E46 front wheel bearing DIY

Just found it thanks to your prompt.

For reference -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=wKYL9_4mXRI

and

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=D4PK1jXhppE

Cheers

Yep

Hi Guys,
I have what I think is bearing noise, but it's not your typical "groan" that comes with load, like I've always experienced in the past with bearings. This sounds more like a squeal, similar to brake pads rubbing on a warped rotor. But I changed the pads, calipers, and rotors last week, so I know that is not the issue. It also doesn't change the noise at all to apply the brakes. It seems to be fairly quiet upon a cold start, and definitely gets worse as you drive. Happens in all gears and neutral, so it's not tranny related, definitely wheel related. Does this sound like it could be bearings? 2003 325i w/about 90K. Thanks, Ed.

90k is when my front bearings gave out. Worth a try.

Hi Guys, thanks for this DIY I took off the old hub and inner race from front passenger side without much problem.

But I am stuck at trying to put on the new hub. It just wont go in onto thicker part of the spindle. It gets stuck at the outer edge. With a deadblow and a 36mm socket, I have been trying to knock it in on the race with moderate force already. And hub looks pretty aligned to the spindle. I got this F.A.G. hub 31-22-6-757-024-M34 from Pelican for my 2003 325Ci. Could it be a faulty part or does the hub need to be pressed in (how?)? Thanks.

Originally Posted by headsortails

Hi Guys, thanks for this DIY I took off the old hub and inner race from front passenger side without much problem.

But I am stuck at trying to put on the new hub. It just wont go in onto thicker part of the spindle. It gets stuck at the outer edge. With a deadblow and a 36mm socket, I have been trying to knock it in on the race with moderate force already. And hub looks pretty aligned to the spindle. I got this F.A.G. hub 31-22-6-757-024-M34 from Pelican for my 2003 325Ci. Could it be a faulty part or does the hub need to be pressed in (how?)? Thanks.

Measure the inside diameter of the race to make sure it is the correct bearing and identical to the one removed. It could be an improper part that got accidently placed or mismarked in the box.

Good luck.

Finally got the new hub on. I had to push on the hub by hands really hard to get it move in by a notch. Then tapping on the race with 36mm socket worked like a charm

Another GREAT E46 Fanatics thread... Just don't know how much I have enjoyed my Bimmer over the years knowing that if anything is wrong you guys normally always have the answer along with a nice DIY. Going to be tackling this myself Saturday.

quick tip - the new hub will slide on a bit easier if you apply a small amount of grease to the spindle first.

I applied grease to the hub and spindle just because they're mated surfaces. I thought that was in the instructions too.

But yeah. It slid on pretty easily.

My turn for this.. passenger side front wheel bearing is going, bought 46mm socket from Northern Tool for $17 shipped. Autozone has torque wrenches to loan out that go up to 250FT/Lbs with a $100 deposit that you get back when you return it.. nice! Got the SKF bearing from BMA parts as that was the best price by far on line.. almost considered the PAX until I read the ill fitment in another thread where it didn't work..

Be careful with the autozone torque wrenches. I was almost all the way through my install, and it turned out the wrench was broken. When set to 215 lb-ft, it was clicking at maybe 50. I think it's much safer to just invest in a new one. I tried getting by with a breaker bar and a scale, and now my passenger side wheel bearing failed < 10k miles later.

This time I'm not cheaping out. I bought a split-beam torque wrench from precision instruments. Made in the USA, and they're basically the OEM for some of Snap-On's torque wrenches.

Originally Posted by TerraPhantm

Be careful with the autozone torque wrenches. I was almost all the way through my install, and it turned out the wrench was broken. When set to 215 lb-ft, it was clicking at maybe 50. I think it's much safer to just invest in a new one. I tried getting by with a breaker bar and a scale, and now my passenger side wheel bearing failed < 10k miles later.

This time I'm not cheaping out. I bought a split-beam torque wrench from precision instruments. Made in the USA, and they're basically the OEM for some of Snap-On's torque wrenches.

well, i'm not swinging the price of a torque wrench I may use only a few times for the rest of my life, and you can get an idea how much torque that is when you take it off, so obvs 50ft lbs is waaaaaaay under the recommended 215 ft lbs of tightening torque, so you should have suspected something was up when it clicked at 50..

