libe the bearings. They are sealed
 






how did you remove the parking brakes?
 






Tried to replace my rear wheel bearing this weekend (passenger side) I gave up on taking out the knuckle since the upper ball joint and the toe link ball joints are PITA to remove. They were soaked with PB blaster for a day and still won't come out no matter how hard I hammer the knuckle (shock it) The pinch bolts were already out and I could feel the ball joint loosen a little bit. I have to re-install everything back since my wife going to use the truck again on monday and I don't have all day on sunday. I used a chisel to wedge in the grove but I think the ball joint is all rusted. I have re-think of a strategy next time. If I don't give up I think I might destroy the knuckle and the ball joints.



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Just removed both my rear hubs on my 2002 XLS, I also replaced both trailing arms because they looked like **** and the boots were cracked. I was rotating my tires when I noticed about a 1/2 inch of vertical play.....Bought the timken hubs and bearings along with the dorman trailing arms prolly have to get an alignment now......
 






Finishing this job on the right rear ('03 Mounty with 131K) today; waiting out a rain delay at the moment. Some thoughts:

- BIG thanks to the OP and the other contributors.
- My axle nut (factory original) was a 35mm; I picked up the socket from Advance Auto.
- I rented the hub puller from Advance Auto as well (can't find it on their site to link to); worked like a charm AFTER I used a 5/8" x 18 thread-chasing die on the threaded rod. One of the downsides of free tool rental...
- I used an air hammer with a flat punch to drive the pinch bolts out, then put a chisel in the air hammer to spread the ears on the knuckle for the UCA and toe rod end. Worked like a charm.
- I could not get the snapring out, no matter what I tried. Heat (propane torch), snapring pliers, punches, penetrants, violence... nothing moved.

Despite my considerable reservations, I ended up going to the local Pep Boys with the new bearing & hub (Timken kit from Amazon, with a ### bearing that was stamped "Korea". Not exactly happy about that...) to have them do the press work. $52.19 and 45min later, back in business.

Hopefully the rain will be over shortly and I can get back to work...

EDIT: Both rear wheels had no play whatsoever when jacked up.
 






Finally able to remove the ball joints, I used a spreader tool to spread out those pinch slots. What a nightmare to see those rusted balljoints. I have put lots of anti-seize on re-installation. I do found out that my wheel bearings are OK, it's the cross axis balljoint that causing the play (sidewise) on my left rear tire. The bushings (or rubber component) is so busted. I bought this balljoint at NAPA, other stores carry it but not readily available, dealer has to let you buy the whole control arm to replace this ball joint. I have to remove the old balljoint using my 20 ton press because the ball joint press kit can't remove this is in the control arm (it's welded in by rust). I have to remove the control arm and press it out. It's not bad compared to the wheel bearings.

Also I did the axle seal replacement using the new seal design. This is tough too since the supplied circlip makes it harder to put the cv axle in. I just compress the circlip a little bit and tug it in several times..

Rear wheel has no play horizontally and vertically now (solid as with other wheels) but I could still hear that whine. It's not the wheel bearings in this case, so I'm thinking an alignment or tire or diff maybe.. I still have to check the left side though.


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Thanks

Thank you for your help on this! It helped me tremendously. I had to change the rear wheel bearing and the rear strut assembly all at the same time. Not a bad job really, especially when you have guidance like this for help..
I saved $705.00 doing this job myself!!
I didn't need to press out any old bearing. The junk yard sells lightly used parts, I just bought a whole new axle hub assy and knuckle already together from them 50.00 and slapped that sucker right on mine same with the strut assy. 50.00 Just pull the old out and put the new in. No spring compressor necessary!
Again, thank you for your guidance!
 






Did one bearing this past weekend

Tyler92. Thanks for the detailed post. It really helped me decide to go ahead and try to get it done. Only had a few pictures that I'll try to post later but here's how it went for me.

Before doing the right rear bearing I did both rear brakes. The right rear rotor would not come off. Took about an hour of hammering to finally crack it loose. The PB Blaster may have helped.

Drivers side wasn't as rusted up for some reason. Rotor popped off with a couple of taps.

