Sorry but my jag did not show up this weekend, hoping for July 5. I do believe that my passenger side wheel bearing may need attention, either repack/adjust or replace. I have done several on previous vehicles, inner outer bearing with rotor type hubs. Is there anything out of the ordinary that I should be aware of, this is a great place for info, and I thank all who have given advice. 1996 van den plas 6 cyl.

 

Nope, pretty normal stuff there, I've done mine last year with next to none tools (read: hammer and a spanner) and everything's still fine. Done road trip across Europe afterwards and still all good

 

I use the tighten until you can't turn by hand, back off and tighten by hand until no slop is felt, should spin 2 or 3 revolution on it's own

 

Hi Jiffy14,


Welcome to the forum!

If you've done conventional inner/outer wheel bearings before you won't have any trouble. The bearings are very inexpensive from any good independent Jaguar parts supplier, such as SNG Barratt, Coventry West, Welsh Enterprises, etc. If you can read the part numbers on the bearings in your car, you can also usually order them at even lower prices from industrial supply houses (typical brands are Timken, Koyo and SKF, all of them excellent). In the front suspension of Jaguar saloons, the wheel bearings seem to be under greater stress than in most other vehicles and tend to wear more rapidly and require more frequent adjustment or replacement. So unless you know the bearings are less than 5 years old, its prudent to replace them since you have to get halfway there to repack them and may discover a problem once you get them apart.

There are many opinions about the best method of adjusting the front wheel bearings. Below are links to photos of the replacement and adjustment process on our '93 XJ40, which is essentially identical to an X300. In parts 3 and 4 I discuss various recommended methods for adjusting the bearings, as well as the method I've come to prefer.

Cheers,

Don

Welcome to Jag-lovers - Members Photo Viewing Page
Welcome to Jag-lovers - Members Photo Viewing Page
Welcome to Jag-lovers - Members Photo Viewing Page
Welcome to Jag-lovers - Members Photo Viewing Page

 

I know it's already been said, but get decent ones!
I've just replaced a pair of 6-month old cheapos with the proper Timkens, after one of them ate itself... SNG do Timken kits for barely more than I paid for cheap rubbish the first time - and they do 10% discount for all members of this forum!

Nothing difficult to worry about, but getting the new seal on can be a PITA.

 

Indeed. Personally I wouldn't go thru the effort unless there is obvious signs that the seal is no longer sealing.

I ruined several new seals trying. Eventually I very carefully shaved a very small amount of material from the inside diameter and then used a section of PCV pipe (2.5" I think?) to drive the seal onto to spindle/stub axle. Much more difficult than the older, more typical design where the seal is installed into the back of the hub...which takes about 4 seconds.

Cheers
DD

 

Doug,

Did you install the seal dry, or with a little grease on the inner rings of the seal and the seal seat on the stub axle?

Don

 

Believe me, I tried a little grease! That was my first idea . The fit was SO tight that the seals just got bent on installation. After destroying a few I did the shaving trick. Three different brands of seals, too....although they might've all come from the same manufacturer.

The PVC pipe idea came from some other guys who had the same problem. Together with the shaved seal it worked perfectly.

Cheers
DD

 

Hi Doug,

That is really strange. The part numbers for the stub axle, hub, bearings and oil seal are all the same for the XJ40 and X300, and I've never had any difficulty installing the oil seal on the back of the hub, applying a little grease to the seal shoulder on the stub axle and on the inner rings of the seal, then "walking" the hub and seal onto the stub axle together, as shown in my photo albums.

The seal that Coventry West has been supplying to me with their SKF bearing kits is marked only SAMEER®, with no part number. Neither Timken nor SKF seem to show a part number for an oil seal to go along with their bearing kits. I have no idea who SAMEER® may be, and online searches don't turn up any obvious candidates.

A helpful resource is the Timken parts finder, where you can look up bearing part numbers by vehicle:

Timken Online Parts Catalog

For the XJ40/X300, the Timken front wheel bearing sets are:

Inner: SET17
Outer: SET8

The SKF part numbers are:

Inner: BR17 (L68149/L68111)
Outer: BR8 (L45449/L45418)

The part numbers in parenthesis are the individual roller bearings/races.

BTW, if anyone is under the impression that only Timken bearings will do, note that SKF supplies the Pratt & Whitney and Rolls Royce jet engine divisions, as well as the Ferrari Formula 1 racing team....

Cheers,

Don

 

According to the X300 shop manual the grease seal should not be installed into the back of the hub but, instead, installed onto the spindle/stub axle....and then the hub is installed.

Not that it made any difference in my case. I tried it both ways. If I installed it onto the back of the hub first then I could just barely get the hub to slide onto the stub axle.

<shrug>

I'd write the episode off as wrong seals or, equally likely, me having a dull moment were it not for several others reporting the same problems.


Cheers
DD

 

Thanks for the advice and excellent , I always found aligning the rotor of my truck back onto the stub axle a pain, I will use the walk in method because of the seal, it works for me. I will check for seal wear before replacing, I have used seal over and over as long as care is take when removing the bug or rotor. Thanks all walk through by Don, I go by Jamie from Saint John, N.B. Canada

 

Sorry for poor writing and grammar, trying to catch up during commute. Thanks to all for the advice and suggestions, the rear seal look tough. The photos are great.
1996 Vanden Plas 6cyl lwb

 

Don, in part 3, you show multiple iterative 20 lb/ft applications with rotating the hub to get the bearing nut properly tightened, then a photo showing one loosening the nut a 1/4 turn.

