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Alias, the service manager at the dealer where I buy some of my parts and a few people here think that I should'nt replace my front bearings when replacing the axles if they are not shot. The service manager even told me he knows of a few Legacy (one a taxi) with 400,000 kilometers and with the original bearings.

 

I remember you having somewhere on this board the opposite opinion. You seem to think that at 200,000 kilos, a bearing is at the end of its life.

Since you've established that you usually know what you're talking about, you have me worried.

What are your basis for that opinion?

Thanks in advance.

P.-S. Is it possible to replace just the bearing inner seal without special tools?

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here's the issue....do you want to remove the entire hub, take it to a shop or let a shop take it out, press the bearing out and press a new one in?

 

I just changed the axles on my car......probably wouldn't have hurt to do the bearings, but I didn't want to mess with the hub issue, especially since it's my only car...and I'll probably be messing with drivetrain stuff again later on.

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Originally posted by Legacy777

here's the issue....do you want to remove the entire hub, take it to a shop or let a shop take it out, press the bearing out and press a new one in?

 

I just changed the axles on my car......probably wouldn't have hurt to do the bearings, but I didn't want to mess with the hub issue, especially since it's my only car...and I'll probably be messing with drivetrain stuff again later on.

 

Front bearings last a long time.... The rears don't. I got about 190,000 km out of one front, and almost 400,000 km out of the other on my 93 Legacy. They seem to start to fail at 200,000 or so, but I think the seal just lets go at this point causing a quick bearing failure.

 

I would repack and change the seals on the front bearings, since this does not require removal of the steering knuckle to do. It might add 20 minutes to pull out he hub and grease everything up, so from that perspective it is probably worthwhile.

 

And no tool needed for the inner seal (which is usually the seal that fails).

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Originally posted by frag

Do i understand that one can replace the inner seal without special tools but must I have something like a Hub Tamer to remove the hub and repack the bearing?

 

Yes, to fully repack the bearing you need a hub tamer.

 

The inner seal seals near the axle shaft, and as such is exposed to a lot more dirt and water than the outer seal. At most a seal removal tool is required.

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