This is my BILs '98 Outback Sport.  200k-ish miles.

 

Jacking up the front end, we have too much play in the drivers side tire by putting our hands at 12 & 6.  On the inside, I can see the axle joint moving with the wheel.  The wierd thing is, he doesn't have any of the typical bad wheel bearing noises - no howling or growling, and nothing that changes during turns.

 

Could the bearing still be bad, or is this more like a bad hub and/or knuckle?  He's a couple hours from me, so I can't exactly take stuff apart and go from there.  I'd like to have at least some idea before I tear into it so we know which parts to have on hand.

 

Thanks

subaru bearings seem to fail in multiple ways or with multiple symptoms at least, pretty common for them to look different each time.

sounds like a bad bearing to me - the axle if moving with it - woah!

 

i'm not familiar as to when hub damage happens and requires replacment.

 

i had 3 failed rear bearings on my LSi and it didn't quit failing until i installed a used hub, i suppose the previous one was bad and causing the bearings to wear?

Edited December 31, 201312 yr by grossgary

shouldn't move - not even 2 mm. The kind of movement you're reporting likely means you need a new hub as well as a bearing.

 

best approach for mid-level DIYers; buy the parts, take them and the spindle to a good shop or maybe a dealer and have them press in the new bearing/bearing hub.

 

super cheap way out, get the assembly from a junk yard and hope the bearing will last a while. risky.

 

be prepared to need a balljoint too.

Edited December 31, 201312 yr by 1 Lucky Texan

 

be prepared to need a balljoint too.

 

HA HA!  here here!  i just ordered like two hours ago, two ball joints to have on hand.  mostly due to rust making it impossible to ever get the ball joint out for other work without damaging it, not because they fail that often.

Wifes 98 Legacy Outback failed without much noise.  Found it when I was doing other maintenance.

Used hub and bearing, still going 50K later.

Wifes 98 Legacy Outback failed without much noise.  Found it when I was doing other maintenance.

Used hub and bearing, still going 50K later.

Can you share exactly how you found/confirmed the bad bearing? Front or rear?

I too, recommend installing a used hub. I went through 2 bearing changes because my hub was bad, finally wised up and installed a used hub from a wrecking yard. Problem solved. 10K miles later used hub is still working great. I won't ever mess around trying to replace wheel bearings.........just a nasty job. Used hub is the better way to go.

Thanks for the replies.  I'll have him bring it over sooner rather than later, and probably end up replacing the hub and the bearing.  Local place has everything in stock, which is nice. 

 

I found a guide on nabisco to building a bearing puller to avoid using a press.  I'll probably try that route.  I'll post again with what I find.