Dear all

Finally got around to fixing the car today. The bearings themselves actually arrived several weeks ago but I had also ordered a replacement used hub and carrier fearing the worst that mine would be a bit chewed up. Unfortunately I found out this week that the ebay seller had forgotten to post these - very good seller but these things happen especially at Christmas I suppose. Anyway, getting impatient today I decided to drive the car 2km's to my warehouse and do the job there on the basis that if I couldn't finish it today the car could sit there in bits awaiting the used parts. Bit of squeaking and grinding on the way there but nothing as bad as when it "failed" on the way home in December. Got there no problem.

Quick run down on the job, that I hope is useful for others. I am sure there are other ways to do this but here's how I did it:

1) Jack up, axle stands, remove wheel, remove brake caliper and mounting bracket, remove brake disc
2) Remove ABS sensor - mine broke, it was the old steel lined type and was impossible to get out. I levered out the remains later with the hub carrier on the bench.
3) Remove handbrake shoes - use allen key to get shoe retainers out by turning them until they pop out then basically pull everything off
4) Disconnect handbrake cable. Despite what I had read, this is easy so I recommend just removing it here not messing about with the whole cable further back
5) Remove hub nut
6) Remove pivot bolt - this is stiff to pull out (long bolt) - gently tap it on the nut end with the nut on whilst turning bolt end with impact gun, eventually it will start to move and can be drifted out
7) I then tried to pull the hub off using a cheap 3 legged puller. Broke that. Big puller I had didn't fit - studs too short for it. Could have broken out the slide hammer but it was back at my home garage. So ended up unbolting drive shaft at diff. Its a bit tricky due to the U joint making getting a socket on difficult but a bit of messing about and it was off.

At this point decamped to my house garage as I suspected I would need to use a press. Top tip: you don't need one. Nor any special tools at all. What you do need is a big vice. I put the carrier into the vice and the drive shaft knocked out easily. With the carrier on the bench, use a wedge shaped tool like a chisel and drive it down the side of the hub. This will start to slide the hub off the carrier. Use larger and larger chisels and eventually it just falls out. The carrier has handy slots in the centre so you can drive the outer bearing races out using a long punch. In the centre is a spacer with a conical end. This is because the outer races are the same on both bearings with the inners are different. The ABS reluctor wheel will just fall out when you drive the outer bearing race that faces it out.

WIth everything out I was please to see no damage to the carrier - the outer races had no spun and damaged it. Inner races were dry and worn but the hub was also not damage, no scoring or marring. So next week I wlll have a space carrier and hub I don't need! Oh well. Start the new outer bearing races using a hammer and tap them into place. Take the two old outer races, put them in a vice and cut a small slot in them about 5mm wide. Then use this on top of the new race to evenly drive the new races home. The slot means you don't get the old ones stuff in the carrier with the new ones. Grease and fit the larger of the inner races to the side where the hub inserts. Fit the seal. Drive the hub into the carrier. On the opposite side fit the space and then tap the smaller inner race in. Add some more grease and fit the seal. At this point you're done on the bench

Refitting:

1) Bolt drive shaft back up to the diff
2) Hinge the carrier onto lower arm using a long screwdriver or long allen key. Swing it up and offer the drive shaft into the hub. Tap it into place.
3) Refit long pivot bolt
4) Refit ABS sensor (in my case I have refitted the cover where it broke off just to retain the cable and stop debris getting into the hole
5) Refit handbrake cable, shoes/springs/retainers. Adjust shoes if necessary, refit disc
6) Refit caliper retainer, caliper, clip
7) Refit conical washer over which hub nut tightens

QUESTIONS!!!

HUB NUT - hub nut ended up coming off with a spiral coil type material sticking out of it. I understand these are one time use only. Where is a reasonably priced supplier for replacement. Ebay have silly prices - £40 for a nut - ridiculous. So whilst the job is complete I can't refit the wheel and drive because I have no hub nut! This is therefore urgent!!
ABS SENSOR - less urgent but which is the correct sensor for my car (95 X300 3.2 - rear right) and where does it plug in since the wire disappears through a grommet up into the body around the rear seat location

Long post, thanks if you read it until the end, feel free to improve on the process and I'd appreciate help with my questions

Thanks!
Sam.

 

Good write-up Sam. There are a couple of things I would add for information.

