Cody8675309

iTrader: (3)

Alright, I'd love to get some input. I have an appointment to have a rear wheel bearing replaced at TL Tilletts on Thursday. I've been hearing funny noises from the rear of the car, off and on, and when I jacked up the rear of the car and grabbed the PS rear to wiggle it, it wiggles pretty bad (laterally and vertically) compared to the other 3 wheels. So I assume it's the wheel bearing.

Tilletts will use an NTN bearing and repack it with some synthetic grease they always use, unless I need something better. I do autocross and sometimes track the car. I actually have a HPDE at Sonoma Raceway on 11/10 coming up.

My question is, should I request better grease, and should I say I want a new hub no matter what? They say they rarely see a need for a new hub, but I've been reading on all the forums that if you don't do the hub, you'll see a significantly shorter life with the new wheel bearing. Is this true?

k-dogg39

iTrader: (7)

I think it depends on how long you have had the issue. If you leave the wheel bearing bad for a while it could destroy the hub, hence needing to replace it.

What is the cost difference for the better grease? You know me, I always want the best on my ride...

Cody8675309

iTrader: (3)

I've read that even the act of removing the old bearing housing and pressing a new one in makes the hole a little bigger and therefore less resistant to compliance.

It's hard to say how long it's been acting up since it's been so quiet, but probably a while. I'm thinking requesting the better grease and requesting a hub will be money well spent. I wish I knew if this was the one remaining OEM wheel bearing on my car, but that could be the other side. Cory did one of the rears, but neither I nor KSpeed kept good records of which one it was.

k-dogg39

iTrader: (7)

Probably not a bad idea to get the whole hub. You could replace that one and have a spare if you want too...

How many wheel bearings have you had to do on yours? I have only had to do 1 on my wagon in 100k.

Cody8675309

iTrader: (3)

I had one front go catastrophically at an autocross in Fernley and decided to have both fronts done at the same time, and this will be my second rear, so 4 but I have 160K miles on the car, 10 years of autocross...

k-dogg39

iTrader: (7)

I remember that Fernley one.

Cody8675309

iTrader: (3)

It was ugly. Lost the rotor, axle, ABS sensor, hub, etc.

jdblock

iTrader: (8)

Yes. Replace the hub as well. Cheap insurance to make sure the new bearing works correctly and lasts.

Cody8675309

iTrader: (3)

I wish they were cheap, I think the shop will charge me about $150 for one, but point taken.

jdblock

iTrader: (8)

When you think of how much it would cost to do a wheel bearing again, in 3 months, doing it right the first time is much cheaper than doing it twice.

Cody8675309

iTrader: (3)

Of course, it's just interesting that this reputable shop tells me that they usually don't see any reason to replace the hub. Oh well.

jdblock

iTrader: (8)

If there's play in the bearing, then there is going to be unequal pressure distributed on the hub's shaft. Which can cause the shaft to warp and/or wear unevenly.

I've seen mechanics who will mic the hub to see if its within "spec", but then you're introducing the human error possibility into the equation. Easier to just replace the hub to guarantee the job is done with the customer's pocket in mind (going back to how much a second wheel bearing job would cost if the hub was faulty, ruining the new bearing).

Cody8675309

iTrader: (3)

Gotcha. That sounds sensible.

Cody8675309

iTrader: (3)

I've talked to a couple Subaru mechanics I trust and they say that you can clearly tell if the hub needs to be replaced and there's often absolutely no reason to replace it. I'm going with that and trusting the shop to decide if it needs a hub. Obviously some will consider this foolish, but I trust internet opinions a lot less than the advice of real Subaru mechanics.