E46 front wheel bearing DIY

what is the inner race you guys speak of? i think i know but a picture would help greatly

thanks

Originally Posted by boyguan

what is the inner race you guys speak of? i think i know but a picture would help greatly

thanks

The picture above step 15 shows a puller removing the inner race. Compare that pic to the one with the clean spindle and you will note the back half of the inner race.

thanks for the write up.

only part i worry about is this inner race. i dont want to damage anything trying to get it off. i am very mechanically inclined but i am being catious.

what is the chance of damaging something getting the inner race off? i am curious why it seperates anyways

i think one of my fronts is going, thanks for this.. it will save me from having to run to the auto-parts store multiple times to get the right tools/parts.

i did this on a 1990 plymouth voyager once in 30 minutes with very basic and crappy tools.. the hub/bearing assembly was $314 or something too which was pretty lame.

I did change rear and front wheel bearings this week. One question though for the OP, how did you reinstall front bearing rear seal cover. In your writeup you "gently tap it out" with the punch. It looks like it is "permanent press" type of cover and requires to be properly seated before hub installation. Or maybe it is pushed by the bearing into the proper position during installation?

I tried all kinds of things to get that seal into the place, could not get it %100, so I just figured I will push the hub in and it will push the seal cover into place. So far so good, no rubbing.

Originally Posted by djdonis

I did change rear and front wheel bearings this week. One question though for the OP, how did you reinstall front bearing rear seal cover. In your writeup you "gently tap it out" with the punch. It looks like it is "permanent press" type of cover and requires to be properly seated before hub installation. Or maybe it is pushed by the bearing into the proper position during installation?

I tried all kinds of things to get that seal into the place, could not get it %100, so I just figured I will push the hub in and it will push the seal cover into place. So far so good, no rubbing.

^ Congrats on completing the jobs.

To answer your question... I just cleaned up the rear dust covers and pushed them on by hand and they seemed to go all the way on without having to tap/straighen them up with a drift to get them all the way seated.

Originally Posted by GDA

^ Congrats on completing the jobs.

To answer your question... I just cleaned up the rear dust covers and pushed them on by hand and they seemed to go all the way on without having to tap/straighen them up with a drift to get them all the way seated.

I had to tap mine into place. I used a piece of 2" ABS drain pipe with a piece of 2x4 at the end.

i had some trouble getting the new hub on as i needed to tap it in. i was worried that i was going to marr the spindle. what i did was i took the 46mm socket and tapped it on as sit was just right to seat against the bearing and the inner part of the hub. worked great.

my inner race came off with a few spins and did not need a puller or to dremel it. the trick for leaving the rotor on and tapping it with a mallet really works as i think that is what cause the hub to come off so easily. i finished this in about 1.5 hours from pull in to cleaned up and on the road.

I'm planning on doing this over the weekend and had a question for those who have already done this.

Reading thru all of this, it seems that you would need to use a puller or a dremmel to get the inner race off if it does in fact get stuck behind. I don't have a dremmel nor do I have a puller. I do a lot of DIYs and I've never needed a dremmel, until now. And the puller they have at my autozone is too thick at the jaws to fit.

Worst case scenario, assuming the mallet/hammer/rotor tricks all don't work, I'm thinking of taking two long flathead screwdrivers at 12 and 6 or 3 and 9 o'clock and prying the crud out of the inner race. Just going by the pictures, it appears workable...but am I just being naive or do you think this would work...with some added time of course?

Originally Posted by hyunman

I'm planning on doing this over the weekend and had a question for those who have already done this.

Reading thru all of this, it seems that you would need to use a puller or a dremmel to get the inner race off if it does in fact get stuck behind. I don't have a dremmel nor do I have a puller. I do a lot of DIYs and I've never needed a dremmel, until now. And the puller they have at my autozone is too thick at the jaws to fit.

Worst case scenario, assuming the mallet/hammer/rotor tricks all don't work, I'm thinking of taking two long flathead screwdrivers at 12 and 6 or 3 and 9 o'clock and prying the crud out of the inner race. Just going by the pictures, it appears workable...but am I just being naive or do you think this would work...with some added time of course?

Hmm... no! I wouldn't advise that you try your "flathead screwdriver" method.

If the inner race is left behind on the spindle/kingpin when you remove your Hub Bearing...

No worries, you can try this method. (It worked perfectly for me.)

Good luck.

Thanks bimmergarage, that cleared up a lot. I didn't that that thick a puller would work because I thought the jaws need to reach all the way behind the inner race, in between the inner race and the dust collar. But watching that, I can clearly see the groove I can latch onto. Thanks again man.

Hey anytime.. Glad it helped.
Take photos (or Video) so you can document your progress.
If you have any other issues/questions.
Search my other vids.

And, remember to always Drive With Power!

Thanks a lot for the info guys. I did both sides in a few hours. The only catch I had was that rear ring. I had to use the dremmel to take it off. I didnt want to but couldnt get it with any other way.

Did this for my friend over the weekend. Took 30 mins. Both bearing and inner race came out with pull of my hand!!! Hard to believe but it did happen.

Thanks for the writeup

I just bought a 2004 325xi yesterday to add to my 2003 325i, and I'm going to need to do this on the xi real soon as I hear some birds chirping, especially when loading up the left front. Does anyone know if there are any notes anywhere on the forum regarding the differences on the xi?

Originally Posted by Itzed

I just bought a 2004 325xi yesterday to add to my 2003 325i, and I'm going to need to do this on the xi real soon as I hear some birds chirping, especially when loading up the left front. Does anyone know if there are any notes anywhere on the forum regarding the differences on the xi?

It won't be as simple as changing front one on non-xi and probably just as hard as changing rear on non-xi. Good luck

Does the new hub/bearing come with the "race" thing? or is it a different part I have to order? I don't see it separately on the website I order the bearing from.

Anyone?

Originally Posted by Payne78

Does the new hub/bearing come with the "race" thing? or is it a different part I have to order? I don't see it separately on the website I order the bearing from.

Yes, it comes with it.

But the dust cap IS a seperate item.

The inner and outter race are Pre-installed to the Hub at the factory (to contain the ball bearings and bearing clips) So, when installing you Must be careful how you tap the hub onto the kingpin.

Using the proper size bearing installer will help You hit Only the race and not at the hub to prevent damaging your new hub/bearings.