Loose wheel bearings after 6000 miles.

[OGBeno]

Put me in the camp of believing that you need 2 new spindles. I just got 2 new ones when I replaced the axle housing in January and they are sweet. The bearings tightened up perfectly and no slop after 4 months.

No doubt they are expansive, but then you know it's right for another 10 years or so.

Ding, ding, ding.

 

[Kernal]

I'm waiting for the special new old stock we-ordered-too-many-spindles sale

In hindsight I should have replaced them last year before I installed the new spindle bearings. I'll run them for awhile and see how they do with the staking/dimpling.

 

[OGBeno]

I'm waiting for the special new old stock we-ordered-too-many-spindles sale

Probably not anytime soon.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

I'm waiting for the special new old stock we-ordered-too-many-spindles sale

I.

LOL. Don't hold your breath.

You're more likely to find the Made in China replacement spindles made from a picture of an actual spindle and recycled coat hangers.

I replaced mine because they were just starting to need it at 140K, I had it all apart, and I spent so much $$ at American Toyota on parts that the extra $400 did not even register with the SO.

 

[Kernal]

I'll get Toyota spindles when I dig into it next. I've seen ads by companies that say they can rebuild spindles but don't know how they do it??

 

[Tools R Us]

I'll get Toyota spindles when I dig into it next. I've seen ads by companies that say they can rebuild spindles but don't know how they do it??

Depending on how they do it, could be good. For instance, if they are hard chrome or hard face weld, then ground to size, they would be better, more durable, than new. The main question would be, can they do it cost effectively?

 

[Kernal]

I packed my wheel bearings a year ago with Mobil synthetic "Red" grease; today found very dark red almost brown/purple grease in the inner wheel bearing. The grease packed in the hub looks fresh, but the grease in and around the bearing is almost brown; is this a normal change for this grease?

 

[Cruiserdrew]

Sometimes it gets a bit of the moly grease or dirt in it and it does discolor a bit in use. If the bearings look good, it's doing it's job. That does not look crazy abnormal to me. Use black grease if it bothers you.


If you find a reasonable to resurface the spindles, I have at least 1 I'll send in.

 

[Kernal]

HA!, outta sight outta mind. I didn't have a new hub seal so sorta packed the inner bearing in place, was able to force some fresh grease in and the brown stuff out. Now that I think about it when I grease the U-joints with Mobil Red the old stuff does look sorta clear/brownish so maybe that's just normal for this grease.

After dimpling/staking the PS spindle I forgot to try it out with the bearing by itself, so after I got the hub back on and then the outer bearing I found it was a bit too tight and found it difficult to move the bearings in or out. I was able to loosen it some by putting the wheel back on for leverage but decided not to take it off; figured if I could loosen it then it isn't too tight. I ended up using a small brass drift to make sure it was seated evenly in the race. Either way it'll be another experiment to see if dimpling/staking helps keep the bearings tight on worn spindles. I'll check around and see if it is possible or cost effective to somehow renew a worn spindle.

 

[jeffro109]

I have to admit that I had to set the preload torque at 30 ft-lbs or a little more to get the fish scale pull to register over 6 pounds. Same thing happened for rear and front wheel bearings, using the red Mobil 1 synthetic grease. New bearings in the rear, just a repack on the fronts. Rear spindles have a wear groove and had very loose old bearings, the front spindles look perfect though.

I have noticed no ill effects so far, driven with the rears serviced for over 3k miles, just did the fronts. MPG was still 17+MPG on the highway after the rear service, no noises, no hubs or wheels that are too hot after a long trip.