But then the next photo mentions the eBook 5 lb/ft directions where you suggest that isn't the best preload result.

The next photo mentions the Haynes book recommending hand tightening.

What wasn't clear to me is, once one is done with iterative 20 lb/ft tightening then 1/4 turn hand loosen, is the process now complete?

The eBook and Haynes subsequent photos made it seem like there may be another step to tweak the nut tightening, but I also thought you may have just added those two photos to show the alternate methods the eBook and Haynes manuals suggest.

Can you clarify?



.

 

Hi Al,

Thanks for an excellent question! As usual, in trying to be thorough, I probably left out the most important part!

After I have worked all the play out of the new bearings and seal using the multiple 20 lb-ft torquing and rotating method, I loosen the nut about 1/4 turn or until it can be turned by hand. I then tighten the nut by hand. Then, I follow the method shown in photo 1 of album 4, where I install the wheel with 3 lug nuts, then test for play. I tighten the axle nut just a little at a time (about 1/2 flat at a time) until any detectable play just disappears. If necessary, I use a wrench. In the photo, the wheel center emblem is installed, but when I remember to, I remove that for access to the nut before installing the wheel. Sorry I wasn't clear enough about that. In addition to the J-L forum's limit of 12 photos per album and 300 characters per description (including spaces), the other major limitation is that you can't go back in and edit anything once an album has been uploaded. The pressure for perfection is excruciating!!!!!

I hope this clears up what I do - others have their own methods, and I certainly don't want to argue that mine is the only method that will work.

Cheers,

Don

 

Thanks Don, I am familiar with your procedure and will give it a try, after a short road test I usually touch (carefully) the dust cover and or the stud for any excessive heat, a good indicator if too tight.

____________
James Dow
New Brunswick, Canada
1996 Xj6
LWB

 

I purchased a 91 XJ6 Soverign. I replaced the front driver side wheel bearings, with not issues. The issue was the rear seal. I got one from partsgeek and fromt the dealership. I tried to install with the preivously mentioned light grease and PVC method, to no avail. Just ended up wrecking the seal. I am going to try to shave the other one down. This forum has given me a glimmer of hope, so thank you all. I will let you know if it works. I do love the car.

 

Don B, your procedure was very clear and helpful. Thanks a bunch.

I have done quite a few repair jobs on various cars over the years of owning them, but had never done bearings. My '95 XJ6 with 333K miles needed them badly. I waited too long and right front bearing totally disintegrated in my driveway. It had already scored the hub on the outer bearing, so after going through some of this procedure, I had to order a hub from a dismantler in Stockton. I got it and studs were rusty, so I pulled my originals and replaced theirs and installed new hub/bearings. Your alternate torquing method worked quite well. I needed 2 new front tires, so I went to get them at a local independent shop. Guy said left front bearing was loose too, and I needed alignment immediately afterward, since I said I would do it. He pulled grease cap, removed pin and castle nut and it was only finger tight. He torqued it, did tires and alignment, with me watching the computer directed alignment and it once again drives like a charm even way over the approved speed limit. Hehehe.

 

Hi Steve,

Well done on your right bearing, and thanks for your kind words. Regarding the left side that the mechanic torqued, when you get the chance it would be prudent for you to pull that hub, clean all the old grease and gunk out, inspect the bearings and races, and if all looks well, repack with grease and do the alternate torquing method to get the nut tightened "just right."

Cheers!

Don

 

I have been concerned that he didn't tighten it properly and that the bearing may have sustained some excessive wear or damage while it was loose. I will do what you recommend and remove it, clean it out and repack it liberally with new grease and then retighten with your alternate procedure.
I also have some annoying noises coming from the left side spring, I think, that doesn't occur on the right side. If I bounce the front fender, it squeaks loudly. It seems like the spring is rubbing metal on metal, probably from the bottom mount. I lubed it liberally with WD-40 and it reduced the noise significantly, but seems to be coming back quickly. I'm not sure if there's some kind of rubber cup between the spring and mounting at the bottom that may be worn out. Any ideas? I got under the car with an auto stethoscope and had my son bounce the fender and it seems like the bottom of the spring is the culprit. I recently replaced the front shocks also.

 

My assumption would be that you are either getting a dry squeak between the spring and the lower "packing and locator," Part 2 in this diagram, or the lower end of your spring is corroded and rubbing against corrosion in the sides of the recess in the spring pan, Part 3:



You can view the part names at this link:

Road Spring and Damper-Front - Parts For XJ Series from (V)720125 to (V)812255 (X300) | Jaguar Heritage Parts UK

Since WD40 is more of a solvent than a lubricant, you might try forcing some good lithium grease into the area around the base of the spring. I mention lithium grease since it won't degrade the packing/locator if it's made of plastic (petroleum grease can deteriorate plastic).

Another possibility is that something like a piece of gravel is trapped between the bottom of the spring and the spring pan and is rubbing around as the spring moves. Hopefully some good lithium grease will solve your problem, whatever the cause.

Cheers,

Don