How to diagnose a bad wheel bearing

The tech at the dealership that I have work done at told me that my right rear wheel bearing is starting to go. I trust this particular 20+ year master tech and this dealership.

I can't hear or perceive any issue whatsoever, though.

What is the diagnostic procedure?

It's expensive as hell to replace, so I don't want to do it unless it's absolutely necessary.

Thanks for any help.

 

Usually noise and/or looseness are the main signs of a failed bearing, if its leaking gear oil from behind the brake drum it's likely just the axle seal.
You can set the rear axle on jack-stands and check for looseness and even run it in the air to listen for noises.

 

I was going to ask: is the wheel bearing live lubed by the differential gear oil?

 

Pull the drum and rotate the axle.

Use a screwdriver as a stethoscope.

Hold the tip near the bearing housing and put the handle against your ear. You will hear the gravelly sound if it's bad .

 

The rear outer axle bearings are not, they are sealed ball bearings with an additional seal on the axle shaft to prevent oil leakage.
The inner differential carrier bearings are.

 

https://youtu.be/l-Y1yIEwEXw if you jack it up and it does this.. .. It's really really bad.....





Don't ask how I know


Edit..... This Is on the front

 

It's not a hard job changing the bearings.

It is money ahead to pull the axle along with backing plate and just take the whole assembly to a machine shop. Let them press off and press on a new bearing. The axle and backing plate is only Heald in place with four bolts.

The hardest part is removing the brake and park brake assemblies.

 

The tears are never side to side sloppy.

 

Yeah.... Posted and then thought about that. Oh well . My bad. Just ignore my presence

 

We must be related.

Neither one of us can type for fuck all .

 

Stupid fat fingers

 

I paid $600 for one axel. Not cheap. With repair manual and right tools (including a press) anything is possible.

edit: not one axel, one bearing.

 

The job in itself is pretty straight forward. Except for the the need for a “good” jig to remove and replace the bearing. It’s pressed on. You could cut the bearing off, but beat the new one on with a pipe. But that a hack job way of doing it. And you are asking for trouble.

If the shop you have doing it doesn’t have the right equipment or know how, you could end up with a bent axle. Just ask @Larzzzz

This isn’t a job you want to go to the lowest bidder. You need to make sure they have experience and the right equipment.

 

@TnShooter that's right. Just rip the scabs off that wound and pour some alcohol on it... . It's all good.

But ya, not a job for those lacking in common sense.

 

Sorry buddy. But I remember that mess.
I still haven’t figured out what they did to bend the axle. Maybe they didn’t remove the big C-clip when trying to press it off?

I still feel bad for you. That’s one of those cases where:

You know if you do it yourself you’ll f**k it up. So you pay someone to do it for you, and it gets f**led up anyways. So now you paid someone tear up something you could have done yourself for free. That’s my luck too

 

Just so happens Eric O posted a video doing one yesterday.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orgTOUsD52Q
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9o3__e9VHyI

 

@TnShooter that is exactly what happened.

The saving grace was another axle from the junkyard diff that made the removal tool (s).

Live and learn.

 

Noise using a screwdriver as a stethescope is one way to tell. Any "whobblyness" of the wheel from side to side or up and down is a sign it's been bad for a while and you are on borrowed time. I made a thread somewhere on hear on the R&R, it's not that hard of a job but a bit time consuming and you need to make or buy a couple speciality tool for pressing the old bearing off.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/how-to-rear-axle-bearing-seal-replacement.734924/

 

Thanks! I don't know where you keep all these links squared away, I can't keep track of the threads even I made let alone someone else LOL