Front Wheel Bearing DIY with Photo's
#21
08-02-2015 | 11:36 PM
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Damn Ball Joint
I'm stuck trying to get the ball joint seperated. In fact i think I trashed the ball joint in the process. I tried using a ball joint seperator tool/pry bar. This got it about half way there but caused most of the grease in the ball joint bushing to squeeze out. Is the ball joint toast at this point? I can get a replacement that will be bolted on instead of the factory rivoted for $25US. At this point should I just cut the damn thing off and replace it?
#22
01-30-2016 | 07:56 PM
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Joined: Jan 2016
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From: Gatineau
Lower ball joint doesn't want to release
Got the wheel bearings on the front swapped. Took about 4 hours and I rented a wheel axle slide hammer kit from the local auto parts store.
Here some shots and a brief description of the order of how I changed them. You can use a press, or do it a bunch of different ways, but this is the method I use when a press isn't available and I'm crunched for time.
1. Remove tire, pop out center cap, and reinstall tire.
2. Use 32mm socket to remove C/V half-shaft nut.
3. Remove tire, put car on jack stands.
4. Loosen up outer tie rod nut and place jack under nut and lift up on jack until there is pressure on the tie rod end, after that hit the side of the tie rod mount with a hammer until the tie rod pops out.
5. Remove lower ball joint securing bolt and pry lower ball joint out of spindle. If you have trouble with this step you can always remove the 3 upper strut bolts and take out the entire assembly.
Here some shots and a brief description of the order of how I changed them. You can use a press, or do it a bunch of different ways, but this is the method I use when a press isn't available and I'm crunched for time.
1. Remove tire, pop out center cap, and reinstall tire.
2. Use 32mm socket to remove C/V half-shaft nut.
3. Remove tire, put car on jack stands.
4. Loosen up outer tie rod nut and place jack under nut and lift up on jack until there is pressure on the tie rod end, after that hit the side of the tie rod mount with a hammer until the tie rod pops out.
5. Remove lower ball joint securing bolt and pry lower ball joint out of spindle. If you have trouble with this step you can always remove the 3 upper strut bolts and take out the entire assembly.
Thanks for the post, it is straight forward. And I expect it is quite easy to do once I get past this little bump...
#23
01-31-2016 | 12:10 PM
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From: Gatineau
#24
01-31-2016 | 04:05 PM
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Joined: May 2011
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From: Upstate NY
What 2 of us did (which i know is bad) is to pry down on the control arm with an 8' 1"x2" while the other of us was then able to move the balljoint out of the way.
Doing it this way you risk damage to one of the bushings but mine seems ok.
LEVERAGE is the word of the day!
#25
01-31-2016 | 06:47 PM
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From: Gatineau
Great. Now I have to split the bearing
So I was able to get the ball joint undone by loading up the knuckle with my jack and prying it out. Then I put it back together and applied liberal amounts of heat with my cutting torch. Came out easy (I wasted an hour banging away on it and using a propane torch and finally gave in and dragged my touches out of the shed).
So mine came out all together, the bearing did not break and now I have to get the bearing off the hub. Of course since I just moved, I am unable to find my bearing separator :-( Since I have the other side to do, I think it is time to buy a 12 ton press...
So mine came out all together, the bearing did not break and now I have to get the bearing off the hub. Of course since I just moved, I am unable to find my bearing separator :-( Since I have the other side to do, I think it is time to buy a 12 ton press...
#26
02-01-2016 | 04:48 AM
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Joined: Jan 2015
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From: Buckingham UK
I had the same problem a while back when replacing a half shaft.
What 2 of us did (which i know is bad) is to pry down on the control arm with an 8' 1"x2" while the other of us was then able to move the balljoint out of the way.
Doing it this way you risk damage to one of the bushings but mine seems ok.
LEVERAGE is the word of the day!
What 2 of us did (which i know is bad) is to pry down on the control arm with an 8' 1"x2" while the other of us was then able to move the balljoint out of the way.
Doing it this way you risk damage to one of the bushings but mine seems ok.
LEVERAGE is the word of the day!
