Anyone changed a wheel bearing?

[gregmund]

Just had the car serviced at Dick Lovett, Cheltenham, who actually did a very good (if expensive) job. On the test run the mechanic noticed the whine that I've been living with for the past few weeks & reckoned on it being a wheel bearing

Anyone replaced one?
How easy is it - any advice would be welcome - or should I leave it to the dealer?

Cheers
Greg

[scuffham]

if you have a press and a ball-joint spliter, then OK, else leave well alone

[Martin_S]

Depends whether it'a a front or rear wheel.

Fronts are easy, rears are not quite so straightforward and involve haydraulic presses, pullers, separation of rear hubs from driveshafts etc.

[aromaT]

in what way do the fronts NOT involve hydraulic presses when replacing Martin S?

I've done lots and lots and always use a press.

If it's a front, the eaiest is to go with a whole upright replacement as it comes with a bearing and the part's realatively cheap.

[Martin_S]

aromaT said:

in what way do the fronts NOT involve hydraulic presses when replacing Martin S? I've done lots and lots and always use a press. If it's a front, the eaiest is to go with a whole upright replacement as it comes with a bearing and the part's realatively cheap.

There's a bit of a knack to it, but careful and judicious use of basic tools (screwdriver/drift, suitably sized sockets, heat and a Big Mallet) will do the job fine. Theoretically, the same tactics will work on the rear hubs, too, but in my experience anything that has had driveshafts running through it can take a bit more persuasion, and of course the driveshafts make the stripdown procedure a bit more involved. If you have a hydraulic press to hand, fine, but most people don't and the job is perfectly possible without.

New hub carrier assembly including bearing = approx £117. New bearing = 50% that from Lotus or 25% from a bearing factors. Course, if you can't find any better use for £75 or £80 quid...

[gregmund]

Thanks for the advice,

It's a rear, and whilst I'm reasonably competent mechanically I haven't got any of the tools to make life easy - so on this occasion think I'll leave it to the garage!

Thanks again

[malts]

hi greg, just had the same news from my service engineers but mines a front 1. if you get a price for a wheel bearing fitting please pass it on. not sure i want to tackle it myself. do you think its as easy they make it sound??

[aromaT]

my response was a little toungue in cheek, never mind. Don;t recommend heat and mallets on an upright meeself, especially when they are a critical suspension component - and I have seen lots of half off bearings on hubs!

Dunno where you get your price of 117 pounds from either Martin - they're nowhere near that.

I run Ragtop Roadsters by the way. Happy to help out if you like. Bearings is something I do a lot of.

www.medreg.co.uk

cheers

[fergusd]

aromaT said:

Don;t recommend heat and mallets on an upright meeself, especially when they are a critical suspension component

As I'm sure you know Bruce the service manual specified heat for re-inserting the bearing ;-)

I'd agree though, press it out or get someone to press it out . . . life, frankly, is too short.

I made one from some steel and an old bottle jack . . . top job, cost about a tenner.

Fd

[aromaT]

Indeed I do know that FD...but what I don;t recommend it a COMBINATION OF HEAT AND MALLETS as I said in my post. Its a sure way to fook your carrier.

;-)

[Martin_S]

aromaT said:

my response was a little toungue in cheek, never mind. Don;t recommend heat and mallets on an upright meeself, especially when they are a critical suspension component - and I have seen lots of half off bearings on hubs! Dunno where you get your price of 117 pounds from either Martin - they're nowhere near that. I run Ragtop Roadsters by the way. Happy to help out if you like. Bearings is something I do a lot of. www.medreg.co.uk cheers

I was being a little tongue in cheek myself -hence the capitals for Big Mallet.

I would entirely agree that a hydraulic press is the best way, but as I said, not everyone has one kicking about in the back of their garage.

The Lotus workshop manual itself recommends heating the hub carrier to 90 degrees for 20 minutes before fitting the bearings, so heat isn't a problem, and I have never had difficulties GENTLY tapping a bearing into place without a press, though you do need to be very careful that it goes in 'square'. In fact, if you heat bearing housings properly, the bearings will virtually drop in and out in most cases.

Mind you, my rating of an easy job is coloured by a long history of stripping down 60's Lotus's etc. down to nut and bolt level and putting them back together, so perhaps a lifetime of dealing with rusty and siezed components has made me a little bit blase!

My price was based on a quick check on Racespeed's online OE parts listing. I notice that Chris Neil's website lists them at a mere £80 a corner (plus a tenner delivery, if mail order, I guess), but it's still a good few beer tokens over the cost of the bearings on their own.

[TheLemming]

If you plan to do it yourself (and on an ongoing basis) we had a screw press made for the balljoints.

If you fancy one then drop me a line and I will see if I can dig the details out.