So I was expecting a tough fight with the right rear and that was pretty much the case. I soaked the pinch bolts, control arm bolt and axle nut for days before starting. Figured that would help a lot and it did. I also put some anti-seize on the axle threads before removing the axle nut.

The axle nut came off with a lot of effort on the breaker bar. (standing on it) The CV shaft threads were pretty rusty.

All three nuts came off the pinch bolts and lower control arm pretty easily with the breaker bar. And the lower control arm bolt came out fairly easily. That's where EASY ended.....

The pinch bolts would not budge. I was using a punch on the end of the bolts at first. That didn't work. I sprayed the crap out of them and put the nuts back on and used a 2-1/2 lb hammer progressively harder. Then I put an open ended wrench on the square head of the pinch bolts and tried to get them to move them a little. About an hour later I got them to move a bit. Some persistence with the hammer and they started to come out. I was worried about deforming the nuts or bolts by beating on them. So I was holding back a lot on the beating.

So now onto the upper ball joint and toe link removal. I sprayed more PB Blaster in the bolt holes. Tried using a manual chisel to open up the knuckle. No luck after an hour. The ball joint and toe link would not budge. I needed a new plan.

At quarter past midnight I drove to Walmart and bought a cheap air hammer ($13.97) and a set of chisels. My little 2-1/2 gallon 3 CFM Makita "big bore" compressor was going to get a workout. I wasn't sure that compressor would deliver enough air but it seemed to work fine. Had to cycle a lot but whatever.... Tried the flat chisel for a while but could not open up the knuckle enough. At 1:15am I decided to call it a night and let it soak in PB some more.

At 9am I decided to try the chisel with a bit of a curve to it. Figured it would open up the knuckle a little more. That worked. I was pounding upward on the control arm and it started to come out.

I used a long piece of steel to bang out the toe link. It took a number of hits but it also came out.

Success.

The bolts and ball joint pins were pretty rusty. I used a chisel to scrape the rust off the pins and a wire brush to clean it up a bit more. A screw driver helped me clean out the pin holes. Was told by a friend after the fact that it's important to get the rust off since things like PB keep working and could cause things to loosen up and possible allow the assembly to let loose.

So I cleaned it up as best I could.

The parking brake was super rusted. I ended up removing the adjuster, the lower springs and shoes (in that order) and let that be a job for another day. I absolutely couldn't figure out where to put the pin/drill bit the pedal area to keep the tension off. I've seen photos of older Explorers but they look different than a 2004. So I did it the hard way. Once all that stuff was apart, I was able to slide the levers out of the knuckle and set them and the cable aside. More on that later.

Took the Timken bearing/hub kit along with the cleaned up knuckle and retaining clip to Pep Boys. I had them remove the old retaining clip and install the new one. 2 hrs later picked it up and reinstalled. They did a nice job. $46 incl tax.

I used some anti-seize on the spline, the axle nut threads the pinch bolts, the ball joint pins and previously, on the face of the hub where it contacts the rotor. Not a lot there. Just enough to help keep the rotor from getting stuck to the hub again.

It went together A LOT quicker than it came apart. Absolutely correct Tyler!

Torqued the pinch bolts to about 66 ft-lbs, the lower control bolt to 100 and the axle to 175.

For the parking brake, since I had to wait a few more days for new parts, I inserted the levers back into the knuckle and safety-wired them together inside of the rotor. I had to re-do this a day later. They would not slide out, but they did slide in a bit and made contact with the back side of the rotor and made a nice scraping sound. Re-wired it up so it would not move in or out for the few days I'm waiting for the parts. Can't say this is the proper procedure, but I'm fine with it for a week or less.

So far the assembly is tight and the bearing vibrations/major hum is gone. I'll re-check in a week and then again in a month to make sure the ball joints are staying put and the axle nut isn't walking out.

The stuff I bought to get this done.

Timken hub/bearing kit (genuine) from Amazon. $117
35mm impact wrench deep socket from Amazon $10
18 mm 1/2 drive 12 pt Deep Socket. $6 Home Depot
21 mm 1/2 drive 12 pt Deep Socket. $6 Home Depot
Air Chisel and Chisel set. $21 Walmart
PB Blaster. $8 Amazon
Labor to press bearing. $46 Pep Boys. Only place open on Saturday here.
A few band-aids from CVS......