I shall be dropping the subframe each side in turn by just over 1" (as per JTIS) to give the required balljoint clearance.
#27
02-01-2016 | 06:47 AM
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From: Upstate NY
Just about to do both sides on mine, and will replace half shafts while everything is in pieces as well as giving everything else a good clean and maybe a coat of chassis black.
I shall be dropping the subframe each side in turn by just over 1" (as per JTIS) to give the required balljoint clearance.
I shall be dropping the subframe each side in turn by just over 1" (as per JTIS) to give the required balljoint clearance.
#28
02-01-2016 | 07:12 AM
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Joined: Jan 2016
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From: Gatineau
Frame drop not required.
I was able to get the ball joint out by putting the nut back on the tie rod end and lifting the knuckle by 3 inches. Since I had the ball joint all ready loose, it was easy to get it out and no damage to the bushings. Same for putting it back in, just compress the spring by a couple of inches and you can pop it right back in with minimal pressure. I connected the tie rod so it would not go anywhere when compressed.
#29
02-01-2016 | 01:23 PM
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Joined: Jan 2015
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From: Buckingham UK
Just completed the strip down of one side. As usual things were not easy because of the 14 years-worth of corrosion and salty water ingress which cause components to weld together.
The key issue is that the lower wishbone pushes up on to the knuckle while the spring and damper unit press down. About an inch of free play is required to enable the lower ball joint to come out of the steering knuckle.
JTIS recommend lowering the subframe which I duly did. However although the front subframe bolt moved very easily the rear one became impossibly stiff after coming out about half an inch. Obviously this is because of corrosion on the bare threads of the bolt inside the chassis box section. I did not want to snap the bolt or damage the car in any way as I doubt my Boy's Own Carpentry Set would be adequate to repair the resulting disaster.
I therefore used a cheap pair of coil spring compressors to compress the road spring enough to reduce the downward pressure on the steering knuckle and give me the necessary room to split the knuckle from the lower ball joint.
The latter job was not easy and eventually I had to use a joint splitter to get the thing to budge.
After removing and throwing away the original pinch bolts, careful use of a lead-headed hammer and a brass drift caused everything to come apart.
The wheel bearing is in a nasty state with red rust dust everywhere. I'll press it out tomorrow then gritblast the knuckle before giving everything a good clean, a lick of paint, and then put it all back together again with new bearing, new half shaft and new bolts and nuts. The droplink fell apart while being removed so this will be replaced too.
The key issue is that the lower wishbone pushes up on to the knuckle while the spring and damper unit press down. About an inch of free play is required to enable the lower ball joint to come out of the steering knuckle.
JTIS recommend lowering the subframe which I duly did. However although the front subframe bolt moved very easily the rear one became impossibly stiff after coming out about half an inch. Obviously this is because of corrosion on the bare threads of the bolt inside the chassis box section. I did not want to snap the bolt or damage the car in any way as I doubt my Boy's Own Carpentry Set would be adequate to repair the resulting disaster.
I therefore used a cheap pair of coil spring compressors to compress the road spring enough to reduce the downward pressure on the steering knuckle and give me the necessary room to split the knuckle from the lower ball joint.
The latter job was not easy and eventually I had to use a joint splitter to get the thing to budge.
After removing and throwing away the original pinch bolts, careful use of a lead-headed hammer and a brass drift caused everything to come apart.
The wheel bearing is in a nasty state with red rust dust everywhere. I'll press it out tomorrow then gritblast the knuckle before giving everything a good clean, a lick of paint, and then put it all back together again with new bearing, new half shaft and new bolts and nuts. The droplink fell apart while being removed so this will be replaced too.
#30
02-05-2016 | 12:01 PM
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Joined: Jan 2015
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From: Buckingham UK
Quick update: I could not press the old bearings out because I could not cobble together a suitable cradle (jaguar have a special tool for this, number 204-310) to hold the steering knuckle and only an idiot takes risks with 12-20 tons of pressure. Swallowing my pride I duly took the knuckles and new bearings to a local garage where I am known, and the guy there fitted them for me for £10 a side ($15 US). Job done.
