MercFiveHundred

I changed my wheel bearing myself last year and it went bad today. I heard a squeal the night before and i drove to work this morning when it just collapsed - like a blown tire almost. The wheel hub cap/cover came off and a metal clip of some sort was out. Grease was black. I got all sorts of messages pop up of ESP/ABS/BAS. Drove it home real slow - like 10 mins of grinding .

I guess i must have tightened it too much?- that what the dealership told me. They didn't want to replace the part i bought - only if i brought it into a MB shop and have then diagnose the failure, which would most likely be my fault. My question is how tight/loose do i have to make it? I thought that the nut only goes to a certain point and that's where the "max" point is.

Thanks
Nik

MB211

That would definitely be too tight......

aenupe3

Darn... I've been hearing a slight squeal every once in awhile when turning and applying the brake. I'm thinking my right front bearing is going bad. Where did you get your parts when you replaced it? Was it a hard job to do?

vettdvr

You are correct it is very easy to put too much preload on a bearing.

Here is how I do it and your results may vary. (I have never had a failure using my method but it is possible to have a failure) (my disclaimer )


[1] I will rotate the hub while using a wrench to LIGHTLY snug up the bearing nut.

[2] Once the nut is snug I will back off the nut and tighten again VERY LIGHTLY. This is to take the bearing to ZERO 0.000" clearance.

[3] This time with the nut snug STOP rotating the hub.

[4] Back off the nut just enough so you can move it with your fingers.

[5] Then WITHOUT turning the hub tighten the nut to a light finger tight position then lock it in place.


Remember when the bearing heats up the internal clearance gets tighter and will increase the preload and pressures can exceed the film strength of the lubricant resulting in bearing failure.

Now this is how I do it and I won't recommend this to anyone. But for me it works.

vettdvr.

MB211

Wheel bearing is domestic brake job 101......Should have learned how to do that in high school auto shop........

Not to be an @$$, but if you do not have basic knowledge of how to install a wheel bearing, you probably should not be working on your car.......

MercFiveHundred

Thanks Vett. That's what i've been reading and it seems your right - not too tight and not too loose.

aenupe3: There's more work than complexity to it. I did write it up before and it's somewhere on this forum. Do a search - to busy now as i'm at work. Maybe i'll take some pictures - if it's not too cold. BUT make sure it's the wheel bearing that's your problem and dont change it if your not sure it's it.

MercFiveHundred

Thanks for the helpful advice.

sosh

Another DIY gone wrong. Unqualified repair people do incorrect work. Guess you did not save as much as you thought you would.

bacnberger

Wow, isnt that terrible, he tried to learn something to help himself and it didnt work out the first time. At least he's not sitting on his fat &$$ criticizing people.

MercFiveHundred

I thought people come to this forum to get answers? If we were all "qualified repair" people, we wouldn't be on these forums asking questions, right? I can't believe how immature you people are - a "senior member" and a "Fanatic". You trolls really need to stop making a life of hassling people on the internet for your own entertainment - it really takes away from some great people on the forum.

MB211

Nobody is trolling. You took on a job that you did NOT know how to perform. It is one of the most basic jobs that anyone who has done brakes (not sealed bearing) has performed.

You are 100% the forum is here to learn. But you should have learned BEFORE performing the job. By performed this unqualified repair you could have endangered the lives of other motorists. What if it caused the wheel to fall off, or if it locked up????

Remember you starting the post complaining how the dealer wouldn't replace (warranty) the damaged item.......You had no idea.

I am all for learning. That just requires asking questions before screwing up.....

MB211

Search my posts...99.9% helpful......

sosh

The point is as mentioned that this is a very basic job. The OP did not know how to do it but guessed and was wrong. Don't you think he should have researched it before he started?? Not only is it a basic job but the consequenses of doing it wrong could be dangerous to him and others near him. Any idea of what a wheel flying off of a vehicle can do at 60 or 70 miles an hour. Get my point??