Once again, thank you Tyler for all of this info and thanks to everyone else who contributed to this thread. I managed to get this done with just a breaker bar, an air chisel, a torque wrench, a hammer and a lot of PB Blaster for the most part.

But this thread was the most useful tool I had.

Oh.. and thanks for the torque specs. Esp. the lower control arm bolt. Can't recall who posted that but thanks.
 






Excellent Post, thank you!

Do the front hubs go on exactly like the rear? I had a mechanic this morning tell me they bolt on, and that I could just buy a pre-assembled hub and bolt the new one on no problem. I was sure he was incorrect, and it looks like I'm right.

I did my rear hubs myself a few years ago (and have a thread here showing some pix)... but it was a nightmare because no one around here presses bearings (NAPA doesn't do it)... much less is open on a weekend when you need it done. My neighbor happened to have a press, but didn't have the right sized ring to press the new bearings in, and we damaged one of the bearings. I eventually had to have it redone.


If I have to mess with pressing in new bearings, then I'm going to have to pay to have the fronts done. And I'm assuming that you can't just buy an entire hub assembly, prepressed and ready to go right?

Thanks!
Jason
 






Excellent Post, thank you!

Do the front hubs go on exactly like the rear? I had a mechanic this morning tell me they bolt on, and that I could just buy a pre-assembled hub and bolt the new one on no problem. I was sure he was incorrect, and it looks like I'm right.

I did my rear hubs myself a few years ago (and have a thread here showing some pix)... but it was a nightmare because no one around here presses bearings (NAPA doesn't do it)... much less is open on a weekend when you need it done. My neighbor happened to have a press, but didn't have the right sized ring to press the new bearings in, and we damaged one of the bearings. I eventually had to have it redone.


If I have to mess with pressing in new bearings, then I'm going to have to pay to have the fronts done. And I'm assuming that you can't just buy an entire hub assembly, prepressed and ready to go right?

Thanks!
Jason

Actually, the mechanic was correct. I did the fronts on my '02 Mountie-2WD. Very easy job IMO.

I also did the rear bearings...there are some O'Reilly Auto Parts that have presses. Or, if you have any mechanics/shops in your area that say they can do the whole rear wheel bearing job, then just ask them what they'll charge if you bring them the hub(s). Most of them consider it easy money.
 






Took me 3 days to do the first one because I had no idea what I was getting into. Had to buy a few tools, drink, strategize, drink, etc.. Second one I was well prepared for and got the job done start to finish in less than 4 hours. Still a PITA even with the right tools, but at least I don't fear it now. Worst part is getting the old bearing out. If I would have had a torch, maybe I could have heated the housing, but didn't have one. I ended up taking the cage out of the bearing and dismantling it so I could cut out the outer race with a dremel. Took about 30 minutes of grinding. One trick I saw was to weld a bead onto the ID of the outer race. It falls right out with absolutely no stress or damage to the housing. Pretty cool trick.
 






Actually, the mechanic was correct. I did the fronts on my '02 Mountie-2WD. Very easy job IMO.

I also did the rear bearings...there are some O'Reilly Auto Parts that have presses. Or, if you have any mechanics/shops in your area that say they can do the whole rear wheel bearing job, then just ask them what they'll charge if you bring them the hub(s). Most of them consider it easy money.

Yes, fronts are a picnic compared to the rear. Super easy.
 






Left one thing out

I used an OTC Universal Hub Puller to pull the rear knuckle off. The puller is a bit big for an Explorer rear hub and was a bit awkward to get on, but it worked great. This is the puller that has a round donut or disc and three legs that attach to the disc. Along with a large bolt to puller the hub out.

Paid around $100 for it at Amazon. I didn't want to not be able to remove the hub. It did come off easily, so I'm not sure if I could have removed it without the puller, but who knows. Better to have it than to not have it I suppose.

As far as the fronts, I haven't even looked at how to remove those on a '04. I assumed they were the same and not bolt on like the F150 hubs. But it looks like they are the bolt on hubs. But I'd check a service manual and take a look at the hub to be sure. Good luck.
 






