That is a nice price. But after shipping which will probalby be $15-$20 these days (its a heavy part) it will not be that much cheaper than what my discount got from the dealer. And I can do it this weekend because I am not waiting for shipment delay.

 

I ran across this thread by chance. My car's been making a "wherf wherf wherf wherf" type of sound that gets faster as I speed up. I'm now wondering if this could be my problem. I was thinking the front end may be out of alinement. I only have 2k left on my warranty, so I guess I should take it in and see.

 

You do not need to press these bearings, they come as a hub assembly which is why they are on the expensive side, and they are very easy to replace, just remove the rotor and axle nut, behind the hub are 4 13mm screws. Remove those and a few smacks with a hammer will do it. Takes about 15 min.

 

Searchin around, I came across this thread and have a question. What is the interval between onset of the noises to total failure? 20 miles, 2000 miles? Just curious as I'm going through the debate between the mechanics, who say its due to bad tires and the tire guys saying its a bad bearing!! I think its a bad tire (out of round, manufacturer defect, whatever) since it has been over 2k miles since onset. Look forwarding to what say ya'll!

Cheers!!

 

At least for the rear hubs, you can go a long time with the bearing making noise but not failing. Mine was noisy for probably 4000 miles before it got bad enough that I could point it out to the dealer and get it replaced. The noise gets gradually louder (and is worse at speed), so you won't catch it right away, but mine never failed and I don't think I've heard other stories of failure here, either.

 

agree - i had 2k on a bad RF before anyone could diagnose it

replaced after the Mini dealer said no problem, and Turner Motorsport said bad RF bearing

when i held the hub in my hand you could feel the notchiness in the bearing, but even the wheel weight itself made it hard to feel on the car

it was audible though, and i am attentive to that stuff

 

That seems to be how modern European wheel bearings are failing these days. My wheel never developed any discernable play, but the noise got so loud that passengers always commented on it. I've known a couple of Volvo owners who had the same thing happen to their cars, and the mechanic said that the bearings now usually stay tight even when they go bad. Must be that bearing metals or tolerances these days have a different failure mode than back in the old days when it was easy to tell by rocking the wheel.

 

I changed my front right wheel bearing in January at 72000 mi and I just did the front left a few weeks ago at 78000 mi. I thought that was early, but given the number of track events on my car I had to assume it was normal wear.

 

I just had a right front bearing go at 40,000 miles
on 2006 mini (STD)
no noise for warning signs just loose hub

 

ended up going to a 2nd place and it was not the wheel bearing... just the hub large nut was loose

 

A couple of months ago I would have bet the farm that I had a bad wheel bearing, I pulled them all and turned them by hand, inspected, etc. I rotated tires, everything I could think of.

I even offered another MINI owner that if he would let me run around the block with his wheels and tires on my car, I would clean his wheels and rotate his wheels when I put them back on and inspect his brakes. He thought that was too much trouble for him. Sheesh, all he had to do was sit in my driveway for and hour and suck beer while I did all the work.

I'm an old fart and have heard and replaced many wheel bearings so I was confident of what it was.

My tires were getting thin so I put on a new set... instantly no wheel bearing noise. It apparently was a broken belt in a tire all along. I was very surprised and happy at the same time.

YD

 

"whhuuurrrrr.................. whhuuurrrr.................. whhuuurrrr"
Oh damn my front left wheel is making that exact noise. I first noticed it when my sister was driving my car down my driveway towards me in neutral.

So wheel bearings, eh? How much do this parts cost? Should I replace both front ones at the same time or even replace all 4?

 

 

^^^ at 60K check the front control arm bushings we have found they run bad about the same time as the front wheel bearings.

 

any one did order parts from the sites? unbleiveable cheap!! thanks so much for post that out!

 

I'm surprised these 2 guys can't see that both are true. A bad tire can eventually damage the bearing and a loose bearing will cause uneven wear on a tire. That's why regular wheel rotation can help even out wear pattern on the tires and in turn puts less stress on the bearings.

A bad/worn bearing begins to make noise and gradually gets louder. You'll hear it and should have enough time to have it replaced.

 

With wheel noises, it's always best to isolate by rotating the tires. Noises caused by unevenly worn tires will move with the tire while bearing noise stays at the same corner(s).

 

I started hearing a noise today. not sure if its a wheel bearing or not, cant pin point where its coming from. It doesnt seem to get louder, actually I dont hear it pass 2K rpm. I hear it from take off up until my exhaust/intake drown it out.

 

In my experience wheel bearing noise is a low growling type whirring[if that makes any sense] usually getting loudest at about 40mph after that it rises in pitch with speed. Also turning gently to one side or another will make it louder as the wheel is loaded to the side.The noise is usually from pitting or denting in the inner or outer race and has to be pretty far gone to exhibit any noticible play in the wheel when pulled on.Many times tires are the origin of the noises due to heel/toe wear on the tread blocks caused by improper inflation and lack of rotation.This kind of wear will make a hum/whirr that rises in pitch with speed.The tread will feel like steps as you run your hand along in the direction of travel and it doesn't take much wear depending on the tread pattern to create a lot of noise.Hope this helps if you are trying to diagnose a noise problem.

 

took my 02 mini in to my local tire dealer for 5000 mile tire rotation, tire repair (screw in front tire), and noise as described by earlier post (whuur...whuuur)...learned that at 80K front bearings needed replacement.... dealer said a front end alignment would be necessary...is this standard?

 

This!! I came in here to tell you guys about my experience since that always helps to have someone chime in who had the problem

I hit a curb once around 20k miles and that messed up my bearings the first time. The sound is exactly as described, a whurring sound. It gyrates, almost like your car is a gliding UFO across the highway! It actually sounds kinda funny and fitting but it really makes your car vibrate and you start to feel like you're in a REAL airplane cockpit because of all the noise. The sound was most prominent around 60-80 mph and definitely changed pitch with speed

It was fixed and then it came back again on its own about 10k miles down the road. Fixed under warranty or "good will" every time...

 

Ive been wondering if i have a bearing issue for a while, it started with not paying attention while pulling out of a corner parking space (i was backed in), i drove over the rounded/sloped curb, causing my car to drop onto (and rip off) the PF jack block. The noise started around then, possibly then. Shortly after it was time to get my inspection sticker, and i found out the outer tie rod was bad. Replaced. Wheels aligned. Noise was still there. Rotated tires. Still have noise. Could it be the bearing, or something else? Havent seen any other damage down there. It is loudest between 55-70mph, seems to go away when turning to the left, and sounds like im running some oversized tires with big tread.

 

I'd jack up each front one at a time and check for play in the bearing. Might also be bad Ball Joint. Could even be an axle going bad hard to say without being there with your MINI.

 

If you can find a MINI buddy, offer him something he wants and put his tires/wheels on your MINI and drive around the block. Then you will know what is going on.

Offer this kind person that you will rotate his tires and inspect his brakes while you are doing this. Quickest and cheapest way to nail this down.

My money is still on your tires.

YD

 

This is exactly how I fixed the problem too.... Just to be sure when you're driving next time, try this... but BE CAREFUL

When the sound is very prominent at the specified speeds.. (65 mph to be sure) try veering in your lane a little to the left and right. If the sound goes away when you're driving in the direction that you hit the curb in at the time, then it's your bearings. I hit a curb turning left, for example, and when I'd turn left the sound seemed to disappear slightly.