10 Cast Net: Rear Wheel Bearing

Tuesday 9 October 2012

Rear Wheel Bearing

Some tips to help you detect a bad wheel bearing on your vehicle. Since the entire weight of the vehicle is supported on the bearings, itás vital the bearings be replaced if faulty. You'll need to use your ears, so pick a place where you can safely drive with as little noise and traffic as possible. Turn off the radio and roll down your windows. Mix things up a little: Drive at a safe speed, but vary the speed from a crawl to the speed limit. Lightly turn your wheels left and right. Cars can be tricky at times I once had a truck whose differential made noise only between 35 and 37 mph. carefully as you drive. Do you hear anything unusual? If you have a bad wheel bearing you will probably hear a growl, hum, squeal or whining noise. If you hear more of a cracking or popping, or in some cases even a growling, sound, itás more likely a bad CV joint and not a bearing. A bad CV joint is serious. It is what delivers power from the transmission to the wheel and when it goes out, the car will not move. A wheel bearing does not care what gear the transmission is in, so if you hear a noise when the transmission is in gear and do not hear it in neutral, itás not the bearing. If you do hear something, take note of where the sound is coming from. This is easier if you have a passenger with you. First, this will help you determine which wheel the bearing noise is coming from, but it will also help make sure it is a bearing and not something else. Bearing noise will reach your ears via the window, so itás easy to detect. If the sound is coming through the floorboard, youáre looking at fixing something else.