Incidentally, dismantling was easier after I removed the horizontal bolt from the lower wishbones.
I am sourcing the new drive halfshafts at present.
Oh, and 'droplink' in the post above should read 'droplinks'!! The RH one had to be cut off with a cutting disk.
Incidentally, dismantling was easier after I removed the horizontal bolt from the lower wishbones.
I am sourcing the new drive halfshafts at present.
Oh, and 'droplink' in the post above should read 'droplinks'!! The RH one had to be cut off with a cutting disk.
Last edited by Bogbrush; 02-05-2016 at 12:08 PM.
#31
02-05-2016 | 01:45 PM
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Joined: Jan 2016
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From: Gatineau
Done, but not...
So I have everything back together. Drive for a few days and the ABS light comes on. I figure that the sensor plug has come loose. No such luck... My new bearing has decided to spit out the seal. There is grease everywhere. It is wonderful that it is under warranty, but I am not looking forward to crawling under the car in Canadian winter again...
#32
04-17-2016 | 08:31 PM
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Joined: Nov 2014
Posts: 4
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From: Germantown, MD
Here's what I did to remove the lower ball joint:
Using a floor jack (Harbor Freight) I looped a strong chain (using a chain quick link from Home Depot) from the tube between the floor jack front wheels and the control arm right behind the ball joint so that as the floor jack pushed the knuckle upwards it would pull the control arm downwards. A few pumps on the jack it came off with a big scary bang of success!
Ended up buying a Front Wheel Bearing Adapter (HF) to remove the old bearing from the knuckle and to press the new bearing into the hub and then to press it all into the knuckle. The slide hammer I had rented was not doing a thing. I later damaged a new bearing because I didn't use the right size disk to press it in and it was pressing the inner seal and not the outer seal. I was in a hurry to do it while the hub was cold and the bearing hot and I mistakenly used the same disk I had used to remove the old bearing from the knuckle to press the new bearing into the hub. So I had to buy a Bearing Separator/Puller Set (HF) to remove the damaged bearing from the hub. I also ended up buying a vise (HF) and a Hitch Vise Mount (HF, for my SUV) so that I could hold all this. I couldn't do it without the tools from Harbor Freight, I tried. To push the ball joint back in I had to remove the rear bolt of the control arm so that it would swing down further and that allowed me to push the ball joint back in by hand, enough to finish it with the floor jack. Good luck guys.
Using a floor jack (Harbor Freight) I looped a strong chain (using a chain quick link from Home Depot) from the tube between the floor jack front wheels and the control arm right behind the ball joint so that as the floor jack pushed the knuckle upwards it would pull the control arm downwards. A few pumps on the jack it came off with a big scary bang of success!
Ended up buying a Front Wheel Bearing Adapter (HF) to remove the old bearing from the knuckle and to press the new bearing into the hub and then to press it all into the knuckle. The slide hammer I had rented was not doing a thing. I later damaged a new bearing because I didn't use the right size disk to press it in and it was pressing the inner seal and not the outer seal. I was in a hurry to do it while the hub was cold and the bearing hot and I mistakenly used the same disk I had used to remove the old bearing from the knuckle to press the new bearing into the hub. So I had to buy a Bearing Separator/Puller Set (HF) to remove the damaged bearing from the hub. I also ended up buying a vise (HF) and a Hitch Vise Mount (HF, for my SUV) so that I could hold all this. I couldn't do it without the tools from Harbor Freight, I tried. To push the ball joint back in I had to remove the rear bolt of the control arm so that it would swing down further and that allowed me to push the ball joint back in by hand, enough to finish it with the floor jack. Good luck guys.
#34
07-30-2017 | 02:11 PM
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Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 32
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From: Florida
Got the wheel bearings on the front swapped. Took about 4 hours and I rented a wheel axle slide hammer kit from the local auto parts store.
Here some shots and a brief description of the order of how I changed them. You can use a press, or do it a bunch of different ways, but this is the method I use when a press isn't available and I'm crunched for time.