Doing this project today,
Thanks for all the contributors for their posts.
My 2 cents:
The 35mm Deep socket is available at Autozone (and I'm sure many other auto part stores) but it may not be with the sockets, I would have missed it's location with the specialty tools (Axle Nut) had the clerk not asked me what I was looking for, price $17. You will also need an 18mm and a 22mm socket for some of the bolts.
I'm in So. Cal so the car is not very corroded, the top ball joint came off easily.
With the Powerbuilt puller shown in Tyler's photos, $42 on eBay, the hub came off with no problems.
For the parking brake, underneath by the left rear passengers door there is a connector that is fairly easily removable that makes it simple to remove the brake cable from the knuckle.
The one bad thing is that Pep Boys are going to charge me $100 to press out the old hub/bearing and press in the new one. I know people are getting it done for far less, but they are doing it on a Sunday. I probably could have a neighbor do it at his work but that may have taken a few days.
The other side is going to go so much faster now that I have all the tools and know what's up.
Cheers
 






Rear bearing replacement additional notes

I have a 2003 Explorer with 504,000 miles and I have changed the rear wheel bearings numerous times. In my opinion three items are critical. Since I figured this out I'm working on 200,000 miles since the last change.

If you are changing bearings it is probably because they are making noise. Inspect the inside races of the bearings once you get the old ones out. My guess is they will be pitted. This is due to moisture getting into the bearings.

1. Install the bearing retaining snap ring with the open or gap pointing down. There is a water drain hole in the knuckle casting, but it always plugs up with dirt and rust. Having the retaining snap ring gap at the bottom helps water drain.

2. The outer CV joint has a circular rubber ridge or flap that is supposed to keep the inside 'side' of the bearing protected from road/tire splashing. This flap is useless. All it does is trap moisture between itself and the bearing. Cut this flap off of the CV joint boot. Once I switched to believing it was better get water to drain away from the side of the bearing as fast as possible than protect it from getting wet, I made significant progress in bearing life.

3. When reinstalling the axle nut you need to use thread locking compound. If the nut backs off just a little bit, the bearing preload will be lost. This will reduce bearing life and lead to the insecure handling feeling from a rear wheel developing a wobble.
 






I have a 2003 Explorer with 504,000 miles and I have changed the rear wheel bearings numerous times. In my opinion three items are critical. Since I figured this out I'm working on 200,000 miles since the last change.

If you are changing bearings it is probably because they are making noise. Inspect the inside races of the bearings once you get the old ones out. My guess is they will be pitted. This is due to moisture getting into the bearings.

1. Install the bearing retaining snap ring with the open or gap pointing down. There is a water drain hole in the knuckle casting, but it always plugs up with dirt and rust. Having the retaining snap ring gap at the bottom helps water drain.

2. The outer CV joint has a circular rubber ridge or flap that is supposed to keep the inside 'side' of the bearing protected from road/tire splashing. This flap is useless. All it does is trap moisture between itself and the bearing. Cut this flap off of the CV joint boot. Once I switched to believing it was better get water to drain away from the side of the bearing as fast as possible than protect it from getting wet, I made significant progress in bearing life.

3. When reinstalling the axle nut you need to use thread locking compound. If the nut backs off just a little bit, the bearing preload will be lost. This will reduce bearing life and lead to the insecure handling feeling from a rear wheel developing a wobble.

That's a real interesting point of view. I like your ideas. I have a theory that the water is killing these bearings, but it's likely either from driving thru floodwaters, or from putting boats in the water at a boatramp, where it's completely submerged. No chance I would use these trucks for that!!! But if you didn't know this, it would be an easy mistake to make. I like the c clip pointing down idea, and I never noticed a drain hole.

I went the other way with the cv joint seal. I figured it was best to replace the seal with a new ford one. So far, both of my rear bearings were replaced by me about 50 to 55k miles ago, and have not been a problem since. I used genuine Ford bearings, and bought an SK torque wrench capable of 250 ft lbs, so that I could put the proper torque on them. I suspect many don't have a big enough wrench and just wing it on the torque.

I don't remember if I used loctite or not, but knowing me, probably. However, I did NOT replace the big CV nut (even though Ford says you are supposed to).
 



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I agree pontisteve. That big nut is not keeping the wheel on. Its only securing the shaft to the hub and rotational torque it taken up at the splines, not the nut.
 






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