99 Toyota Camry when should replace wheel bearings?

[cougarhunter]

So my 99 toyota camry needs to have the rotors replaced because they are heat scarred (Les Schwab) they have ridges when you run your finger from the inside of the rotor to the outside. Has new calipers and 50% left on the brakes. My question is when replacing the rotors should I replace the wheel bearings? It has 148,000 miles on it. How can you tell if one is going bad? Will it just squeal or something as you're driving down the road? I was letting you know about what's going on with the rotors with the heat and I was wondering if the bearings have anything to do with it? You know if they aren't spinning as good as they are maybe getting to much resistance and heat build up while driving? On average how many miles before you should replace the the front and rear bearings?

[menthol]

your damaged rotor will have little to NO effect on your wheel bearings. replace the wheel bearings when they make that annoying grinding, whop-whop sound. most roads in the US are paved smooth so wheel bearings lasts over there than they do over here. i had to replace 2 front bearings here in under 50K miles co'z the roads here are like the martian landscape.

[mazdaverx7]

you can check the play in each bearing by either measuring it with the proper tool or by feeling it by hand and checking for play. unless its making noise, leave it be.

[cougarhunter]

Should I try to lube them? I assume they are sealed. But that's what I thought they were for my early 91 honda accord that use to have. And I also worked on a 98 honda civic and you cold take (at least on the rear) the bearings and pop the little metal half circular ring out and them pop the metal plate on the bearing to expose the bearings. I then would clean them and then put bearing grease in it and then put the plate back on it and the snap ring. Every time I did this for either my cars or others I would notice it would sure coast a lot further. Being they were high mileage vehicles.

[menthol]

Originally Posted by cougarhunter

Should I try to lube them? I assume they are sealed. But that's what I thought they were for my early 91 honda accord that use to have. And I also worked on a 98 honda civic and you cold take (at least on the rear) the bearings and pop the little metal half circular ring out and them pop the metal plate on the bearing to expose the bearings. I then would clean them and then put bearing grease in it and then put the plate back on it and the snap ring. Every time I did this for either my cars or others I would notice it would sure coast a lot further. Being they were high mileage vehicles.

it would be a BADDDD idea in this case. bearings, at least for this car, are sealed for a reason. i remember the same thing on my dad's cargo trucks, my dad would pry the tin covers of them bearings and grease them up like an opened up velocity joint. besides, bearing wear and damage will most likely begin on the pits that the metal balls make when you hit a pothole hard enough.

[JohnGD]

Worn wheel bearings typically will give off a growling noise. The hub may also run warmer. Under typical conditions wheel bearings should last 120-150K miles without problems. So that's the range to expect replacement and start watching from 100-120K miles.

Consider getting a Timken bearing and new hub kit. Some hubs are worn/damaged or just plain hard to remove from the inner bearing race.

[cougarhunter]

So I took my rear wheels off and I was going to replace the drums on the back. And so I tried turning the hub. And it was really stiff to turn. I'm not noticing any squealing when I'm driving. Just when I brake. And my shoes are still good and every time they clean the dust out of them they don't squeak for a while. So I decided on replacing the drums. When I got in there and started turning the hub it didn't spin very well and took some good effort to spin them. The grease inside had turned white and hard and crusty. My car has 147,000 on it. Do you think it would be worth it to replace the bearings? Both the right and left ones have a lot of drag when spinning them. I can't see how a new one spins to feel if I need a new one or not, as the parts store didn't have the full kit for it with the 5 stud plate with the threaded bolt going through it with the nut on the end of it. It's non abs. They just had the bearing part that has the four mounting bolts on it. So I'm having to order it online to get the whole complete unit. Do you guys think it would be best to replace them? And if I do should I throw a little wheel bearing grease in it on the back side before mounting it?

[fenixus]

I actually killed my rear wheel bearings myself (fronts got shot on their own though even before I got the car) by spraying brake parts cleaner into the ABS sensor opening in the rear hub ... what I didn't know at that time was that rear bearings are actually exposed, no seal over there, other than the hub seal to carrier.

rear bearings are one with the rear spindle/hub, they are held by 4 bolts inside the drum and there is some lousy rubber o-ring too.

I replaced mine at 127k miles or so for the reason you observed, increased spin resistance and caked/hardened grease. I used Timken cartridges (they come with new o-rings, bearings are pre-greased and hub has 5 studs and everything you need to replace it successfully), rear wheels spin much better/easier with them. note they make different ones for ABS application (tone ring) and for non-abs (no tone ring). I bought mine from rockauto.com, they were not too expensive (when compared to new OEM).

Originally Posted by cougarhunter

So I took my rear wheels off and I was going to replace the drums on the back. And so I tried turning the hub. And it was really stiff to turn. I'm not noticing any squealing when I'm driving. Just when I brake. And my shoes are still good and every time they clean the dust out of them they don't squeak for a while. So I decided on replacing the drums. When I got in there and started turning the hub it didn't spin very well and took some good effort to spin them. The grease inside had turned white and hard and crusty. My car has 147,000 on it. Do you think it would be worth it to replace the bearings? Both the right and left ones have a lot of drag when spinning them. I can't see how a new one spins to feel if I need a new one or not, as the parts store didn't have the full kit for it with the 5 stud plate with the threaded bolt going through it with the nut on the end of it. It's non abs. They just had the bearing part that has the four mounting bolts on it. So I'm having to order it online to get the whole complete unit. Do you guys think it would be best to replace them? And if I do should I throw a little wheel bearing grease in it on the back side before mounting it?

[cougarhunter]

Originally Posted by fenixus

I actually killed my rear wheel bearings myself (fronts got shot on their own though even before I got the car) by spraying brake parts cleaner into the ABS sensor opening in the rear hub ... what I didn't know at that time was that rear bearings are actually exposed, no seal over there, other than the hub seal to carrier.

rear bearings are one with the rear spindle/hub, they are held by 4 bolts inside the drum and there is some lousy rubber o-ring too.

I replaced mine at 127k miles or so for the reason you observed, increased spin resistance and caked/hardened grease. I used Timken cartridges (they come with new o-rings, bearings are pre-greased and hub has 5 studs and everything you need to replace it successfully), rear wheels spin much better/easier with them. note they make different ones for ABS application (tone ring) and for non-abs (no tone ring). I bought mine from rockauto.com, they were not too expensive (when compared to new OEM).

How was it when you spun the new ones versus the old ones? I'm spinning the hub by hand and not with the wheel attached to it and it's doing that. Mine is non abs.

[JohnGD]

I'd go with the Timken assembly. Here is the thread where Fenixus did the rear bearings:
V6 rear wheel(s) humming on highway

Also another rear wheel bearing replacement. Note both threads have the "tone rings" - square-tooth gear on the back.
Rear wheel bearing R & R - How to and why

[BMR]

Originally Posted by cougarhunter

How was it when you spun the new ones versus the old ones? I'm spinning the hub by hand and not with the wheel attached to it and it's doing that. Mine is non abs.

A new one won't spin super easily. If ya give it an aggressive twirl, it'll stop within a half revolution or so. When you spin your old one slowly, do you feel any stiff spots?... another reason to replace 'em.