Should I Replace My Wheel Bearings?

[kings1527]

Hi all,

I last replace both the fronts and rears about 30k miles ago and currently have zero issues with my bearings. I'm doing a full brake rehab so I'll "be in there" and I'm wondering if I should replace my rear bearings, too. After pulling the front hubs, I'm anticipating the front bearings will split, so that answers that. I put in DMCH bearings in the rear about 7.5 years/30k miles ago and I'm not sure of the brand. SKF? Not sure.

Would you put new rear bearings in while you're in there?

Also, do front hubs experience wear and tear over time? Should I opt for new hubs in the front, too?

[r00b]

I wouldn't replace them unless they're starting to make noise, it's easy to replace the fronts.

[Jason]

My rear bearings made it 39 years and 230k miles before needing replacement. The fronts were replaced at least twice in the same period, but mostly because they split when the hubs were pulled to change the rotors.

[Delorean Industries]

The factory front hubs are very forgiving and can be serviced multiple times without issue. The rears on the other hand are not so accepting of multiple bearing removal and installation cycles. Few things to keep in mind on rear hubs.

___ Imperfect design to begin with
___ Cast in an era that is better forgotten
___ Metallurgic flaws are very common
___ Fatigue is very common due to age
___ Bore tolerances are inconsistent, very common to see movement of the bearing in the bore under loading conditions