82Brat Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 How do I replace the front wheel bearings on a Gen 2 Brat (82). I ordered a set from Rockauto.com. I thought there would be an inner and outer for each wheel, but I only got two. Is this correct? And what is the preferred method for removal of the old and installation of the new? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indrid cold Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 Do a search on this as lots of info. However; I am sure others will gladly spill forth needed info. One thing I did find out after I did mine and found this site was that to fill resevoir (wheel bearing housing) with about 1/3rd full of greese. More is not better. Make sure you pack your new bearings before installing. Never strike on inner race when installing etc... I will let the pro's take over Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carfreak85 Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 I had four bearings and four seals when I replaced them on my 84 4WD wagon. Whats this about the grease?!?! Wish I had known that.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chazmataz Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 yep 2 bearings and 2 seals for each wheel, front or rear doesn't matter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 yep 2 bearings and 2 seals for each wheel, front or rear doesn't matter. EH? Front and rear are very different. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indrid cold Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 I had four bearings and four seals when I replaced them on my 84 4WD wagon. Whats this about the grease?!?! Wish I had known that.... Got that from someone on the site regarding packing greese in housing. Probably still floating around but basicly, 1/3rd full is just right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
82Brat Posted March 10, 2006 Author Share Posted March 10, 2006 yep 2 bearings and 2 seals for each wheel, front or rear doesn't matter. What year /model? also an 84 wagon? could an 82 brat be different? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chazmataz Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 different parts # but still take 2 bearings and 2 seals per wheel on a 4wd. EH? Front and rear are very different. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 different parts # but still take 2 bearings and 2 seals per wheel on a 4wd. No - the rear can be either two bearing/race sets and a spacer, or can be a single sealed unit. Either way in every case I've seen, the rear is sold as a unit - per wheel - while the front is sold individually. You have to buy four bearings for the front, and two for the rear. 4 seals per wheel all the way around. They are a different size than the front, are held in differently, and the seals are different. I don't see the similarity other than they are both bearings. Have you ever done one? I've done enough to own the special tool for it.... GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
82Brat Posted March 10, 2006 Author Share Posted March 10, 2006 I've done enough to own the special tool for it.... GD Oh Crap... What special tool? Is there a work around? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7point62fmj Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 I am in the process of doing this on my 87 brat. Ok here is the most usefull info I got. DOWN LOAD the pdf file for keeping your subaru alive. I bought it on ebay before I knew I could down load it here. They do a pretty good job of explaining it in a no no-nonsens kind of way. Pluss this book has some fun humor. Next. I bought the pre sealed berrings that are packed and sealed on both sides. http://catalog.drivewire.com/drivewire/baseline/quote.jsp?partner=drivewire&year=1982&product=K8000-21621&application=000168444 Not a bad price 30.00 for both berrings. They look built when you get them. I am still putting these in.(wating for time off) You still need some hi temp wheel berring grease for the housing though and a slip tie to attach the brake housing to the strut so it does not pull on the brake line while it hangs. I am a new-bee and still learning how to do this. Also use alot of pb blaster and some spare pins for the castle nuts. I hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 Oh Crap... What special tool? Is there a work around? Only for the rear - the tool is to remove the huge ring nut that holds the bearing in. You can use a coal chisel and hammer to pound it around, it just chews up the nut, and is a lot more difficult. The tool has four protrusions, and can be used with an impact. Takes em right out quick. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exister99 Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 I haven't done my rear bearings yet, but when I did the front one I got a big brass drift punch, basically just a big brass dowel, about 3/4 inch across and a foot long. I took the knuckle out and layed it on some beefy scrap wood. Then I banged all around the outer race until the bearings came out. Used the same punch to bang the new bearings back in. I actually only replaced a couple of the bearings. Give them a good cleaning and listen to them spin. Follow your ears when deciding which to replace. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
