Hi folks, Just been advised one of my rear wheel bearings are worn and needs replacing. Rang up a garage and they said a wheel bearing isn't available seperately - you have to buy the disc and bearing together, as the bearing is an integrated part. Is that right? I thought you'd be able to get the wheel bearing seperately, knock the old one out and replace with new? Why go the whole hog and replace the whole disc if there's nothing wrong with the disc? From what I've read, you have to have access to a hydraulic press to change the bearing as it needs hella pressure to move it (1 ton+). But then again, it is a Renault.. :/ Is the chap at the garage correct?
I had the same problem on a 306, The bearing WAS available on its own but it worked out cheaper to buy the full assembly, I never really understood why either. your right about needing alot of force though we tried to do mine at the farm and failed.
No, that's right. Mrs Goo's Laguna II had the rear hubs replaced when the discs where done. Wait until they tell you the rear subframe bushes need doing. That's another expensive, pig of a job.
Same with a Fiat Punto's - once the rear subframe bushes are ruined the whole rear has to come off to get them pressed out and replaced. With a job like that you have to consider not just the difference in parts but the difference in labour time to swap it out too.
Yep - that's why I capitulated and stuck my hand in my pocket, and let some other poor sod do it whilst I was at work....
The rear bearings on my '98 Polo went about a month ago. Cost an absolute arm and leg to get it fixed, even though the bearings themselves cost less than £20 each. Ended up being £200 with labour. Would have done it myself if I'd had the time / tools / experience / workshop!
I bought a '95 Micra for less than that when I learned to drive. The petrol was worth more than the car by the time I sold that...
seems they don't make them like they use too, my 16 yr old volvo still has good bearings, even after been driven hard for a few years! lol! You might be able to knock out the bearings by force, but getting the new ones in will be impossible without damaging them. There fitted with an interference fit, tighter than the arse of a duck that decide to become a nun!
Sounds like you need a few pages from the Preventative Maitenance book. If you replace something when it dies then you will have already lost money. Do it properly and do it right the first time. Each part will have a average service life that is known to that car, this can be used to replace everything before it dies with something that lasts longer and performs better, this way the savings in labour costs can be offset versus the labour costs from having to do similar jobs replacing the next weakest link and so forth, this saves on labour and makes your vehicle perform and last longer, therefore cheaper and gives you great peace of mind.
Well that's fine, but some bits of a car have such a long MTBF you can't always know when they'll fail, 2 s.d.'s of 100k miles leaves a lot of room for play, not to mention unexpected failure due to abnormal wear. Take wheel bearings; some cars virtually never need them replacing (within an average lifetime), others will need it doing relatively often.
If you are unsure, change or upgrade it, thats why it's called preventative maitenance. That way with it still in good working condition it can be reused/swapped/sold. Vehicle longevity depends solely on the way the car is driven and how it's looked after. (excluding manufacturing faults) Just a week ago, I had a front wheel bearing fail immediately after a 360 spin.
Wow, thanks for all the replies folks! It's an all in one job for Laguna II's, as goo pointed out. And they need doing in pairs. And then you need new brake pads. Christ almighty. Luckily, labour cost is free and the parts are at near cost. Just less than £100. The rear bushes have had a good lube late last year and all four springs were replaced not too long ago after a front one snapped (that made a right racket, moving it onto a recovery truck). The middle part of the exhaust was done last month and it was discovered that washers holding the engine covering on were making it rattle like buggery to the point where it sounded like the front part of the exhaust needed doing (you know, the part with the cat on) but it sounds fine now. All down to three washers.. The other day had to call the RAC out as it refused to start. Put the card in, pushed the button.. nothing. Called the AA out and it started first time. He said it could be the immobiliser and directed me what to do if it did it again. Then the day after the wipers went, so I checked in the book where the fusebox was and found that the fuse had indeed burnt out. There were 3 spare fuses, a 5, a 7.5 and a 30. It needed a 20! So, in went the 30 and it worked a charm. Looking at the burnt fuse, it was a 10 amp. I've no idea how it lasted as long as it did as I've had the car for a couple of years now. I had to buy 100 spare fuses (of varying amps) so I should be okay for fuses for the rest of my life. It also had the master cylinder for the clutch replaced last month, too as that began sticking. Seems to be one thing after another atm!
Heaven is Where: The Police are British, The Chefs are Italian, The Mechanics are German, The Lovers are French and It's all organized by the Swiss. Hell is Where: The Police are German, The Chefs are British, The Mechanics are French, The Lovers are Swiss and It's all organized by the Italians You've got a stonking deal there with free labour and parts sound not too bad. These all in one hub / bearing jobs are £400 a side on a nissan primera.
yeah but that's Japanese engineering, when will they ever wear out? lol! Fixed you're hell as well, considering the Swiss hate pollution and would rather shoot you at the boarder than have you rev beyond idle. And need i explain why Germans shouldn't be lovers!
Ahh I miss my nova. Wheel bearings were/are £8 each and you could press the outer races in using the old outer races, a block of wood and a hammer. Someone mentioned rear subframe bushes, they're the same on the mk3 mondeo, but you can get aftermarket polyeurethane ones that use the original races, so you just need to press/cut/burn the old bushes out then fit the new ones that press in quite easily.