For the past week and a bit I've been getting that classic whine.

Originally you could detect it at 60, now it kicks in from about 20mph.

Symptoms :

• speed dependent
• increases as I steer right, decreases as I steer left
• sounds like other wheel bearing failures I've had on other vehicles

I'm pretty sure that this has come about as I have low profile tyres with plenty of grip on 22" rims and Milton Keynes is full of roundabouts, so I fly 'round roundabouts and I've put too much lateral G through bearings that have done 125k.

And so to the questions :

1. How do I determine which wheel bearing it is ? Sound seems to come from different corners on different days ! Jack the car up, see if there is any wheel waggle and listen for a grinding noise when turning ?
2. Does the fact that the noise is louder on turning right suggest it is one of the front wheels, or is it just the lateral load causing that and it could be any of the wheels ?
3. I can also 'feel' the noise through the steering wheel, again suggesting to me it could be a front wheel.
4. For the front bearings, do you have to swap the entire front hub assembly out ?
5. How much are they in the US (they retail for about £100 on ebay over here) ?
6. Apart from the fun with removing certain bolts (I have read several threads on here), anything else I'm missing ?

As always, many thanks in advance.

 

My Durango is 2WD, sorry, thought that was on my signature.

 

from what you are saying it sound to me like your left front bearing is bad. When turning right you put more load on the left side if that side is bad it will be loudest then. Not sure if it is any different to change one for 2wd and 4wd most of us have the 4wd so really cant help you there.

 

afaik the whole hub has to be changed, if you have read the other threads you have a pretty good idea of what to expect.

+1 on front left from what you have said

 

Thanks Gents.

Jacked both sides up over the weekend and couldn't hear any grinding as I rotated the wheels (probably as all I could hear were the brake pads on the discs). Not any wheel wobble either, maybe more on the front right than front left.
Will keep checking until it is obvious which one I have to replace.

Ta.

 

Most people I have known who had one of the bearings go bad and just replaced that side, had the other side go out fairly soon after. If it were me, and I could afford it, I'd probably just replace both.

 

I found a place on eBay called Detroit-Axel, bought the pair of front hub assembly for 60$ shipped.. They even pay for shipping both ways if defective.. They are a brand called Einkydu (Inky-Doo?) or something like that but they are cheap and get the job done.

At that price, 1 yr warranty, and never have to worry about out of pocket cost while your break them in, its worth it.

 

Is this the place your talking about getting cheap Durango wheel bearings? http://stores.ebay.com/axleofdearborn