82Brat Posted March 10, 2006 Author Share Posted March 10, 2006 I am in the process of doing this on my 87 brat. Ok here is the most usefull info I got. DOWN LOAD the pdf file for keeping your subaru alive. I bought it on ebay before I knew I could down load it here. Where is this pdf file? I can't find it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7point62fmj Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 Where is this pdf file? I can't find it search is your freind..use the word "alive" as your search word Or You can click on me 23.9mb http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=51452&highlight=alive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggroller Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 I just ordered up from DriveWire the sealed bearings. That company is insane fast. I ordered at 10:45a. I got a shipping notification at 12:35p. Same day! I am planning to use an impact socket and gear press to expedited the removal and installation of the parts. Of course if that fails then I will get the drift and get them in the old fashioned way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7point62fmj Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 some thing else that some one said works on installing them is you can take the old one out (bearing) and grind down the side a bit so it slides easily in the houseing and make that in to a tool to tap in the new bearings. I guess you could use jb weld to put a plate on the old one so you would be tapping on the plate and not have to worry about hurting the new bearings.. Least I think that is the idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indrid cold Posted March 11, 2006 Share Posted March 11, 2006 Quote:..... take the old one out (bearing) and grind down the side a bit so it slides easily in the houseing and make that in to a tool to tap in the new bearings. .... ...................... I like that idea... cleaver.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7point62fmj Posted March 11, 2006 Share Posted March 11, 2006 I wish I could take credit for that idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggroller Posted March 23, 2006 Share Posted March 23, 2006 New front wheel bearings....installed! I ordered the bearings from Drivewire with the seals on them. I promptly took the seals off and repacked them with Mobil 1 Sythetic grease while in front of the TV. I removed the old stuff and it seemed like a light grease instead of wheel bearing grease. I used jeweler's flat head screwdriver to lever the seal off. Very carefully... Then the installation was a couple of days later. (Last Saturday 3/23/2006) I used my trusty gear press to get the axles off quickly. Disconnected the lower balljoint (like I was going to replace the axles) and got enough space to get the axles out of the way. Disconnected the steering tie rod (used the gear puller to pop them off easily). Used a drift to tap the old ones out. Inboard bearings 1st. Cleaned off one of the old bearings and used it to tap the new ones in until the old ones started to seat. Whoops, too far! Got the old one off and use the drift to seat it all the way. Watchout, don't mar the surface of the seal. Don't forget the spacer in between the bearings. I also put some grease in the void between the bearings...just in case. Use the old bearing to tap the outboard. Then use the drift to get the bearing completely seated. Install the new wheel bearing seals and grease them, too. Lightly greased the axle and got it all buttoned up. 1st side too me longer to get the axle home. The total for one side was 2 hours. The 2nd side took me an hour. Done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exister99 Posted March 23, 2006 Share Posted March 23, 2006 I would be sure to clean all grease off of the splines before installing the hub to prevent a stripped hub. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robm Posted March 23, 2006 Share Posted March 23, 2006 EH?? Grease on splines is good. Prevents them from rusting to the hub, and acts to cushion the drive. The spline is kind of like a gear that is meshed with in a another gear. Lube is a good thing here. If the spline strips, it is because it is the wrong one,(23 in a 25) or because corrosion and fretting (due to a lack of lube) has reduced the dimensions and allowed too much play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exister99 Posted March 23, 2006 Share Posted March 23, 2006 EH?? Grease on splines is good. Prevents them from rusting to the hub, and acts to cushion the drive. The spline is kind of like a gear that is meshed with in a another gear. Lube is a good thing here. If the spline strips, it is because it is the wrong one,(23 in a 25) or because corrosion and fretting (due to a lack of lube) has reduced the dimensions and allowed too much play. I would suggest that you perform the following experiment. Slather a big dollop of grease on to your splines and then mount your hubs on to them. Then take the wagon out for some righteous, high torque 4 wheeling: through deep water, up steep, rocky tracks and maybe over some snowy passes for good measure. Then report back on what a pain it is to find a replacement for your left front hub. Good Luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robm Posted March 24, 2006 Share Posted March 24, 2006 I am going to stand by my last sentence. Don't blame the grease YOU put on, blame the grease someone else OMITTED. A spline should fit the hub within a few .0001's of an inch. Not .001, .0001. There should be virtually no play perceptible. One of the sources of wear is called fretting corrosion. The spline wears as it transfers torque, because the teeth of the shaft bond to the teeth in the hub, then break away when the torque reverses. It is just a minute amount of bonding, microsopic. The wear appears as corrosion products. The wear is similar to that seen by gear teeth. If you look at a spline, it even looks like a gear, the shape is the same. Lubrication stops the spline from bonding, and prevents wear. Once the wear has started, the play gets worse and worse as the loads seen by the splines get higher and the torque reversals more obvious. The fretting increases. It may get to the point where it isn't really fretting anymore, just plain wear as the hub slops around. http://www.engineeringtalk.com/news/skf/skf162.html http://www.hghouston.com/Technical%20FAQs/TFAQ106.html I am not just making this up, as the links above prove. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggroller Posted March 24, 2006 Share Posted March 24, 2006 whoa, cool information! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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