palmbay
30th October 2007, 18:56
I have recently changed my front wheel bearings as the car failed the MOT due to a "bit of a rumble" when the wheel was spun, to my mind there was nothing wrong with them, but a fail is a fail. Bit of a struggle with me trusty lump hammer and large 3/4" drive socket to drive them out with, but, bought some new SKF bearings and fitted ok. A few miles later the rumble returned with a vengence, so bad I had to get the RAC out to tow me home, I ended up changing out the 2 drive shafts and renewed the vented discs and antiroll link arms for good measure, no more rumble. (Then the idle stepper motor went, but that's another story, cutting out at junctions and revving too high!)
A couple of hundred miles later I just happened to check the new wheel bearings and the near side was flapping about with so much freeplay it wasn't true. I stripped it down again and took the bearing back to the motorfactors. It is a twin ball roller and has no pre-tension as such, it fits snuggly inside the hub and is secured with a large circlip. The inner roller cage had collapsed for no apparent reason.
They renewed it, no probs, refitted, all sweet as, until I checked them today, again after a couple of hundred miles they have gone again, same thing, inner race collapsed, this time on both bearings, as if too much upward force from the wheel itself.
This time, I know it is not the bearings at fault this time, but some other factor that is causing them to collapse. The hubs are the same, the old bearings were ok for many thousands of miles prior to the MOT, now this... Has anyone else had any problems along these lines, I have racked my brain. The Motor factors did say that the new disks should have been solid 4 stud, mine are vented, also the drive shaft doesn't appear to come as far through as it should making me think that they have been possibly upgraded as the calipers fit perfectly. Also all ball joints line up perfectly and have no freeplay.
Any ideas gratefully accepted.
A couple of hundred miles later I just happened to check the new wheel bearings and the near side was flapping about with so much freeplay it wasn't true. I stripped it down again and took the bearing back to the motorfactors. It is a twin ball roller and has no pre-tension as such, it fits snuggly inside the hub and is secured with a large circlip. The inner roller cage had collapsed for no apparent reason.
They renewed it, no probs, refitted, all sweet as, until I checked them today, again after a couple of hundred miles they have gone again, same thing, inner race collapsed, this time on both bearings, as if too much upward force from the wheel itself.
This time, I know it is not the bearings at fault this time, but some other factor that is causing them to collapse. The hubs are the same, the old bearings were ok for many thousands of miles prior to the MOT, now this... Has anyone else had any problems along these lines, I have racked my brain. The Motor factors did say that the new disks should have been solid 4 stud, mine are vented, also the drive shaft doesn't appear to come as far through as it should making me think that they have been possibly upgraded as the calipers fit perfectly. Also all ball joints line up perfectly and have no freeplay.
Any ideas gratefully accepted.