ok after afew months of back and forth diagnostics on either wheel bearing or u-joint has come to a close.

My wheel bearing is in fact bad...i hit a pothole today, checked the lay, and now i have play up and down, left and right.

first garage i went to was right, and dealer was WRONG.


I posted this because im doing it myself, and i dont have air tools. am i still going to be able to do this?

How hard is it for the assembly to come out?


Ive read the write ups and have my haynes, i know how to do it, i just dont want to have it all apart hen not be able to get somethings out.

 

You just need a big breaker bar and maybe a cheater to get the spindle nut off, the rest is a breeze.

 

ANd you need a 12-point socket. Plus lots of PB Blaster.

 

i have a big breaker bar 1/2 inch drive, and the handle is like 2 1/2 feet long

i know about the 12 point 14mm's


what about the hub comming out, does it bust right out?

and i read it takes about 3 hours...is this true?

 

If it's been on there a long time you might have a little trouble splittin the hub away from the knuckle.... I've done both mine, one of them twice. Just have lots of penetrating fluid like purpl said, and some heat would be good too.

My dad buys MOPAR penetrating fluid by the case, it is about the best working stuff we've found

 

alright im tackling this tomorrow night. thanks for the re-assurment.

ill post details.

cuz i just bought a timkin assembly for $143.62

 

Not always. Sometimes ot gets seized between the knuckle and itself. Just use some PB and a chizel to get it loose.

 

That one should last a long time. I'll be around my pc all day, if you run into any problems. I've done several WB replcements on mine and others in the past.

 

its impossible to predict.

i replaced mine, and other than using an impact wrench on the big nut, and a LONG pull bar on the 12 points and the caliper bracket bolts, mine were easy as pie and it only took a couple of hours to do both sides.

other people report it as a nightmare, with difficulty removing the big nut, and the bearing itself frozen/rusted into the knuckle.

you just have to jump in and try it to ever find out. i'd recommend drenching everything in penetrating oil before starting. maybe let it soak a day or two if possible.

 

tip. when the three 12 points are removed, then ideally, the bearing assy will just fall out of the knuckle and off the outer stub shaft. if it doesn't, soak BOTH the outer diameter of the bearing AND the splined axle with pentrating oil.

***** then when it starts coming off, take care not to let the inner axle come out of the pumpkin. if it does, there is a risk of seal damage if you shove it back in too roughly. so be very gentle with the seals.

good tech article.
http://www.pavementsucks.com/tech-article-5.html