I had new tires put on my 7.3 325/60/18's and the tire guy said i need to have my front wheel bearings checked they might be going bad. when i make a sharp left going up a hill i hear clunking on the left side. I think they might be right. are they? the truck has 105,000 miles and i havnt had one problem except for a rear pinion seal. can I replace a wheel bearing myself. chiltons said no.

how much$$$$

please help this stupid cop

 

if you've never changed a bearing on a straight axle 4x4,i would suggest finding a good shop to do it for you. it shouldn't cost much to have them replaced,i could be wrong though. there's not much to it but you can screw it up pretty bad if you don't know what you're doin.

 

thanks whitey i appreciate the reply i think i will probably take it to the shop

 

i think it'd be your best bet,that's an expensize truck to start changin hub bearings on.it really shouldn't be THAT expensive to have em changed,you might wanna try a good 4x4 shop if you can find one close

 

Let me know how this turns out... I'm thinking my front wheel bearings are gonna need to be done soon also..

 

Be ready for sticker shock. The parts alone are $300 each. They are somewhat labor intensive to change as well since the front axle must be disassembled, and if they haven't been changed before it might not come out that easy.


To change take off the wheels, locking hub, snap rings, washers, caliper, brake rotor, and then the hub in that order. You are essentially tearing down the axle to the knuckles. I can change one out in an hour or less provided its not siezed in the knuckle bore. Plan on at minimum one hour of shop labor (prob $100/hr rate or higher). Paying upwards of $500/side to have one of the unit bearings changed isn't all that uncommon. Oh, all this is assuming its a 4x4, if its a 4x2 its a messier job but it is cheaper.

 

$300 for wheel bearings!!!!! HOLY CRAP!

 

Why are they so expensive?

 

You may want to look into what Dynatrac has to offer. They sell a kit that replaces the sealed bearing setup that ford uses with a new spindle, hubs, servicable bearings, and seals. Now you will have a setup you can sevice instead of the non sevicable sealed crap from the factory. It is a costly kit but probably not much more than replacing both bearings with factory units and labor. If you were to go with this kit be careful as their are two kits. One for coarse thread lugs and one for fine thread lugs.

http://www.tellico4x4.com/product_in...ducts_id/26744

 

They are so expensive because its a sealed unit bearing assembly. Its the cast housing with the sealed bearings, mounting studs, wheel flange, and wheel studs. It also houses the ABS sensor as long as yours was built with 4 wheel ABS. That $300 price is through Napa. If you go through Ford I think the late 99 (post 3/22 build date) is about $385ea. If you have an early 99 (pre 3/22 build date) then the price is about $465ea.



The Dynatrac kit is nice, but at $1700 for the kit alone it'll take awhile to recoup the expense. If the original poster is thinking he might have trouble with just changing the bearings, then doing the Dynatrac kit is out of the question. You're talking tearing the complete end of the axle down as the kit comes with new knuckles and stub shafts. Either way he would have the labor cost. The $1700 is basically almost 6 wheel bearing assemblies. Some guys have all kinds of troubles and go through 1 a year, so this might be worth it. Mine has gone 118k before the first went, the other is still ok. This is why I haven't invested in that kit yet. Though if you can have some parts fabbed up or machined its really not that difficult to make your own free spin kit. Though if you have a truck that doesn't have 4 wheel ABS that trick is a breeze.

 

How about this... My truck is a 2000 without 4 wheel abs and I get dealer parts at price (or damn near it)... Any idea how muchthe bearings would be?

 

Yeah, but 4 awesome name-brand off road killer tires is only about $400 less. This kit seems like it would last longer than the stock set-up too...assuming you wish to keep the truck for a long time.

 

No idea what Ford cost is on the unit bearings. My last one I bought was a take off for $50. Had to do a slight modification to make them work with my early 99 rotors since they were late 99 assemblies.






The dynatrac kit is nice, and is much easier to rebuild as well as being at least as durable as the stock setup. It all comes down to if you're willing to shell out that kind of money, or if you really think you'll be going through wheel bearings on a regular basis. If you're running 38" tires or didn't do your homework when you bought wheels and tires then you could eat wheel bearings quickly. If you have a well balanced setup you won't go through wheel bearings hardly at all. One on mine went at 118k, the other is still good. To make back the cost of the kit in a situation like that would take me 45 years based on current usage.

 

To Everyone Who Replied Thanks. I Would Have To Say You Guys Know Trucks More Than The Mechanics Ive Dealt With In The Past. Any Of You Guys Own Shops In Ca Because You All Have My Business