Wheel bearing Cost Question

[ChiefRudy]

I need a new wheel bearing in my front right. I know the bearing is $20-30 but my local Garage won't do the replacement b/c they need to buy a $300 "special tool" to remove the bearing. So at this point i'm stuck with going to dealer (which i don't want to do) or go to a Jack william or Firestone.

I've seen Wheel hub assembly's going for a $190 or so. So I'm wondering if I should have my Garage garage replace the whole assembly (which they charge just cost of parts) vs going to big name garage and replacing just the bearing and paying there labor.


So what have you guys paid for replacing Wheel bearings?

Thanks in Advance.

 

[dano4003]

Great questions as I need the left front bearing...I've been to the local dealer and they want $500 to fix it. I am still looking at other places here locally. I won't even tell you what they want to replace my front drive shaft...

 

[tjkj2002]

You must replace the whole hub bearing assembly,it's a sealed and non-serviceable unit bearing.Typical cost for a good bearing is $150-$250 just for the unit bearing assembly.Book time calls for 1.1 labor hours to replace,only special tool required is a E12 or E14 socket to remove the 3 bolts holding the unit bearing in the knuckle.

Stick with quality unit bearings like Timkin,SKF,and National.Run far away from advance auto,auto zone,O'Reilly "house" brand bearings made in china,there cheap and for a reason.

 

[ChiefRudy]

You must replace the whole hub bearing assembly,it's a sealed and non-serviceable unit bearing.Typical cost for a good bearing is $150-$250 just for the unit bearing assembly.Book time calls for 1.1 labor hours to replace,only special tool required is a E12 or E14 socket to remove the 3 bolts holding the unit bearing in the knuckle.

Stick with quality unit bearings like Timkin,SKF,and National.Run far away from advance auto,auto zone,O'Reilly "house" brand bearings made in china,there cheap and for a reason.

With the bearing being sealed and non-serviceable then why do the sell just the bearing?

 

[tjkj2002]

With the bearing being sealed and non-serviceable then why do the sell just the bearing?

They don't just sell the bearing,no such thing and anyone saying different is blowing smoke up your a$$.

 

[ridenby]

TIMKEN Part # HA599467


$128.79
http://rockauto.com/ This is what I used.

 

[ChiefRudy]

They don't just sell the bearing,no such thing and anyone saying different is blowing smoke up your a$$.

Well I asked b/c when I did my search for parts @ adv auto parts ( just to get an idea of pricing) a replacement ball bearing comes up under there wheel bearing parts list for the KJ

 

[tjkj2002]

Well I asked b/c when I did my search for parts @ adv auto parts ( just to get an idea of pricing) a replacement ball bearing comes up under there wheel bearing parts list for the KJ

They also say no 8.25 diff came in a '02 KJ and all KJ's with auto's have the 45RFE trans so you get the idea you can not trust what they list to actually fit or even be for your vehicle.

Gotta remember also the rear axle uses a replaceable bearing that only costs about $25.

 

[diyman]

Just thinking out loud... Maybe who entered data confused it with one of the diff's bearings :shrug:

Also, just IMHO, nowadays one BARELY knows the origin of OEM spares... so I'd stick to Mopar.
RH hub in my stash ( You know, the survival thing... ) says 'Made in Canada' and came with
ABS sensor :smokin: No ABS ? Remove it and sell... arty52:

 

[diyman]

Uh oh, didn't read tjkj's post ( I was still preparing mine...) but we both had the same hunch about the diff.

 

[ChiefRudy]

They also say no 8.25 diff came in a '02 KJ and all KJ's with auto's have the 45RFE trans so you get the idea you can not trust what they list to actually fit or even be for your vehicle.

Gotta remember also the rear axle uses a replaceable bearing that only costs about $25.

When I did my search I even selected to list only front bearings and a couple bearings listed along with the hub assemblies. Maybe bearings for the dana 30a?

but I think my tires are cause of the noise. I still have the stock Sr-a's with 35K on them. There getting low on tread and i'll be replacing them before years end. i was getting a wap wap wap wap noise at low speeds and then a steady hum noise doing anything higher than 40. The noise coming out of the front passenger wheel.

Well today I did a tire rotation. I did the criss-cross pattern. I also rotated my spare into the mix as well. I took the spare and put that on the Back driver and then moved that tire to front passenger. So the tire in question went on to the tail gate. i've always had a 5 tire rotation done on my jeep so the spare always had equal tread to rest of the tires.
I don't think that was correct pattern for a 5 rotation but i wanted to get that front passenger off the jeep to see what would happen. Plus my tires are so crappy now it doesn't matter.