1. The rear hub pivot bolt has a concentric nut that is used to adjust rear wheel tracking. So it's position should be marked before removal to enable it to go back in the same position.
2. It's pretty much impossible to remove an old rear ABS sensor from the hub intact. The sensor cable comes through a hole in the floor and there is a connector under the rear seat. You can disconnect from there and leave the sensor in place on the hub.

Because of 2 above, used rear sensors are like rocking horse poo and although I think they're still available from Jaguar they are painfully expensive (about £225 each). There is a thread on here somewhere that suggests that there is an alternative part (from a Range Rover maybe?). Do a search or maybe someone else can provide a link.

The hub nut is expensive but you can get one here cheaper that your ebay price
https://www.britishparts.co.uk/class.../hub-nut-p3543

 

Hi Brendan

Thanks for your additions. Excellent advice.

On the concentric bolt sorry yes I missed that from the write up. I didn't actually mark mine because it was clear the where it was by the clean patch on the lower arm but much better idea to mark it - it even has a line on it possible for that use.

I've found a genuine Jaguar hub nut on ebay still in its bag for £15 which is bargain of the week (I never thought I'd say £15 for a nut was a bargain but ... its a Jaaaag). So thats ordered. Car still on axle stand wheel off awaiting delivery of that. 300-320nm I read the torque as - is that correct?

The ABS thing was a bit of a ***** up on my part really. I'm used to ABS sensors being £10-15 so I wasn't in the least bit worried when I broke it. In fact I even looked on line at my usual parts supplier first and they were indeed very cheap. Except not because mine is the older type. I had to look twice at the price, almost fell of my chair! £240!!!!! How? And why?! Anyway found a used one in good condition for £79 on ebay from a Jaguar spares supplier I have used frequently recently. Still - I should have disconnected it as you said and then levered it out from the back on the bench. You live and learn ...

NOW ONE VERY IMPORTANT OMISSION FROM MY WRITE UP!

Between the large spacer that sits between the two inner races is also another smaller spacer referred to as an "adjustable spacer" - it fact obviously its not adjustable, its just a fixed spacer but available in different sizes. They are about 3mm average. You need to use this again. It will probably be stuck to the inner race you remove. Often people throw them away and then don't know what size they had. Last night I happened to look again at the exploded view and saw this item that I was 99% sure I didn't refit. Sure enough I looked at the debris from the old bearings this morning and there it was stuck to the inner race. I was lucky not have binned this yesterday. So this morning I had to go back to the car, remove caliper, carrier, pads, handbrake cable, shoes, pivot bolt. The hub this time pulled easily off the drive shaft. Remove hub from carrier again, pulled out one inner race and the spacer and fitted the adjustable spacer. Having done the job yesterday with no real guide how to do it which took several hours, I managed to refit the spacer and get everything back together today in under 1 hour.

So now I have to wait for the ABS sensor and hub nut and finally the big cat will be back on the road.

I still need to do the other side of course and also I still have to fit the new spring on that side so I'll be doing both those jobs together in a few weeks when time allows. Fitting the spring with everything removed should be much easier than it was one the side I have already done so every cloud has a silver lining.

Best wishes to all
Sam.

 

I have had to tell customers the bad news when they replaced the bearings and THEN brought it to the shop for repair.
That is when I have to tell them they left the shim out of the assy and tightened the axle nut. After a short drive the hub is pretty much ruined.
(the steel bearings grinding the aluminum hub)

A salvage yard complete replacement hub assy. and a new set of bearings WITH the original shim in place and all is right again!!

Glad you caught the missing part before you drove the car!!!

bob

 

Hi Bob yes I was lucky really. Now I have researched that spacer specifically I can read plenty of stories about people missing it out and getting into a mess. Even people taking it to professional mechanics who have thrown it away because its not obvious when you take everything apart and its stuck to the inner race.

 

Could you tell us the mileage on these cars when they will require the bearing replacement. I may want to start now in collecting parts. Any suggestions along this line will be appreciated.

 

Hi there. I couldn't tell you if its the first time the bearings were replaced but mileage on mine when it failed was about 127,000.

I used "ABS" bearings which were cheap - 13 euros a side. Even Jaguar ones are only about 40 euros on Autodoc.es

I run my old Jag on a tight budget and its (or will be once I get my hub nut) my daily driver. If it were a minter I would have paid the extra for the Jag ones to be honest

Hope that helps!

Sam.