Front wheel bearing

Fred Werring · Aug 7, 2016

So this was weird.

Daughters 99 cougar had what sounded like front hub bearing noise...noise would go away when turning left, louder when
turning right...figure it's the left bearing.

Put it up in the air with the wheels spinning about 50mph, listened with a stethoscope, couldn't tell a difference between
the two sides...go ahead and replace the left bearing.

It didn't help.

Same symptoms.

CV joints don't sound bad, so for lack of anything else to try, went ahead and replaced the right bearing...and the noise
went away.

So when I loaded up the right bearing while turning left, the noise would go away??? That's just strange. At least to me.

Anybody got a reason why?

Fred

PS I hate troubleshooting driveline and suspension noises

showcrop · Aug 7, 2016

Depends on whether it is inner or outer. During a left turn, the left inner and right outer carry the load.

Catskill Pete · Aug 7, 2016

Don't know the why, but after having a few Subaru's I have noticed if you hear noises in what seems like the right front wheel, check the left front or right rear. It's almost never the one it sounds like it is.

RWT · Aug 7, 2016

I took a wheel bearing apart that made a noise when you turned. You can't hardly imagine how narrow a track the balls were running on in a straight line and when you turned they got into the rough. This was on the outer race.

Yours to me sounds like it was just the opposite. When you turned it pulled it out of the rough to a good part. And I guess it was only rough on one side. Now how the balls kept from getting rough I don't know.

RT

Fred Werring · Aug 7, 2016

It's a pressed in one-piece bearing.

However, the bearings do have 2 rows of ball bearings inside them, maybe the inner row of
bearings on the right was bad. Beats me.

What's disturbing... i had replaced both sides about 3 years ago, the bearing that was making
the noise was the $57 National bearing, not the $27 Autozone duralast bearing on the left side.

Getting so you don't know what to buy anymore.
But the car is fixed, and that's what counts

Fred

jimg.allentown · Aug 7, 2016

When making turns, bearing loading changes. If an outer race is bad, turning to that side will reduce the noise. If the inner race is bad, just the opposite. Just as well to replace them both since the other side is usually just as old and just as worn.

Front wheel bearing

Fred Werring

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showcrop

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Catskill Pete

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RWT

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Fred Werring

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jimg.allentown

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