Chronic LR bearing disease

leeklimala

Registered User
Third times the charm. LR wheel bearing has started making noises again. All three times the bearing has been installed by a Ford stealership, and a new crush nut purchased and installed. The first time around I got a new hub. This time I noticed the crushnut was loose and I retorqued it. Noise went away but I know there must be some damage already and will need to get in there sooner or later.

Why would I keep losing that one bearing?
 
That happened to me on my '93 because the slot in the rear brake piston on one side was not lined up properly for the pins on the back of the brake pads & I believe the hub ran very hot for too long. Worth checking anyway.
 
Just because they are a dealership doesn't mean they do it the right way.

When pressing the bearing into the bore, and the hub into the bearing, special dies are required to support the inner ring and outer ring of the roller bearing to keep it from being damaged during installation.

Also, if the bore of your knuckle is out of round, it'll let the bearing move in there and wear faster. The bore of the kunckle should be checked, and also check the brand on the bearing. Make sure they are using Timken bearings in there.
 
my right rear nut worked loose a few times but never the left it still is fine and no noises with original bearings at 230 k miles
 
Mike8675309 said:
Just because they are a dealership doesn't mean they do it the right way.

When pressing the bearing into the bore, and the hub into the bearing, special dies are required to support the inner ring and outer ring of the roller bearing to keep it from being damaged during installation.

Also, if the bore of your knuckle is out of round, it'll let the bearing move in there and wear faster. The bore of the kunckle should be checked, and also check the brand on the bearing. Make sure they are using Timken bearings in there.

See, that's what I was thinking, but I had it done at three different stealerhships and they are the Timkens. I was thinking the knuckle could be out of round, but then thought otherwise when holding the knuckle thinking "Ain't no way this thing is bad" (or maybe it was when Ford told me it would be 400+ to replace it) How would I go about testing or getting the knuckle bore tested?
 
most likely u should get a spare knuckle from a junkyard, and install it like i did. i installed it myself, and so far so good. knock on wood,

this is what i did, i used the old bearing to support the new bearing while i was pressing it in, then i also used the old bearing to support the new bearing while i was pressing the new hub in, worked like a charm.
 
on my car the wheel bearing went bad, I replaced it; got like 500 miles out of it. Replaced it again, got another 500 out of it. Then i went to the junkyard and got a new hub assembly, and threw that on the car, got another 500 or so out of the new used one. Finally i brough the car to a local mechanic, cause i couldn't figure out what the hell was wrong. Turned out both of the housings were out of round. I had to buy a new one and the problem went away.
 
Are the SC knuckles the same as LX's? Hard to find an SC in a yard around Raleigh but plenty of inferior base models. Again, how can you check the knuckle bore? I am sure it's only need a billionth of an inch to throw the whole thing out of whack. What is the inside round compared to?
 
Yes, the knuckles can be checked with the same type of gage used to check the bore of cylinders. Make sure it's a even distance all the way around.

And yes, the knuckle is the same between LX and SC. At least I think so. You can check to make sure the proper holes are threaded to deal with caliper mounting.
 
darkstar_one said:
could also be ur axles, manny had a problem were his nut came coming off loose, i think he replaced the axle,

Manny is a loose nut. :eek::D ;) :cool:

Lee, is does sound like you might have the same problems they had with the hubs. It's got to be something other than the bearings and Ford mechanics causing your problem. I doubt 3 different mechanics all put the bearings in wrong.
 
RadiumSC said:
I doubt 3 different mechanics all put the bearings in wrong.

Me too. Especially when one owned an SC. I will go with the yard knuckle, new bearing, and a new hub if mine is damaged and see how it all rolls. I will go to stealership #4 and get them all pressed together. Fortunately, this time I know the guy who works there. I think my wife knows the guy who ownes the yard down the street so I might even get out of this without hurting the mostly empty leather thingy in my back pocket.

Thanks for all the advice fellas.
 
what did it sound like when it was going bad? I have a moaning type of sound at 65-70 mph. only at that speed though.
 
Mine had a speed varied thumping pattern. Almost like when you have severly warped brakes, or like when you hear a car on the highway with an unbalanced tire. I would think your moaning would be coming from your pumpkin, or an unbalanced driveshaft. Can you feel any vibration in the pedals or steering wheel?
 
the best way is to do it yourself. buy the high quality timken bearing as mentioned earlier, put your spindle in the oven. put the bearing in the freezer overnight. itll just drop in the hole. now the bearing is a one piece outer but the ineer is a frapping 2 piece so you must be careful pressing the hub into the bearing. after owning htese cars in many variations for 11 years, i have had to do this many times, usually on the right side, and much more often on my higher horsepower cars. i think some of it may be the constant powerslides and smoky figure 8's:D
 
leeklimala said:
Mine had a speed varied thumping pattern. Almost like when you have severly warped brakes, or like when you hear a car on the highway with an unbalanced tire. I would think your moaning would be coming from your pumpkin, or an unbalanced driveshaft. Can you feel any vibration in the pedals or steering wheel?

Perfectly smooth, no vibration. The noise is present only at that speed and goes away if you let off the gas.
 
I'd vote for a rear end problem causing the moaning. You could tach it and dump it and if your rear end turns into shrapnel then you know that's what it was. Otherwise, I'd keep asking the more seasoned veterans on the board with some more specific symptoms.
 
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