grinding rear wheel

[elmn8r]

Hello all,
New user here. '02 Explorer 2WD.
My son has our Explorer 1200 miles away at college. He's informed me that there's a grinding noise in the right rear wheel. This is a nightmare for me cause I'm not there and can't check it out for myself. He says a friend is a mechanic who says it's a bearing and that he can fix it for $220. Any ideas? Common problem?

 

[crash594]

Could be bearing or brakes. If it is the disc brake he can look threw the wheel at the disc and see if it is rough or smooth (no groves). It could be the emergancy brake if it has the drum type. Im not sure on that model but there has been a history of the ebrake shoe coming apart. Have him set the parking brake and release it and see if it helps. You can always have him find a shope that has a free quoat. Some of the tire plus stores will with an oil change. Maby someone with that model can key in with some other ideas.

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

I agree, it's either a bearing or a rotor. If it's either of those, he can take it to almost any auto shop and get a quote to fix it. Especially if he's away at college, I'd tell him to have it done at a shop, so if something else goes wrong related to the problem it'll be covered. It'd be safer knowing it was done by a professional, especially if he's going to be driving 1200 miles in a single trip within the next few months (Thanksgiving).

Good Luck