But the noise is gone. Though my mechanic says i still need a new hub b/c he felt play in the wheel when He had it a while back but when I had it jacked up i pull and pushed on my wheel and didn't feel any noticeable play. I was reading bad bearing wheel make a noise when doing circles b/c it adds strain on bearing or something like that. So I'm gonna go to try that tomorrow at my jobs parking lot after ours.

It's not that I don't believe him. He's never led me wrong before but I just don't got the cash for a part that may not have to replaced and I just like to do my own research on this one before i make a choice.

Things suck but ya gotta take it one day at a time.

 

[diyman]

X2 on not swapping a still working bearing, given they're not cheap...:waytogo:
This goes to show we all might be wrong when troubleshooting... and it's not always
a matter of just swapping parts, well done ChiefRudy ( let's hope hub doesn't change
it's mind :happy175: )!
Keep an eye on those tires though ( I'm used to crappy tires, mines are class 'C' and
no doubt they turn to 'D' after a while... . Class A?? Too many $$$...).

 

[ChiefRudy]

X2 on not swapping a still working bearing, given they're not cheap...:waytogo:
This goes to show we all might be wrong when troubleshooting... and it's not always
a matter of just swapping parts, well done ChiefRudy ( let's hope hub doesn't change
it's mind :happy175: )!
Keep an eye on those tires though ( I'm used to crappy tires, mines are class 'C' and
no doubt they turn to 'D' after a while... . Class A?? Too many $$$...).

Thanks :icon_smile:
My tires have been crappy for a while. They barely passed inspection back in April. I plan to change them out around October when my KJ is paid off and use the extra money for a good set of tires instead of going for something cheap. Plus my KJ is only used on the weekends now since I have a company vehicle. At most I do a 30 mile around trip max depending where i'm going.

I could always steal the wheels off my wifes KJ is I needed too :icon_twisted:
She's got a summer car so she don't need the wheels lol

 

[rockymountain]

I'd find a new mechanic if it was me.

 

[Ry' N Jen]

You don't wanna know what a Chrysler dealer charges here for a front wheel bearing!:icon_eek:

 

[retmil46]

You don't wanna know what a Chrysler dealer charges here for a front wheel bearing!:icon_eek:

You don't want to know what a Chrysler dealer ANYWHERE charges for ANYTHING!!!

Here in the U.S., after the bankruptcy/Fiat deal, parts prices went up across the board by 30% or better. The V6 nylon fan blade I recently put on my CRD? I picked it up last year for $55. Dealers are now wanting anywhere from $150 to $200 for the same part.:favorites68:

 

[tjkj2002]

You don't want to know what a Chrysler dealer ANYWHERE charges for ANYTHING!!!

Here in the U.S., after the bankruptcy/Fiat deal, parts prices went up across the board by 30% or better. The V6 nylon fan blade I recently put on my CRD? I picked it up last year for $55. Dealers are now wanting anywhere from $150 to $200 for the same part.:favorites68:

That has been across the board raises,be it Chrysler,Ford,GM,toyota,honda,and all other auto makes.Even aftermarket prices are going up big time.

 

[retmil46]

That has been across the board raises,be it Chrysler,Ford,GM,toyota,honda,and all other auto makes.Even aftermarket prices are going up big time.

Tell me about it. My friend in Charlotte, just for giggles, priced out what my recent shock replacement would have cost if I'd tried buying the factory front strut assemblies and rear shocks from Chrysler - over $1000 just for parts!! For that price, you could easily do a complete OME setup, new springs/struts/shocks all the way round.

 

[BjBnet]

I had a rotating noise issue last year and mechanic told me it was a wheel bearing.
I checked the boards here and took the intermediate shaft out along with the CV joint on the pass. side only to find it was bad. Replaced the parts, no more noise.

 

[Ry' N Jen]

$230.00 for a KJ Power Steering Cooler at the local dealership!
An after market unit from Jeg's?
$29.99 to $32.99!

4:10 gear set's?
Front: $890.00!
Rear: $830.00
Cheap bastards!

Jeepin by Al?
Front $307.99
Rear $363.68

Even with shipping and HST (12% Tax) it was less expensive to buy from Marlin!