Any tricks to removing the front wheel bearing? I've got the four bolts removed, but the damn thing won't budge. The splined axle shaft slides freely in and out, so I know it's not getting hung up there. It just seems frozen to the steering knuckle. I've tried giving it a few hard whacks with a hammer and block of wood to no avail. Am I missing something? Do I need a bigger hammer? I've got it soaking with PB Blaster right now...



Also, the Bentley says to remove the ABS sensor to avoid damaging it. This, too, doesn't want to budge. I tried prying at it with a screwdriver but I am afraid I'll damage it that way. I looked behind the wheel bearing and it doesn't seem like it could be damaged by removing the wheel bearing...

 

In case anyone is wondering, I got the wheel bearing off. I let it soak with PB Blaster for a day and tried heating it up with a propane torch but it still refused to budge. So after thinking about it for a while, here's how I did it, in case anyone else runs into this issue.

I used a small socket and a flat plate (from a caliper tool set - but any flat surface would work here) held against the steering knuckle, then threaded a lug bolt through the hole in the bearing hub. A few turns with a breaker bar, and the bearing backed away from the knuckle. I did the same with another hole on the bottom of the hub, and it eventually it fell right off.

Here's a pic of the setup:



My other tip for the wheel bearing replacement: Do not remove the ABS sensor. The Bentley manual says to remove this to avoid damaging it while replacing the bearing, but I caused more damage trying to remove it by prying and pulling on it than if I had left it alone. It doesn't need to come out to replace the bearing and I'm not sure why the Bentley says it needs to.

 

Good old Yankee ingenuity! Thanks...and you're right about the ABS sensor.

 

I hope that you replaced the bolts and the shaft nut, as it is unsafe to use the old ones. just my 5c
Regards

 

Yep, I sure did.

 

Great post, I know many of us are getting up there in miles and this will be a project most of us will be doing soon.

 

Man... I wish that would work on a VW Mk IV... Good idea, tho!

 

Do you by chance have the torque specs? I think I read that the axle nut is 134 ft-lbs, how about the 4 hub bolts?

Any trouble getting the 4 hub bolts off? Access OK?

I'm tackling this later this week on my '06 at 45000 miles on the front left. Did the brakes last weekend and the hub wobbles a bit.

Thanks for any additional help, your pictures and descriptions will help a lot.

Mosman

 

I don't know if this is too late for you, but I think 41lbs was the torque. I loosened the steering knuckle so I could wiggle a bit better. Using a couple different extensions I was able to get them off. Hammer the socket on lightly if they are grimey and keep the extension straight. They backed out but it was too hard for my air rachet to turn so it was a hand job. I had new bolts but the head was a bit large, so I cleaned and reused the old ones.

I was thinking of using plati-dip on the ends since they were the only bad part of the bolt. Covering the ends with anything would make life easier next time.

Marquette tip worked great for me too. Different scraps, but same result. Awesome help.

 

I just replaced my front wheel bearings today and my passenger side was stuck. After removing all the bolts including the axle nut I threaded one of the bearing mounting bolts half way in, put the socket and short extension on it and wacked the extension with a small sledge hammer. Popped the bearing right out.

 

I've got the same problem. I can't see the pictures of how Marquette fixed it.

 

I ended up using this tool my brother made.
It worked great for the passenger side.
However, now that I am doing the driver side it will not budge.
I have had to replace the bolts three times on this tool and can't get this hub to turn loose.
I feel that I must be missing something here...

 

so i went to autozone and rented this puller
http://www.autozone.com/autozone/acc...dentifier=2050

came right off
If i had known this thing existed i would have saved myself a lot of time and trouble.
if you give them a deposit you can use it and bring it back no charge

so now on to my next problem.

somewhere along the way tis ring came loose and as you can see it got bent

how important is this?
can i just straighten it out the best i can and put it back or do i need a new one?

 

You're a genius dude! Thanks so much for posting. It was late Sunday, all stores were closed that might have a bearing puller to rent and I couldn't beat the thing off for nothing. Ran across your thread and used the brake tool just like you showed and boom, it came right out!

Thanks Again,
Kevin
Muscle Shoals, AL