Front and Rear wheel bearings replacement help

[pontiac69]

i just found out my rr and fr wheel bearing need replacing. now the dealer just told me it will cost me 350 for the front and 550 for the rear. now that is only the passenger side front and rear wheel bearing. i believe i can do this if i can rely on this post for assistance. i have see alot of other post with great pics and some videos. so if you have time to walk me through it, that would be great. i am no amature i have pulled motors and transmissions and installed them as well so i know my way around a wrench, its i am a shadetree mechanic not a pro. thanks all , great site.

oh yea , its an 03 ford explorer 4x4 xlt 4 dr.

 

[Fox Fader]

I used to have a 69 Pontiac Firebird Vert.

I know this is of no help to you.

 

[pontiac69]

i just sold my 69 bird a few months ago. miss it everyday. had the thing for 14 yrs and alot of blood sweat and now tears.

 

[CmdrPopNFresh]

here ya go...right from the manual

2003 Explorer Front and Rear Wheel Bearings

 

[pontiac69]

that is good information. are all these pages of the manual on a downloadable file?

 

[Fox Fader]

i just sold my 69 bird a few months ago. miss it everyday. had the thing for 14 yrs and alot of blood sweat and now tears.

I had mine for 19 years, I miss it too, but I got good money.

 

[CmdrPopNFresh]

that is good information. are all these pages of the manual on a downloadable file?

well kind of.....on the ford site they are in pdf format...so when i run across something usefull or someone that needs something then i save the file and put it on my flash drive and bring it home....it almost makes it worth my while to get up and go to the shop in the morning.

however......there are......ways....to find them online:shifty_ey

 

[Curtis]

one thing to note... when you take apart the rear suspension, be carefull not to damage the upper balljoint/control arm.. They're expensive and not even available. Ford says they are months on back order. (and I mean every ford in the US that I called, even Canada)

O'Reillys auto parts does have aftermarket ones. I bought a set, and now the website says out of stock..

 

[EskimoEddie]

Link not working

here ya go...right from the manual

2003 Explorer Front and Rear Wheel Bearings

Here's what I get when I clicked the link you provided:

>
Error
Invalid download code. Please request a new one.
>

Is there an alternative link? I tried searching for that file on g()()gle and no luck. :scratch:

TIA,

Greg

 

[thepotroast]

Your front bearings are a complete hub assembly with the wheel bearings pressed into them, and also a built in ABS sensor with a 2.5ft ABS wire hanging off the end.

I just did both front hub/bearing assemblies on my 2003 4x4 4dr. I followed this guide that a user posted here a while ago, and also if you look at the end of the thread, I posted my own pictures I just took last weekend when I did mine:

http://explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=194002

FYI...be prepared for a struggle with the 3 bolts that hold the hub on from the backside....you will absolutely need a deep offset 15mm wrench like I described in my post in that thread, without it the job seems impossible....but with the wrench you will be able to hit all 3 bolts easily. Mine were extremely tight all the way out. Ford puts a mean threadlocker on them, that combined with 126k miles made them a real bear to come off. Bloody knuckles ahoy.

I will suggest buying ONLY a Ford OEM hub/bearing assembly, and I can put you in touch with a guy that you can get them from for $100 + shipping....he is buying dealer stock of inventory from Ford dealers shutting down, and selling the stuff very cheap. I bought my 2 OEM hubs from him, they were still sealed in the Ford box with the dealer's label on them. The biggest difference in getting the Ford part, is that it comes with brand new bolts not only for the hub to go back on, but also caliper bolts. The heads of my hub bolts were so banged up from removing them that there is no way I would ever reuse them!

You can find "made in china" hubs on eBay for around $100 as well, which seem to come with Timken bearings (good bearings) however no installation bolts, and since these hubs have built in ABS sensors....I would just rather trust Ford for this part.

You can also buy the part from Ford directly for about $180 + tax, from any dealer or from Ford online....but again, I can refer you to this guy who is selling them for $100 + shipping right now.

I have not done rears (don't need to), so can't comment on that.

You can do the fronts....takes about 2 hours per side, or maybe a little less if your bolts aren't insanely tight like mine were. But if you want to do it, follow that guide I posted above, and read the other posts in there...plenty of info to do it yourself.

 

[Rofocowboy84]

Hey potroast, what about Moog? Would you recommend them too, or just stick with the OEM parts?

 

[thepotroast]

Hey potroast, what about Moog? Would you recommend them too, or just stick with the OEM parts?

I do not believe Moog makes a complete hub/bearing replacement do they?

Referring to my other "how to" post about changing upper ball joints in this forum, Ford uses Moog ball joints on the 2002-2005 Ford Explorers. There are some other threads floating around here that also explain this with Ford links

 

[Rofocowboy84]

I do not believe Moog makes a complete hub/bearing replacement do they?

Referring to my other "how to" post about changing upper ball joints in this forum, Ford uses Moog ball joints on the 2002-2005 Ford Explorers. There are some other threads floating around here that also explain this with Ford links

Hmm....maybe that's what I was thinking about. Come to think about it, the only brands I saw when searching online were OEM or Timken. But your're saying either way get OEM?

 

[thepotroast]

Hmm....maybe that's what I was thinking about. Come to think about it, the only brands I saw when searching online were OEM or Timken. But your're saying either way get OEM?

Timken makes bearings, I do not know them to make complete hub assemblies as well...but Timken bearings are very good bearings.

There are some other posts on here that I read through before doing my front hub replacement, and some people went with the eBay hubs that are "made in china" I guess, and they reported that they only held up for a year or so.

To me, even if you get them from the dealer directly, it's not that much more...and a hub/bearing is a very crucial part....just something I would stick with OEM parts on. The hubs are between $130-$190 for me here from Advance or AutoZone (and only carry a 1yr warranty)....I believe those brands are also Chinese made and with Timken bearings, but again....do not include new bolts, which Ford tells you to replace when you do the job.


To to OP: $350 is a fair price for the front hub/bearing job, that's $180 for the part and another 2.5 hours of labor (in their service book).

 

[thepotroast]

Just checked with Auto Zone....the front hub/bearing assembly they sell for the 03 Ford 4x4 4dr is a Timken brand, however it's $180...same price as the Ford OEM part. I'd go OEM. I think I've driven that point home enough here. :

 

[Rofocowboy84]

Sounds good. Would you be able to PM me that guy's contact info? Thanks.

 

[thepotroast]

Sounds good. Would you be able to PM me that guy's contact info? Thanks.

You've got mail

 

[Rofocowboy84]

You've got mail

Horray! How long do you think his inventory will last? The bearings aren't the top of my list, but I don't want him to be out when I try to buy them, lol.....

 

[thepotroast]

Horray! How long do you think his inventory will last? The bearings aren't the top of my list, but I don't want him to be out when I try to buy them, lol.....

Email him I told him to expect some emails from members of an Explorer forum