MercFiveHundred

I made an error, so what's the point of the antagonism? I'm trying to get it right. I was surprised by you MB211 because i've seen your posts and they are indeed helpful. Just rather you give me an answer than tell me how bad i messed up - because i already know i screwed up. Same for you sosh. You guys do have a great wealth of knowledge, but don't expect everyone not to make mistakes - yes, i should have researched it/asked before.

crazypotato

just replace it again with the proper torque.

vettdvr

Anything that anyone can do well was done for the 1st time by them not knowing how it would turn out.

Everyone has a first time.

The first time I changed plugs in my E500, I wasn't sure how it would turn out.

But I changed my 1st plug in 1953.

Moral,, everyone has a first time and everyone makes mistakes.

The only way you learn is by doing.

crazypotato

Provided that doesn't cause your life, there is no first time for safety.

vettdvr

The first time I used a parachute was a learning experience but it worked.

Hit the ground like a sack of potatoes. Ejections seats however also work the first time but they are really tough on L1 ... thru L4. Makes you sometimes walk with a limp.

But you are correct for doing the job AND SAFETY.

Define the problem..........Do the research..............Learn from others............Get the proper tools...................Use the manual.................Use OEM quality or better parts............do the job.

I normally spend 5 hrs in research for each 1 hr of actual doing the work.

sosh

Yes but we had not only bail out, ditching and ejection training but we also had sims for ditching in the USN. With the airlines and with corporate complex aircraft we always used sim training that gave you realistic experience. Fortunately I never had to use my emer Navy training but the Airline sim training was quite valuble. Same with DIY on your vehicle, it pays to watch someone do it and explain as he goes before jumping in and causing problems for yourself and others.

Nickthegreek

hey guys, alittle off topic but my 2003 e320 is reaching 100k and i thought it would be a good idea to repack my front bearings. Any idea what kind of bearing grease to use or can it be any ol'grease?

crazypotato

i think all you have to do is to remove the cap cover, clean out the old grease as much as you can and put new grease in. How difficult to remove the cap, I have no idea. Looking at WIS, it said it requires special tool??

mshrout

Im new to this website but not new to working on cars. vettdvr makes good points, you have to learn by doing and be safe at the same time. I also attempted to replace the bearings on the front hubs. Dealer was only showing the entire hubs as replacement, I tried to take another route and just get the bearing numbers off of the old bearings and install the replacement bearings with a new oil seal, (tone ring to mercedes) more on that in a minute. after unsuccesful attempts to get the ABS, ESP warnings off of the dash after installing the hubs with replacement bearings, I finally researched the bearings more. I only found the bearings that orinially came out of the hubs available from china.. the national bearing replacements were not an EXACT micro match of the old bearings, these newere bearings caused a difference in diameter or distance from the sensor in the knuckle which thru off the computer, hence my ABS, and ESP lights went off. I highly suggest that you buy the OEM mercedes hubs, they come fully assembled and ready to install with grease. just get your torque right on the spindle nut and you should be ready. Now the tone ring.... they call it the tone ring because it is a metal ring surrounded by rubber. this oil seal ring is installed same way as grease seal and it is used by the sensor to calculate your speed, ABS and ESP. so in short, I spent $80bucks on replacement bearings and then had to spend the cost of the new hubs on top of that. all is well now...

spinn

old topic, but wondering why people were not ordering just the replacement bearings; Mercedes EPC lists the bearings as separate items and they appear to be available through parts.com. Looks like they're available for my 04 E500. Did they only recently become available separately?

vettdvr

Be sure the bearings are correct. The oem have a chamfer on the inner race that seats on the spindle. If you have a conventional square cut bearing you can have a bearing failure.

Hope this is helpful. Buying a complete hub and installng is really a good way to go on this bearing.

vettdvr

Perhaps that's why your L1 thru L4 is in better shape than mine you only need 1 ejection to compress your spine. Most people working on a car can't afford the $$ to go to all the schools for training. Reapplication is really a normal way to do something new but ref my previous post of do the research 1st. Don't just charge in, do the research.

A special thanks to the navy in Gunfighter 56 for getting the Blue Bandit off my 6 north of Channel 103 though. Dont' know who GF 56 is but he has my thanks.