[crxfisher]

I believe my front driver side wheel bearing needs to be replaced. Is it generally advisable to replace both the driver and passenger side at the same time when you have to replace one?

 

[toxiclows]

If the other one is not noisy then it is probably fine.... then again though look at it this way

If one is bad.... and all of them have the same milage on them

then how good could the other one be i think you should replace the other one too and know that you will not have to ever mess with them for a long time. . .

Chris

 

[Tiersin]

I replaced mine a while back, at first, i was only going to do one, but its so much easier to do it and forget about it. If you only replace one, you will be driving around knowing that the other one could go out.

 

[rexman]

I believe my front driver side wheel bearing needs to be replaced. Is it generally advisable to replace both the driver and passenger side at the same time when you have to replace one?

No.

 

[rexman]

I believe my front driver side wheel bearing needs to be replaced. Is it generally advisable to replace both the driver and passenger side at the same time when you have to replace one?

No.

But, if it makes you feel better... yes.

 

[dohcrxl]

If it aint broke don't fix it. Wheel bearings can be a pain because you have to undo the upper and lower control arms, outer tie rod, caliper, rotor, and disengage the axle from the knuckle. It gets even more fun if you have to drive the bearing out of the hub yourself. Most garages will want about 250 a side.

With a propane torch, large snap ring pliers, and the right sized drivers you can do it with a sledge and careful pounding. Drive the spindle out of the hub first with a smaller driver. Heat and impact or torque driver the screws that hold the dust shield onto the hub. Heat and remove the large c-clip. (heat, PB blaster, then tap with flat screwdriver and hammer to rotate and free it) Finally, drive the bearing out with a large driver. Of course the bearing drives out the same direction the spindle did. (outward and away from the car as if still installed) Impact sockets and whatever else I can find do the trick for me. Oh yea, you have to cut the outer race off the spindle with a rotary cut-off tool.

 

[ollie]

I would err on the side of caution and replace them both.
I had the same thing happen to me on my winter beater.
I replaced them both.
Do you HAVE to? no,but its a safe bet to do both.

 

[dohcrxl]

Well by that just to be safe rule, shouldn't we replace rear brakes when we do front brakes too, though we really don't have to? Sure, bearings are a wear and tear item but it's not like if your bearing starts to go bad a huge safety issue automatically comes into play. Bearings will give you fair warning allowing you a lil bit of time to pay them some mind. It's also not something like a timing belt that should be replaced with a waterpump because there's so much repeat work to get to it separately later. The left and right bearings are idependent of eachother and I personally would only do the one necessary. For all you know, there's still 2 or more years left of life on the good bearing.

That's what I think, but that doesn't mean it's right for you or everyone.

 

[Krix]

i had a bad one and replaced both. I needed new ball joints and tie rods too so the knuckles were coming off anyway. didnt take long to get the knuckle off. guy at a garage put the new bearing and ball joint on for $30/side on his lunch break. 8)

 

[ollie]

I hear your point of view heu.(no pun intended) :wink:
I'm just REALLY retentive and at $30 for each I just picked up two.
I understand though.It might not work for everyone.

 

[crxfisher]

I hear your point of view heu.(no pun intended) :wink:
I'm just REALLY retentive and at $30 for each I just picked up two.
I understand though.It might not work for everyone.

Where did you find them for $30 each? At that price, I'd do both too.

 

[Krix]

I got mine here

http://www.instockauto.com/

They were just over $30 each when i bought them. I was only gonna buy one but if you buy over $50 you get free shipping so why not?

 

[ollie]

I hear your point of view heu.(no pun intended) :wink:
I'm just REALLY retentive and at $30 for each I just picked up two.
I understand though.It might not work for everyone.

Where did you find them for $30 each? At that price, I'd do both too.

Its good to have friends that own parts stores. :lol: