GX 470 Front wheel bearings question/advice?

[DRANGED]

I'm half way through a front end refresh/rebuild and dove in a little prematurely with parts... as one does...

What is the going opinion on wheel bearings? I assume Lexus/Toyota bearings are the hands-down choice, b u t.... without access to the right presses and sleeves, I'm hogtied on finishing this job myself. oh and there's not really a reliable shop anymore in my 2-horse town. *UGH*
I ask b/c I got Lexus front wheel bearings from an online Lexus parts seller without realizing the hubs are pressed into them (DUMB@$$).

So do people press in their bearings or get aftermarket hub-bearings and bolt those onto the knuckles?

I have Lexus bearings and got Car Quest 'Better" hubs and the 'one' [previously decently reliable] shop in town won't tough them. They say to buy the complete assembly (that's what they do), and just bolt them in.
NAPA has their brand assemblies warrantied for like 60K miles or Dorman assemblies with limited lifetime warranty
(each around $200)
b u t t h e y ' r e n o t T o y o t a / L e x u s b e a r i n g s.

Do I hassle with trying to press in the hubs to my Lexus bearing, cuz i have them, or punt and buy the Dormans hoping i can return the other bits?

 

[Rednexus]

I used these pre-pressed ones:

2003-2024 4Runner 4x4 complete KOYO or NSK Front Wheel bearing assembly (1 pair) | yotabearingsandhubs

This is for a Pair(2) Koyo Wheel bearing assemblies. Item will ship USPS Priority mail which means it will arrive in 1-3 days depending on your location. You will receive a 2 completely assembled front wheel bearing and hub Assembly. These will be assembled by a Toyota Master Technican. The...

www.yotabearingsandhubs.com

Koyo/NSK bearings (same as OE), Doorman hub, Toyota bolts and seals. They've been totally fine. Super-easy to install as well....maybe 45 minutes per side. I would also be ready to replace your inner wheel bearing seal at the same time you do these, as it's often damaged when the CV is pulled.

You can also get bearing assemblies with a OE Toyota hub, but they are more $$$. The hubs in these rigs don't seem to have problems, just the bearings, so I'm not sure the OE hub is worth the extra cash. The NAPA hubs might be fine as well, but only if they are a Koyo bearing.

The cheapo PO-installed, no-name front bearing my rig had before only lasted 40K miles or so. So, avoid the non-Koyo/NSK bearings at all costs.

 

[Jstawgn]

I went roque and use genuine SKF bearing. The one I got from rockauto is made in USA and with the normal 5%off coupon it was less than $100.
SKF invented cartridge bearing. I cannot find any bad review about our application. There are a lot more Koyo bad reviews from vendors that are pretty known for selling them at high prices.

 

[Rednexus]

I went roque and use genuine SKF bearing. The one I got from rockauto is made in USA and with the normal 5%off coupon it was less than $100.
SKF invented cartridge bearing. I cannot find any bad review about our application. There are a lot more Koyo bad reviews from vendors that are pretty known for selling them at high prices.

Koyos are the OE bearings and made in Japan. I went back and looked at my install pics and mine were actually NSK bearings, which are also Japanese made and used in lots of OE Toyota and other OE Japanese applications (the timing belt idler bearings on my old Forester were all NSKs).

That being said, I've used SKFs in other applications - namely my wife's old Outback - and they are indeed a very high-quality, South Korean-made bearings. It looks like the SKFs are around $100 on Rock Auto and $200 from NAPA. Of course NAPA will have real warranty support, but these are easy enough to change out that it's probably worth getting them from Rock Auto and paying out of pocket if there is an issue later on down the line.

Regardless, I think the lifespan on the front wheel bearings is maybe ~100K for most rigs.

 

[DRANGED]

I'd seen this thread but lost it.

But what was lost now is found!

http://bluepitbearings.com/2003-2009-GX470-4x4-Complete-Front-Hub-Wheel-Bearing.php#vehiclelist

BluPit bearings are also the shizz?!.

 

[fjc-man]

You could get assembled bearings and hubs with koyo bearings for 170.00 each from yotabearingsandhubs.com

 

[GXO]

I'd seen this thread but lost it.

But what was lost now is found!

http://bluepitbearings.com/2003-2009-GX470-4x4-Complete-Front-Hub-Wheel-Bearing.php#vehiclelist

BluPit bearings are also the shizz?!.

All I order. Good stuff.

 

[DRANGED]

You could get assembled bearings and hubs with koyo bearings for 170.00 each from yotabearingsandhubs.com

All I order. Good stuff.

Thanks gents.

So

Shop | Yota Bearings and Hubs

Shop for American made bearings and hubs.

www.yotabearingsandhubs.com

&

2003-2009 Lexus GX470 4x4 DORMAN HUB/KOYO BEARING Wheel Hub Assembly

2003-2009 Lexus GX470 4x4 DORMAN HUB/KOYO OEM Bearing Front Wheel Bearing Assembly

bluepitbearings.com

And CruiserTeq has some options too, a couple for the GX as I learned.

Cruiser Teq | Powered by Cruiser Outfitters

Cruiser Teq is powered by Cruiser Outfitters. Get high quality OEM and aftermarket Land Cruiser parts direct to your door, fast!

cruiserteq.com

I guess that's the route and now to figure out how to return mylparts.com bits...

 

[Jstawgn]

That blue pit bearings is $315 each shipped. What makes it worth so much more?

 

[Rednexus]

That blue pit bearings is $315 each shipped. What makes it worth so much more?

Looks like they are using a OE Toyota hub instead of the Chinese Doorman hub.

Per my previous post - I'm not sure the OE Toyota hub is worth it. The hubs in these rigs really don't fail, but the bearings do. My rig has Doorman hubs in it and we used Doorman hubs with Koyo bearings on my buddy's 1st gen Tundra (which, unlike the GX, requires the bearing to be pressed into the steering knuckle and is therefore much less DIY friendly). The Doorman hubs have been fine for me and appeared to be a high-quality piece of machined steel for both rigs.

TBH I might try the SKF assemblies next time as they are even cheaper and the hubs are so easy to replace anyway.

 

[DRANGED]

It's my First time into this job in my GX, 3rd owner and I've put 100K on it in 8 years.
I bought Lexus bearings not knowing they're pressed onto the hub then got dorman hubs from Car Quest, but once together (per rednexus) that assembly does just bolt to the knuckle....once I can get them married together (with the seal) and mounting bolts I should be able to progress...

In the future I'd go the toyotahubsandbearings route or maybe cruiserteq with yota bearings but I'm in a pickle now that I've already paid once and have the disassembled bits.

Learning curves, they're always around!!

 

[fjc-man]

Just remember to drop the mounting bolts in the bearing flange before you press the hub into the bearing. Haste makes waste.

 

[Rednexus]

FYI you will likely need to get a press anyway when your rear wheel bearings inevitably fail . Unfortunately they are not like the front and require some special adapters to a 20 ton press. Mine still seem fine at 188K but they ain't gonna last forever.

It honestly was not that bad pressing the Koyo bearings into the 1st gen Tundra knuckles. Except for the first one where I used one of the Tundra brake rotors as a base in the press - and promptly broke the mounting flange, causing my buddy to have to buy a new $120 rotor. That's the price he paid for free labor, usage of my tools, and another buddy's press .

 

[cruiseroutfit]

I’ll put this here:

Wheel Hub Bearing Assembly (Japanese Bearing) - Fits 120/150/GX470/GX460/FJC/4RNR Front LH/RH Applications (FAHUBGXKITJP)

Wheel Hub Bearing Assembley

cruiserteq.com

Fantastic value imo, assembled and ready to install, we’ve had fantastic longevity with these.

 

[DRANGED]

Alright, I got the hubs pressed into the Toyota bearings
View attachment 3784940View attachment 3784941


BIG shout out to Rich a new mobile mechanic in Moab!!! When in Moab, hit him up for repairs and i guess even some trail recovery work.
View attachment 3784931

 

[DRANGED]

3 mo Follow-up.
Shop says right bearing is 'fall-out bad'.

The most trusted mechanic/owner is back in town for shop that didn't want to press the hub into the bearing, so he's getting things straight.again
Anyway, I took it in to have them reset my five new TPMS sensors cuz the other shop in town couldn't get it right on two different visits. When I got the call back I was expecting them to say it's ready to go, but instead they said that the front right wheel bearing is fall out bad....

Possibly just new-bad. Bummer cuz.Lexus Koyo bearing too.

SO!
I just ordered an assembly from Shop | Yota Bearings and Hubs - https://www.yotabearingsandhubs.com/shop
Dorman hub, yota master tech pressed Koyo/NSK bearing.

Ugh!

 

[Rednexus]

3 mo Follow-up.
Rt side must not have been pressed all the way as shop says it's 'fall-out bad'.
I took it into the shop that refused to press them together 3 months ago, because the most trusted mechanic/owner is back in town now and getting things straight.
Anyway, I took it in to have them reset my five new TPMS sensors cuz the other shop in town couldn't get it right on two different visits. When I got the call back I was expecting them to say it's ready to go, but instead they said that the front right wheel bearing is fall out bad....

SO!
I just ordered an assembly from Shop | Yota Bearings and Hubs - https://www.yotabearingsandhubs.com/shop
Dorman hub, yota master tech pressed Koyo/NSK bearing.

Ugh!

That's what I've used, they have been fine to date.

FYI, I think I fried my old wheel bearings by putting the axle nut on with my M18 impact. It went way past the 173 ft/lb torque spec so they were running with way too much preload. I now have a 250 ft/lb capacity torque wrench I use on them to get them right at 173 ft/lbs. Hopefully they'll last 100K this time.