Question about wheel bearings

[zadeluca]

Hello!

I'm a DIY mechanic, I've replaced wheel bearings before in Audis because they like to eat them for breakfast. In all cases, when I've gotten everything disconnected and tried to spin the hub/bearing by hand, it always felt rough or grainy instead of smooth, even without being under the weight of the car. And after pressing in the new bearing and hub, it always felt perfectly smooth to spin by hand before reinstalling onto the car.
Now I'm currently working on one on my GFs 2007 Aveo, it's front drivers side. I've got everything all apart but spinning the hub by hand feels perfectly smooth! So my questions are:
1) Have you ever replaced a wheel bearing that was definitely bad but still felt smooth to rotate by hand?
2) If not, what else on an Aveo would sound exactly like a bad wheel bearing but actually is something else?
Thanks!

[xintersecty]

oh tough questions. I had to replace the wheel bearing on mine. They a bit delicate and require a serious press to get them in and out. My own semi-educated guess, the wheel bearing might seem smooth by hand but might not under load. Also it could be the CV joint starting to act up.

[petrified.rabbit]

if it is just sound and you didn't check runout, then you might want to check the axles. CV joints sound the same, but mostly change on turns.. The aveo is also a small car the transfers noise. Having owned and fixed issues on a lot of small cars, you might just be doing the wrong side, or the wrong end of the car.. it happens if you only listen for it to replace it.

[zadeluca]

Thanks for the replies.

I have a 12 ton press (harbor freight) so I should be all set there. I agree with the idea that it may not feel bad while under no load. Also, the new bearing is much stiffer than the old one; they both rotate smoothly but the old one has almost no resistance at all. Might be a sign of something?

I did not check runout. To be honest I don't really know what that is or how to check it but I will look it up right now. The sound doesn't really change when turning as far as I can tell. And if it ends up being that I fixed the wrong one, well I will feel pretty dumb about that lol.

As for fight now, I didn't read enough before starting the job. I don't have any snap ring pliers that are anywhere near strong enough to get the ring out of the spindle.

[xintersecty]

oh the snap ring is a major bitch. And yes I am holding back! LOL. I end up using a punch and screwdriver technique to pull that guy out. Runout is making sure your caliper is not wiggling around. Two things causes bad runout is bad bearing or a warped disc.

Good luck, ya gonna need it!

[zadeluca]

Hmm, care to elaborate on how you got it out with a punch and screwdriver?

I'm pretty sure the brakes are okay... front pads and rotors are less than a year old. The glide pins were a little sticky but they both move (not seized).

One thing I discovered that I thought was interesting: after taking everything off, I think the strut may not be tightened well enough to the strut tower? I realize it needs to be able to rotate when you steer, but I can move it all over the place and it even has some up and down movement.

[zadeluca]

Also, think these will work on the snap ring? I think they're worth a shot... 10" Circlip Pliers Set

[xintersecty]

Hmm, care to elaborate on how you got it out with a punch and screwdriver?


One thing I discovered that I thought was interesting: after taking everything off, I think the strut may not be tightened well enough to the strut tower? I realize it needs to be able to rotate when you steer, but I can move it all over the place and it even has some up and down movement.

Take punch to pull or push the ring enough to get a screw driver behind it to prevent it from going back into the slot. Might require multiple hands and safety glasses.

There is a thread on the forum showing you might need new bushings to prevent that up and down motion.

[zadeluca]

Well the good news is that those pliers from harbor freight took off the snap ring with no problems whatsoever.

The bad news is that I don't think the wheel bearing was the problem. It's all back together now and the car is still making noise. I'm 99.9% sure its the front drivers side, you think it's the axle? The noise doesn't really change when turning. What about a bearing inside the transmission (automatic)? Are there even any in there?

[zadeluca]

Just thought I'd give you guys an update for posterity I guess.

I spent more time trying to locate the noise, and started to think maybe it was from the passenger's side? Screw it, took that side apart too, and the wheel bearing felt rough to turn by hand! Replaced that one too, no more noise.

So petrified.rabbit you definitely had the right idea. Oh well, the drivers side bearing was also original (120k miles) so I might have needed to replace it soon anyway. On the plus side, I can do them in 2 hours flat now