Front wheel bearings - '03 4x4

Curtludwig · Oct 21, 2009

So an independant shop says my '03 Ranger 4x4 XLT 4.0L needs a front wheel bearing (he didn't say inner or outer, for the money I'd say both) and they want $370 to replace it.
I've been hearing a noise that I thought might be a wheel bearing so of course I want to get it replaced.
Are these sealed bearings? I haven't been able to find a listing for the bearings which I trust...

96Greenster · Oct 21, 2009

Curtludwig said:
So an independant shop says my '03 Ranger 4x4 XLT 4.0L needs a front wheel bearing (he didn't say inner or outer, for the money I'd say both) and they want $370 to replace it.
I've been hearing a noise that I thought might be a wheel bearing so of course I want to get it replaced.
Are these sealed bearings? I haven't been able to find a listing for the bearings which I trust...

Those are complete hubs assemblys I believe.

You can check them.

To check just lift the tires off the ground and grab the top & the bottom of the sidewall of the tire & check if the wheel has any play. If it does then its your hub. Also spin the tire for any unusual noises.
Jus my $0.02.

srteach · Oct 21, 2009

If they are like my 99, they are complete assemblies (Inner bearing, outer bearing, ABS ring and sensor if you have ABS). They cost about $225 per side with ABS, about $190 w/o ABS (for my 99). I did both of mine when they went bad.
Not hard to do if you are even slightly mechanically inclined. They don't give indication of being bad without weight on them, unless they are REALLY gone.

Fx4wannabe01 · Oct 22, 2009

They are complete sealed assemblys. 00.5+ are bearings/hubs/ABS rings all built into one housing. That price sounds pretty decent actually. Just parts for a high quality unibearing is about $200 each(two for the truck).

It's something you can do in the drive way if you are mechanically inclinded like srteach said. You only need a 3/4" socket, 14mm wrench, 15mm socket, 32mm socket. That's all the tools you'll need. Wheel comes off, caliper unbolted, unbolt caliper bracket, undo the CV shaft nut(i suggest doing this while the wheels are on the ground if you don't have any air tools), 3 bolts on the backside of the steering knuckle removes the unihub/bearing, slide it out of the CV shaft. Install new one, don't forget red locktite on the hub/bearing bolts and the caliper bolts.

As he said also, they really don't give an indication of being bad until they are growlin' at ya.

Curtludwig · Oct 24, 2009

We figure mine is bad:
A. It growls
B. The guy a Meinieke noticed it when he was checking the brakes...

So it sounds pretty easy to do. I thought it might be some crazy involved proceedure. I've got all those tools plus an impact gun. I might give it a shot.

Any idea where to get the assembly? I haven't been able to find a source yet.

Fx4wannabe01 · Oct 24, 2009

rockauto.com. Timkin brand is the best. They're a chunk of change, but timkin's are the best you can get.

Curtludwig · Oct 26, 2009

Thanks.
It didn't occur to me before to look under "axle bearing and hub assembly".

$148 for Timkin which is actually second to cheapest... I agree they're a good brand though and probably what I'll get.

Fx4wannabe01 said:
rockauto.com. Timkin brand is the best. They're a chunk of change, but timkin's are the best you can get.

Front wheel bearings - '03 4x4

Curtludwig

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96Greenster

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srteach

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Fx4wannabe01

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Curtludwig

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