[XS222]

ive had a weird knocking/pop coming from the front suspension for alittle bit now and it only started after i hit a fairly good sized elevation in the road. it only happens when turning left (which leads me to believe its the front right) and you can feel it in the steering wheel and pedal cluster.

its definitely not the wheel cause it does the same thing on a different set of wheels, and its not alignment cause i've had it aligned 2 times now.

this morning it started droning like a wheel bearing.

think its time for the wheel bearing? has anyone done a wheel bearing before? how tough/easy is it?

thanks!

EDIT: it definitely was the wheel bearing.

when ordering new parts, definitely get 4 new bearing/hub mounting bolts, they're cheap and you want fresh loctite on there.

replacement is as easy as (do this at your own risk - i'm not a certified tech, just a guy who is throwing my story out there. i cannnot and will not accept responsibilty if anything goes wrong. you're messing with a vital component in the suspension and if you f-- it up, it could be very costly. it's a simple job, for someone whos got some mechanical knowledge):

1. pulling caliper off (2 18mm bolts on the backside)

2. pulling rotor off (1 6mm retaining screw on the front of rotor)

3. pulling off old wheel bearing (4 18mm bolts - use power tools if possible, the loctite on the bolts is a bitch to get off. and you're working with very little room with the strut hanging out back there)

4. put everything back together in reverse order (be sure to torque 4 wheel bearing bolts to 81 ft lbs / 110 nm)

KEEP IN MIND this is for RWD only.

i ordered my parts from germanautoparts.com - they had everything i needed for a great price and only charge you actual shipping rates.

[XS222]

help?

[fdriller9]

You need a special tool to pull the bearing. Mine failed after hitting a pothole and cracking my front passenger wheel.

Dealer charged me $750 to change it but it was covered under someone else's insurance.

The tool wasn't worth it for me to buy so that's why I had it done at the dealer.

[David1]

On rwd, the front bearing is just held in by 4 bolts.

[XS222]

Originally Posted by David1

On rwd, the front bearing is just held in by 4 bolts.

thats what i thought too

gotta pull the whole brake off, im assuming?

[fdriller9]

Originally Posted by David1

On rwd, the front bearing is just held in by 4 bolts.

Ahh my bad.

[XS222]

im kinda surprised no one has done this work before - especially considering how simple it appears to be.




looks like all you have to do is pull off caliper, rotor, and unbolt wheel bearing and replace (item 17 in the top photo). what do you guys think?

[axztx]

I've done it. It's pretty easy as long as u have the right tools. Front wheel hub is held on with 4 bolts and some of them are hard to get to with socket and breaker bar due to front strut hanging down in front of the hub. Order from Tischer - it's the cheapest. Also need to order 4 new bolts - they are one time use.

[XS222]

thanks for the input axztx and David1, it was as simple as it seemed. biggest pain in the ass was just getting the old bearing off because of that loctite red

the screw holding the rotor on decided to give me trouble too

but in the end, its as simple as pulling caliper off, rotor off, bearing off, replace. everything goes back together so easily

thanks again all! hope this thread helps anyone else with the same problems or just with bearing replacement

[Typhoidrummage]

Looks like in that drawing the hub and bearing are one part? Where's that drawing from? I looked on Tischer and they sell the bearing and hub separately. I'm probably going to have to do this job soon so any help on where you got the parts/part #s would be great. Thanks!

[be-em-veh-808]

I like Tischer's prices and have made a few orders with them. Very please.

However for the front hub part, they list ~ $220. Many other places are listing ~ $125 - $130 --- Manufacturer = F A G

Could it be that Tischer's price is for a pair?

Originally Posted by axztx

I've done it. It's pretty easy as long as u have the right tools. Front wheel hub is held on with 4 bolts and some of them are hard to get to with socket and breaker bar due to front strut hanging down in front of the hub. Order from Tischer - it's the cheapest. Also need to order 4 new bolts - they are one time use.

[Evan@Tischer]

Originally Posted by be-em-veh-808

I like Tischer's prices and have made a few orders with them. Very please.

However for the front hub part, they list ~ $220. Many other places are listing ~ $125 - $130 --- Manufacturer = F A G

Could it be that Tischer's price is for a pair?

We only offer Genuine BMW Parts directly from BMW (and they include BMWs 2 year/unlimited warranty valid at any US BMW dealership).

If you're comparing an aftermarket or manufacturer direct/same supplier part to our Genuine BMW Parts, the pricing is not usually going to be inline as those parts are often cheaper, and not always the same item. (but you usually get what you pay for so be careful)

[be-em-veh-808]

Thanks for clarifying Evan. The 2 year warranty certainly is worth some extra money.

Most of the hub/bearings I've found in the $125-130 range are made by F.A.G which is the OEM supplier for BMWs.

Your website does not indicate what manufacturer supplies your hub/bearing. I think it would be fair to say that "IF" Tischer's part is also made by F.A.G and it's the same part, then the difference in price would be for the 2 year warranty provided by BMW versus whatever months or years of warranty provided by F.A.G or some other webdealer.

We all know that parts like car battery (from same manufacturers) that are priced differently because of different warranty --- are all the same battery. Only difference being the warranty and the price.

So, in the end, since Tischer does not indicate manufacturer --- other than "GENUINE BMW", it is hard to do a true comparison.

BTW --- I did come across a website (I forget which) that did offer a "genuine bmw" and a "OEM" version of the hub. The pix for both parts are identical --- both showing F.A.G. on the part. Yet, the parts are priced very differently.

[bmwtechray]

btw your suppose to replace those 4 bolts not re lock tight them!

[m1bjr]

I am in England and sourced my front hubs from "EuroCarParts" which are a huge national chain here.
They ran to about $150 each (£100).

http://www.eurocarparts.com/ecp/c/BM...283be14&000370

They are branded in the catalogue as made by 'SKF' which is a major bearing manufacturer.

When I pulled the old hubs off guess what - oem BMW hubs had exactly the same markings, part nos and even had SKF on the back bearing cover.
They were identical. Both the same part made by SKF. Even the bolts supplied were genuine BMW and in a BMW packet.

Mine were replaced due to disc rotor vibration (and DTV).
I ran a dial gauge on them and the runout was about 0.08mm which translates to way too much at the edge of even the most accurate new rotors.

[XS222]

Originally Posted by bmwtechray

btw your suppose to replace those 4 bolts not re lock tight them!

exactly. this is very very important!

[djpeetur]

anybody know the part number to the 4 bolts and do you need to put loc tite on the new bolts?> THANKS

[XS222]

31 12 6 760 203

Loctite already on the bolts.

good luck!

[Weebl]

bmaparts.com in Glendale CA.
2 F. A. G. bearings and 8 bolts for $230 to my door including sales tax. I have no idea how they do that but I've bought 80% of my car parts from them.
Bearings themselves are 176.50 for the pair, plus whatever. Bolts were at about standard pricing.
You cannot buy singles at this time.
call up Yves his service has been exceptional to me.
FYI

[d3l0n]

I called up the dealer, they told me $328 FOR ONE FRONT WHEEL BEARING! NOT A PAIR! WTF! I'm going to aim for getting the F.A.G (damn i hate that name).

[d3l0n]

Hey is there really a difference between the right and left wheel bearings?

[Weebl]

No and look at BMA