Which Wheel Bearing/Hub Bad??

[Johnny K]

Help.. I've searched and can't find the definitive answer..

I'm almost positive I have a front wheel bearing going bad.. Constant noise the gets worse on sharp left turns. (and quieter on sharp right ones).. I had one replaced 8 months ago but I don't know which one..

(I told the tech which one based on info from here and they test drove it and changed the other one and they were wrong.. they ended up taking the hub they took off and swapped with the other side..not sure which one the new one ended up on..unless the old one has ford markings on it??)..

I understand that a sharp left turn puts weight on the right side.. and the more noise indicates that it's the front left.???


Your thoughts??

Thanks,

Johnny K

 

[jwrezz]

I'd say the opposite, if the weight is going to the right on a left turn, and you get more noise in this situation, then the right hub would be the problem. Although it could be any number of other things like rack/steering pump (not likely) or front drive line joints (drive shaft, or axle shafts).

Check your hub assembly as per directions in other posts. Try to move wheel on either vertical or horizontal axis, these can be sings of ball joints or loose steering components tho. If there is motion, take of wheel, and rotor, and see if you can jiggle the hub the same way, if so, that's your bad hub. Good luck,

 

[Johnny K]

Thanks for the feedback. It does make sense that a sharp left puts more pressure on the front right. Also I did find my receipt and at 84K the front left was replaced.. but that didn't fix it so they put the old front left on the front right (at least that's what I noted on the receipt) and I just hit 100K.. so I'll replace that one.

FYI, I got mine on ebay.. $99 if you can wait and don't get bid against or $119 which I did a buy it now plus $15 shipping. CarQuest parts.

As a side note, I had new tires installed on Saturday and they checked the front end and didn't come up with anything needing immediate replacement (ball joints, tie rod ends, etc).. they also checked the alignment and it's still in spec.

With any luck this will fix the problem.

Thanks,

Johnny K

 

[jwrezz]

As a side note, I had new tires installed on Saturday and they checked the front end and didn't come up with anything needing immediate replacement (ball joints, tie rod ends, etc).. they also checked the alignment and it's still in spec.

But they didn't notice a problem w/ the front hub? Seems that it should be noticeable from what you've stated. Maybe that's not the problem? Well either way, good luck. We're all still here to help if ya need it!

 

[Johnny K]

Nope.. and when the first one went.. it was hard to diagnose as like I mentioned it had the noises of a wheel bearing, yet they drove it and said it was the driver's and it was actually the passenger one.. I check it's at home (like I did this one last night) and heck if I can tell!!.

We'll see tonight assuming the bearing arrives.. I have my 1.25" socket in hand and I backed the nut off slightly last night to make sure it's coming off.. plus hit her with penetrating oil.. Shouldn't be too bad as it was changed (with the old one from the driver's side) last August.

Thanks again!

Johnny K

 

[Johnny K]

Follow-up: Changed the hub last night. Took about 2 hours and fairly simple. Grinding/whining sound is now gone!!! Some slight vibration still exists felt in the floor boards, but from day one the vehicle it seemed to have that. And I have a slight fade to the left that have been there for a couple months (thought the sound and pull was from bad alignment and 72K on my tires).. I may get a second opinion on the alignment.

Onl thing left to do is change the transfer case fluid..

Also.. has anyone ever changed their front driveshaft u-joint?? I changed the rear ones when they went bad but the front looked OK.... Worth changing??

Thanks,

Johnny K

 

[jwrezz]

Just did it. There's a thread that I started a few days ago on how to remove your front drive shaft. I think you have CV joints in your front drive shaft tho. I'd say it's worth checking out. Here's the link, also check out the pirate4x4 thread on ujoints...

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=133584

 

[jwrezz]

http://www.pirate4x4.com/tech/billavista/PR-shaft/index.html

 

[Johnny K]

Thanks for the info. My front shaft does have the funny looking CV joint (if that's what's it called) with the u-joint on the front side.. I was considering changing that.. we'll see after I get the alignment verified and do the fluid change to the transfer case.. And I search ebay and see that I missed out on a front shaft complete.. new and went for like $7.. damn..lol

JK