1. Remove tire, pop out center cap, and reinstall tire.
2. Use 32mm socket to remove C/V half-shaft nut.
3. Remove tire, put car on jack stands.
4. Loosen up outer tie rod nut and place jack under nut and lift up on jack until there is pressure on the tie rod end, after that hit the side of the tie rod mount with a hammer until the tie rod pops out.
5. Remove lower ball joint securing bolt and pry lower ball joint out of spindle. If you have trouble with this step you can always remove the 3 upper strut bolts and take out the entire assembly.
6. Remove brake caliper, mounting bracket, and rotor
7. Slide c/v half-shaft out of the bearing assembly.
8. Remove abs wheel speed sensor.
9. Use slide hammer to remove wheel hub from spindle.
10. Use slide hammer to remove wheel bearing outer part that is still in spindle.
11. Take small grinder and grind notch in inner bearing race that is stuck to the wheel hub. Use a chisel to crack bearing on the notch ground in the bearing. After that inner bearing race should slide right off hub.
12. Put hub in ice water.
13. Place bearing in boiling water. (put in ziplock bag if you don't want to get bearing wet.
14. Once hub is cold and bearing is hot install bearing on hub with rubber seal of bearing facing to the inside of the car (away from the hub) use old inner race to hammer it in.
15. Put new bearing and hub assembly in cold water.
16. Use torch to heat spindle where bearing presses in.
17. Once spindle is good and hot, and bearing/hub is cold use slide hammer to press two parts together.
18. Reassemble and enjoy your handiwork with a cold beer knowing that you did it yourself and saved a lot of $$.
Here some shots and a brief description of the order of how I changed them. You can use a press, or do it a bunch of different ways, but this is the method I use when a press isn't available and I'm crunched for time.
1. Remove tire, pop out center cap, and reinstall tire.
2. Use 32mm socket to remove C/V half-shaft nut.
3. Remove tire, put car on jack stands.
4. Loosen up outer tie rod nut and place jack under nut and lift up on jack until there is pressure on the tie rod end, after that hit the side of the tie rod mount with a hammer until the tie rod pops out.
5. Remove lower ball joint securing bolt and pry lower ball joint out of spindle. If you have trouble with this step you can always remove the 3 upper strut bolts and take out the entire assembly.
6. Remove brake caliper, mounting bracket, and rotor
7. Slide c/v half-shaft out of the bearing assembly.
8. Remove abs wheel speed sensor.
9. Use slide hammer to remove wheel hub from spindle.
10. Use slide hammer to remove wheel bearing outer part that is still in spindle.
11. Take small grinder and grind notch in inner bearing race that is stuck to the wheel hub. Use a chisel to crack bearing on the notch ground in the bearing. After that inner bearing race should slide right off hub.
12. Put hub in ice water.
13. Place bearing in boiling water. (put in ziplock bag if you don't want to get bearing wet.
14. Once hub is cold and bearing is hot install bearing on hub with rubber seal of bearing facing to the inside of the car (away from the hub) use old inner race to hammer it in.
15. Put new bearing and hub assembly in cold water.
16. Use torch to heat spindle where bearing presses in.
17. Once spindle is good and hot, and bearing/hub is cold use slide hammer to press two parts together.
18. Reassemble and enjoy your handiwork with a cold beer knowing that you did it yourself and saved a lot of $$.
Re front bearing install on X type. Are there two bearings to install on each front hub? I see your photo #13 fo #20 showing 2 bearings. Your comment is very helpful--thanks
#35
07-30-2017 | 06:34 PM
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From: Waterford, MI
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#36
08-05-2017 | 11:12 PM
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Joined: Aug 2017
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From: Lone star, TX
Just spent 9hrs at a diy garage and managed to replace only the right side A arm bushings, upper ball joint and wheel bearing. 9 hours!!!! The car is still stuck on the lift because the lower ball joint will just not come out. I tried heat, a 1" impact driver with a bearing compressing kit and nothing. Gonna try again tomorrow.
#38
11-21-2017 | 08:47 PM
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From: Lancaster,PA
#39
11-23-2017 | 05:21 PM
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From: Utah
