paulivan Posted February 9, 2007 Share Posted February 9, 2007 Front left bearing is going out. I decided because its raining and seems like a rough job I would spend some $$. Mechanic took it in, confirmed bad left bearing and proceeded to make the repair. Now he's told me that the parts and bolts are so severey rusted (he called it an east coaster) that he recommends finding a used assembly and replacing whole thing to avoid taking it all apart. He also informed me that my Lft CV is going (torn boot but no noise yet) and some bearing noise coming form the back also...recomending new vehicle, dont dump money into this one! I want to keep the vehicle but for the $500 or so to do bearing/hub repair and now need for CV and noise coming from rear end, I am thinking about doing it myself to save some $$ and keep my rig on the road a little bit longer. My question is, how much work is it to remove the whole thing and replace with a new one? Any special tools needed? Should I worry about the corrosion making it difficult to remove the hub assembly? Is CV accesible after hub removal? Thanks in advance for any advice, especially East Coasters! Paul T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tcspeer Posted February 9, 2007 Share Posted February 9, 2007 Go for it. If the bolts or rusted it may be nice to have air and impact. It is very easy to change the spindle and hub out with a used one. I have only been doing my own for a few years, but with the help I got here and the Haynes manuel I found it very easy. The front left axle will be easy to remove after getting the hub off, just knock the little pin out on the engine side of axle, the other side is a little bit harder because of the exhast. Of course it helps is you have another car to drive while you are doing this. Front left bearing is going out. I decided because its raining and seems like a rough job I would spend some $$. Mechanic took it in, confirmed bad left bearing and proceeded to make the repair. Now he's told me that the parts and bolts are so severey rusted (he called it an east coaster) that he recommends finding a used assembly and replacing whole thing to avoid taking it all apart. He also informed me that my Lft CV is going (torn boot but no noise yet) and some bearing noise coming form the back also...recomending new vehicle, dont dump money into this one! I want to keep the vehicle but for the $500 or so to do bearing/hub repair and now need for CV and noise coming from rear end, I am thinking about doing it myself to save some $$ and keep my rig on the road a little bit longer. My question is, how much work is it to remove the whole thing and replace with a new one? Any special tools needed? Should I worry about the corrosion making it difficult to remove the hub assembly? Is CV accesible after hub removal? Thanks in advance for any advice, especially East Coasters! Paul T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScoobySchmitty Posted February 9, 2007 Share Posted February 9, 2007 Had to replace a front bearing in my 91 before. I considered getting a used hub and just throwing that in, but I did not want to chance getting a new one. The hardest part about replacing the bearing for me was the bearing itself. It is a press-fit part, meaning you have to have a mechanical press to get the old one out and the new one in. If you can find a good import shop around there, they might do it for you for a labor charge, say 30-50 bucks. If you have a friend in a machine shop, you could try asking them to do it for you for like a case of beer or something. Either way, this is a lot cheaper than 500 bucks for the mechanic to do it all. One shop I asked about doing it refused, because I was "taking away most of their job". I can understand that, but I am quite handy with a wrench and if I can avoid a huge mechanics bill by applying some elbow grease, then I'll do it. I did find a shop that was willing to do this for me, but they dealt with customers who like tinkering with their own rides so they understood where I was coming from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnceggleston Posted February 9, 2007 Share Posted February 9, 2007 My question is, how much work is it to remove the whole thing and replace with a new one? Any special tools needed? Should I worry about the corrosion making it difficult to remove the hub assembly? Is CV accesible after hub removal? Paul T it's pretty easy to remove the hub asembly and almost easier to remove it with the axel still attached to the hub. (when i did it i couldn't find my socket for the axle nut so i just swapped the hub and axle.) i removed and reinstalled the hub/axle on both my 97obw and the donor car in about 4 hours. remember to mark the position of the top strut to hub bolt before removal and you may save the expense of an alignment. the top strut bolt adjusts camber, i think. but just because the boot on the axle is torn doesn't mean you need a new axle. and the way i here it these things, bearings and axles, make noise for a while before they fail. so maybe the rear can wait for warmer weather. but if you are buying a used assembly, why not get the axle with it. it sounds to me like this guy was looking for some problems with your car. but it could be he's just being careful and wanted you to know your future so you didn't come back at him and say "why didn't you do this when you did the hub?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulivan Posted February 10, 2007 Author Share Posted February 10, 2007 Thanks all for great response. ...won't have impact but what abbout other methods like torch it and liquid wrench. Should I start dumping Liquid Wrench on it in advance of doing the work next week? ...does the axle come attached to the hub or just get an axle as seperate part? Are used axles an option? Could I just change the boot on it easily since the cv is not making noise? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 Should I start dumping Liquid Wrench on it in advance of doing the work next week? yes, hit it a couple times and let it soak in advance. make sure it's liquid wrench or PB Blaster. you shouldn't need a torch. does the axle come attached to the hub or just get an axle as seperate part? Are used axles an option? Could I just change the boot on it easily since the cv is not making noise? axle goes throught he hub and has the large axle nut on the outside. this axle nut is often the trickiest part of the entire deal, they are VERY tight and should be. remember this fact when reinstalling and tightening it very very good. i would not get a used axle. they tend to have dry rotted rubber and don't last very long. i wouldn't replace the boot either, at this point it could start clicking at any time after installing a new boot and that would be annoying. go used on the hub and either Subaru or MWE on the axle. i would say leave the axle alone, it will not fail. i've put 50,000+ miles on busted boot, clicking CV's before. the stock subaru axles are solid. a Subaru axle with a broken boot and clicking is more reliable than a store bought aftermarket "new" axle in my book. i've seen brand new aftermarkets blow to pieces...not fun. search on the forum here and you'll see other people with "new" axles breaking. leave the one you have or get a Subaru or MWE axle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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