Rear Wheel Bearing
Removal/Replacement
(This procedure is for the driver’s side. The other side is close except for the under-car stuff you have to remove to get the axle out).
Contributed by: Jeff Mason
Tools needed:
Most tools needed to do this DIY are out of a typical
toolbox, however there are a few that I had to buy to complete this job.
a)
EBS bearing R&R tool… this tool is not listed on the EBS
website (http://www.ebsracing.com/),
but give them a call. I purchased this
tool based on the recommendation of others, and after completing the job I can
vouch for their recommendation. Part
number from my invoice is P90-P2
b)
Torque wrench capable of 339 ft-lbs
c)
32MM socket to R&R the axle nut
R&R
Procedure:
1) Jack up the
car... I always put it on jack stands, all four wheels off the ground. Remove engine tray (if you haven’t
permanently removed it, then now’s the time to think about it), transmission
tray, and plastic cover on suspension wishbone.
2) Remove offending
wheel (mine was driver's side rear).
3) Set park brake
extremely tight.
4) Remove 32mm
nut... I used a 3/4 drive breaker bar and had no problem. Others have used a pneumatic impact wrench
without problem.
5) Remove brake pads
from caliper, and then unbolt caliper (two 16mm bolts attach it). Hang caliper out of way, making sure not to
strain the brake line. Also, I insert a
block of wood to keep the pistons in the retracted position.
6) Release the park
brake.
7) Remove rotor... I
use an impact screwdriver to loosen the two phillips screws that hold the rotor
on.
8) Jack up the
suspension at the housing such that the axle is parallel to the ground.
9) Use a good 2 or
3-arm puller, centered on the axle shaft, to pop the hub off. If your car is a turbo, you’ll need to add a
metal plate to the end of the axle shaft before engaging the puller… there’s a
vent that runs through the axle shaft of a turbo that would be damaged if you
tighten the puller against it.
Initially, as you're tightening the puller, the shaft will push
inwards... at some point it will go as far in as it can, then the hub will pop
off. The bearing race has to be removed
from the hub... I took mine to a machine shop with a hydraulic press. After the machine shop was done, I put the
hub into the freezer... being cold makes installation of the hub into the new
bearing easier later.
10) Unbolt the
heater supply tube... some people remove it, but I unbolted it at the very
front, undid the bellows at the front, and undid it at the hanger along the
mid-length, and that allowed it to be pushed far enough aside to allow room to
remove the axle.
11) Remove six 8mm
hex bolts on the CV joint near the transmission.
12) Remove axle.
13) Remove four
bolts on outside of housing that hold the 2 bearing race retainers… you can see
the bolts and retainers on the last pic above.
14) Now install EBS
bearing removal/install tool... it’s not a listed tool on the ebsracing.com
website, but give them a call and tell them you need the bearing
removal/install tool P90-P2. See pic #1
and #2 below to understand which part of the tool goes inside the housing for
the removal, and pic #3 for how it looks outside. As you crank down on the threaded shaft the bearing is extracted
from the housing.
15) Apply a light
coat of high temp grease to the OD of the new bearing... the grease will aid in
re-assembly.
16)
Reinstall new bearing into the housing... again this will require
the EBS tool, and of course you'll have to rearrange the parts of the
tool. I had to think and engineer a
solution with the parts that are part of the tool... once you figure it out it
makes perfect sense. I scratched my head for a while though. Essentially all you need to do is take the
flat plate piece that was to the inside during the removal and exchange it with
the flat plate piece that was to the outside… everything else stays the
same. It’s difficult to see in the pic
below, but it does show the arrangement on the outside of the housing. Look closely at the tool arrangement…
17) Once the new
bearing is installed, reinstall the bearing race retainers and the four screws
that hold the retainers. I couldn't
find the torque specs in the manual, so I just did them pretty tight using a
3/8-drive socket... I assume that's enough.
18) Remove the hub
from the freezer and install into the bearing... my experience with the hub
really cold is it goes straight in without any force. Other people don't freeze the hub but use the EBS tool to press
the hub into place. Those that use the
EBS tool for this step have warned to assemble it correctly for the
installation or else you'll push out the inner race... I didn't want to take
the chance so freezing the hub worked great.
It slid right in without any force.
Once fully seated, let the hub heat up to room temperature. After getting the hub fully seated by hand,
I installed the EBS tool to make sure the hub didn’t slide out as it warmed up.
19) Carefully
reinstall the axle, making sure not to push the hub out of the bearing
again. Reinstall six 8mm hex bolts
holding the CV joint to the transmission.
20) Reinstall
rotor... then set parking brake extremely tight.
21) Reinstall 32mm
nut, torque to 339 ft-lbs. If the
parking brake doesn’t hold it, then do step#22 and have someone actuate the
brakes while you’re torquing the nut.
22) Reinstall brake
caliper (torque bolts to 85 ft-lbs).
Reinstall brake pads.
23) Reinstall heater
supply tube.
24) Reinstall wheel,
torque wheel bolts to 96 ft-lbs,
re-install transmission cover and suspension cover, and if you must,
reinstall the engine cover. Take car
off the jack stands. You’re done!
This was an easy DIY, especially with the right tools. Have fun!