Wheel bearing issue.

[Rob Hutton]

Noticed a loud noise on the passenger side rear tire when backing out of the driveway. The noise sounded like a stick was being dragged and the truck was driving rough and choppy. Almost like it was riding on the brake off and on. Stopped the truck and looked under the truck and didn't see anything dragging and I asked my wife to move the truck forward. Heard a noise that was definitely metal on metal coming from the rear passenger tire. Had her park it, I removed the tire and notice that the outside brake pad was worn down to less than 1/8 of an inch while the inside brake pad had 1/4 + inch of life on it. Thought it odd but you never know with newer cars, so I went to get brake pads. Get home, pull brake caliper off and I notice that the Outside and inside brake pads are angled from less than 1/8 inch to 1/4 inch. I check the rotor and the entire hub assembly wiggles and has some give. I'm assuming this is a wheel bearing issue. From a shade tree mechanic approach, How do I fix this?

 

[BrooklynBay]

Welcome to this forum! I've moved your thread into the stock 2006-2010 section.

 

[swetrid]

Definitely sounds like wheel bearing issue. They are not very easy to replace even with proper tools and equipment.

 

[waskly]

sounds like a broken tone ring causing traction control to activate, check the ring on that axle, is it cracked?

to check the bearing, with the wheel on the truck, jack up the truck, and shake the wheel side to side up and down, does it have play? if yes most likely a bearing.

 

[Rob Hutton]

Tons of Play in the wheel housing assembly. Got the bearing on hold and I'll update you guys tomorrow. Thanks!!!!

 

[steve6534]

Tons of Play in the wheel housing assembly. Got the bearing on hold and I'll update you guys tomorrow. Thanks!!!!

The rears aren't horrible to do but it does require getting the new bearing / hub pressed into the knuckle. You'll likely have to remove the assembly and take it to a shop to get it pressed out / in.

 

[Jon04CTSV]

I guess I'm a member of the club too.

60,000kms and had some whirring/howling noise coming from the front. It just started to go so it was hard to hear it over my exhaust, but did a road test with my dealership and they replaced it for me. Right at the end of my warranty!

 

[Rob Hutton]

Got in there today and the Snap ring behind the wheel bearing is chewed up and sticking out like a sore thumb. Any ideas? I'm assuming this means my wheel bearing is chewed up as well, but I wanna be sure before I go out and fork up the money for a part I might not need. Thanks for all your help!

 

[sueslimited]

2007

need to do left front wheel bearing on daughters 07 explorer 4x4 what size is axle nut also will it need to be pressed out

 

[1AJeremyD]

Take a look at the set that I sell. Both the motorcraft and the house brand carry the same warranty and include the same parts.

http://www.1aauto.com/1A/wheel-bearing-hub-rear/Ford/Explorer/-/-/2006

 

[Rob Hutton]

I have been going crazy trying to find a schematic or instructions for getting the Wheel Hub assembly off of my truck!!! Anyone know where I can find one besides a Haynes Manual (I need to get this fixed tomorrow and If I order one It won't get here until Monday)! I live in the sticks.

 

[96eb96]

The hub, bearing and snapring in the above link look identical to the parts I recently replaced on a 90s Thunderbird. The IRS rear suspension is similar for both vehicles.

You will probably have to rent a 32mm or 36mm deep axle socket set and a hub puller (any big box auto store should rent this).

Easy instructions:
-Remove the axle nut (better if the truck is on the ground if you don't have an impact). Be sure you have a replacement ready.
-Remove nuts/bolts that connect to knuckle to the truck while pushing out the CV using a hub tool - do not hammer!). Do not abuse or overextend the CV.
-bring the replacement hub and bearing , and knuckle to a shop. If you have a NAPA machine shop around they will do it for a fair price (like $40 a side). Call around before you go, tell them you need a bearing and hub pressed in. Prices vary widely.....

The other option is buying a 20 ton press at HF (and then you need sockets or tools to match the bearing sizes - you can destroy your bearing otherwise). Get a new axle nut too and tighten it to 250ft/lbs. Do Not use an impact here!!! (stand on a measured breaker bar or get a torque wrench). Failure to do this correctly will have you replacing the bearing again soon! I used locktite red on my new nut because my old one was loose (but granted the car was older!).



This pic shows what bolts to take off. (it is from:http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=262164 ) The bottom one is off, take off the caliper, rotor and top bolt and of course the axle nut....

 

[Rob Hutton]

I'll try this tomorrow. Thank you!

 

[Mlarv5]

The 2007 is still under warranty for 5 years 50,000 mile the dealer will replace it under drive train warranty. I know this because I just had mine replaced under warranty a month ago. Never hurts to at least check with the dealer.

 

[slim]

I replaced my front wheel bearing on my 2006 AWD V8 mountaineer about 2 months ago. I did the whole job on my own. It was not to bad but I did beat the crap out of the old bearing for about an hour to get it out, using a 15# hammer. I did not remove the knuckle. I even put the lugs nuts on and used a 4 way to try prying it off. The problem is the bearing housing is aluminium and the knuckle is medal and they fuse together. If i do it again I would remove the knuckle and beat it our from the back.

Once removed I used some sand paper to clean up the hole.

But the new bearing slips right in with little effort.

A few days later I was in the parts store where I purchased the new bearing and I commented how difficult it was to remove the old bearing. The guy said they had a tool to pull it with, but i cannot confirm that.

Good luck
slim

 

[richardodie2]

wheel bearing replacement

just replaced the bearing/hub assembly on the front drivers side, it was getting very rough, started all of a sudden and get worse by the day, took me little under two hours to complete and ride is smooth as silk again, not a very tough job to do.

 

[jjbechto]

Any Luck with Help from Ford?

I just had to replace BOTH of the front wheel hub assemblies due to bad wheel bearings on my 2007 Explorer XLT V6 RWD @ 82,500 miles. Replaced the driver side first which resulted in some improvement and then the passenger side which fixed the problem. Total cost with labor was over $700.

It seems like there have been enough people on here and other sites with this problem for Ford to do something about it. Has anyone had any luck getting results from Ford?

Thanks,

Jeff