my car is having premature front wheel bearing failiure at 58000km (40000 mil). has anyone else has this problem? is warranty gonna cover it? the front is making loud whining sound. 100 percent sure it's the bearing.

 

if yr car is still in the OEM 4year/50K warranty period, you should have no problem getting it replaced

 

Wheel bearings at 40k miles is premature.
Are you sure it's not tire noise? I thought I had wheel bearing issues also until I rotated the tires and the noise moved with the tires.
2 new tires took care of the noise.

 

Grab the top of the tire and wiggle, checking for play. If you hear / feel popping relative to the other corners, it may well be a bad bearing.

 

this is not tire noise. i had a 1979 chevy PU with a slightly off-center front hub spindle, and that f*6%er would gobble bearings as fast as Homer Simpson gobbles donuts. yr MINI is in obvious pain. time to go to the doctor, grasshopper.

 

Mine went at around 40k too.....can't comment on the warranty cause I was out of it.

I thought it was tires....switched to a new set of tires to find that it was the bearings. Sounds like it's becoming more common recently

 

yeah . not the tires for sure. when wheel bearings starts making noise, they usually go bad real quick as there is room for the worn out bearing ***** to bounce around to wear itself out.there is no play at the wheel yet.

im taking it to the dealer tomorrow.

 

Because I had never heard of anyone having this problem....and since I thought it was tire noise for a long time......I went a long while without having the problem fixed. And as you mentioned, it gets worse fast......BUT...I don't think you'll ever get play in the wheel. Even after being shot for a good few months, there was zero sign of play in the wheel....and the regular test of shaking the wheel to notice play showed no signs of bearing issues despite obviously being a bearing problem.

Just a heads up for those who are used to checking for bearing issues by looking at the play in the wheels.

 

Can someone describe exactly what a bad wheel bearing sounds like? That may help others.

 

varies from car to car im sure, but it's kinda like a mediuim-high pitched squeal that gets progressively louder as the bearing wears down. think of it as a early warning system.

and when my Chevy PU's LF wheel bearing was shot, there was no play in the wheel whatsoever, of course it was RWD, I have no idea if there would be play in a FWD car. to me that would be dangerous to drive.

 

It's hard to put into letters....but my best is:


"whhuuurrrrr.................. whhuuurrrr.................. whhuuurrrr" spaced evenly and the pattern quickens as your speed increases....so at highway speeds it sounds like "whur whur whur whur whur"

It's like a low/deep droaning wwhuuurrr noise....almost sounds like a humming

 

Is this noise loud? Like you can hear it with the windows up or down?

 

It gets louder as it gets worse....and at first you only hear it at higher speeds around 55mph.

As they worsen, you start hearing it at lower and lower speeds. By the time mine were changed....it was even whirring when I was going 25mph.

Windows don't matter....you'll definitely hear it.

 

squeals, whines, hums, whirls: you will absolutely know when the bearing is about to go (Im a poet and dont knowit )

 

Mine was on the rear, not the front, but I had a wheel bearing go out too around 40,000 miles. It made a sound similar to a cupped tire tread, but much louder and a little deeper in tone. MINI covered it under warranty without any questions (I had my service advisor drive it on the highway so he heard the drone clearly).

 

It is useful to drive your car once in a while in a quiet parking garage with windows down and stereo off to listen to what your car sounds like when it is OK---turn left and right too.

Then, when you do this and something is awry, you will know it.

 

I changed a rear at 51,000......started hearing it some at time I bought the car [46K]...convinced myself it was tires....but by 51k knew better, it was getting very loud and annoying at highway speeds especially.
No play at all....as tight as new.........as others have said,..its not that typical for noticable play anymore in bad wheel bearings,..just noisy.

Steve
'05 MC
...no more '80 1100,..sold as of last friday

 

mine gone from ok to really bad over a week end cuz i drove 40 miles to race autocross and back. haha. i shouldnt have but there was price money on the line and i took first place at that race and won some money. the car is gonna get fix under warranty this friday so it's all good. hope the other side goes before warranty expires.

 

I have problems with the left front bearing too, but in Mexico the dealer sells each in 270 bucks, so I'll like to know if there is any better and cheaper aftermarkes bearing.

 

My driver side fornt happened just after 18,000km only, so the dealer got it fixed under warranty. You'll be fine.

 

My wheel bearings are definitely shot at 60,600 miles and it's starting to get worse. Really annoying on the highway.

So, how much do new wheel hubs cost?

 

Bump, the cost is $197 at the dealer. Does the part number include both left and right, or is that for each side?

Someone please help as I need to order these by Friday so I can have it fixed next week hopefully.

 

I just picked up one at my local dealer. List from them was $260 but discounted to $172 for local mini car club members. I will be replacing my left one Friday or Sat.

I am planning to find a place that can press a new bearing in the shot one if I ever have to replace the right side.

 

I believe it's one per side

Cheaper prices: http://www.germanautoparts.com/beta/...2/3063/6705389

 

Let us know if you have any luck finding someone that'll press a new bearing in the old hub.

I was afraid it was the price of just one.

Turner has the wheel hub w/ bearing for even cheaper at $139.95:
http://www.turnermotorsport.com/html...ID=31226756889