Originally Posted by trizzuth

well, i'm not swinging the price of a torque wrench I may use only a few times for the rest of my life, and you can get an idea how much torque that is when you take it off, so obvs 50ft lbs is waaaaaaay under the recommended 215 ft lbs of tightening torque, so you should have suspected something was up when it clicked at 50..

I did suspect something. I was also in the middle of repairing my only car and could not get another torque wrench. Hence the use of a breakerbar about 2ft long and a scale. Tried to get as close to 107ish lbs (which * 2ft should be 214lb-ft), but in retrospect, anything could've gone wrong there too. Maybe I didn't hold the handle perpendicularly throughout the arc, perhaps I wasn't able to torque it as smoothly as I liked, so static friction caused the nut to stay put at some value under 214, etc... Maybe I would've been better off just getting it "really ****ing tight" with my impact wrench, I don't know. But rather than risking another failure in 6 months, I decided to invest in proper tools for the job.

And yeah, the difference between 50 and 215 is extremely noticeable - hence why I noticed. But what if the difference isn't as extreme? Would you really notice the difference between say... 180 and 215? Or what if it's miscalibrated in the other direction, and you end up overtightening it?

Unless you have some way of verifying the torque wrench before using it, then I would strongly urge just buying one. For this job a beam type might actually be best. Dead-accurate and cheap.

Originally Posted by trizzuth

My turn for this.. passenger side front wheel bearing is going, bought 46mm socket from Northern Tool for $17 shipped. Autozone has torque wrenches to loan out that go up to 250FT/Lbs with a $100 deposit that you get back when you return it.. nice! Got the SKF bearing from BMA parts as that was the best price by far on line.. almost considered the PAX until I read the ill fitment in another thread where it didn't work..

Have you already installed the SKF bearing? If you haven't, can you please look at the actual bearing and let me know if it has a SKF stamp on the bearing or if it says F.A.G?

I purchased F.A.G bearings front/rear when I replaced the bearings on my car. I had one of the front bearings go out after only ~5K of use. The vendor I purchased the bearings from did replace it under warranty however their site now only showed SKF listed under the manufacture for the bearings. The replacement came in a SKF box but the actual bearing had a F.A.G stamp on it and looked identical to the one I previously used.

Originally Posted by trizzuth

well, i'm not swinging the price of a torque wrench I may use only a few times for the rest of my life, and you can get an idea how much torque that is when you take it off, so obvs 50ft lbs is waaaaaaay under the recommended 215 ft lbs of tightening torque, so you should have suspected something was up when it clicked at 50..

You do not have to spend a lot to get a high quality torque wrench. I did a good amount of research before investing in one and I've been very happy with my purchase. I went with a Precision Instruments torque wrench. They were previously sold as Snap On torque wrenches until Snap On purchased CDI. I went with the split beam design as you don't need to reset the tool after each use and it's a very durable design. The one I got has a 50lb-250lb range so it works for a ton of jobs. I included a link to the place where I purchased it from, great price and fast service. I use the torque wrench all the time

http://www.tooltopia.com/precision-i...-c3fr250f.aspx

Originally Posted by dan avoN7

Have you already installed the SKF bearing? If you haven't, can you please look at the actual bearing and let me know if it has a SKF stamp on the bearing or if it says F.A.G?

I purchased F.A.G bearings front/rear when I replaced the bearings on my car. I had one of the front bearings go out after only ~5K of use. The vendor I purchased the bearings from did replace it under warranty however their site now only showed SKF listed under the manufacture for the bearings. The replacement came in a SKF box but the actual bearing had a F.A.G stamp on it and looked identical to the one I previously used.

You do not have to spend a lot to get a high quality torque wrench. I did a good amount of research before investing in one and I've been very happy with my purchase. I went with a Precision Instruments torque wrench. They were previously sold as Snap On torque wrenches until Snap On purchased CDI. I went with the split beam design as you don't need to reset the tool after each use and it's a very durable design. The one I got has a 50lb-250lb range so it works for a ton of jobs. I included a link to the place where I purchased it from, great price and fast service. I use the torque wrench all the time

http://www.tooltopia.com/precision-i...-c3fr250f.aspx

Exact same one I decided to buy. Seems to be identical to the Snap-On TQFR250E

Very cool to see my old DIY is getting tons of mileage.... brings back good memories of the first couple major projects on the sedan.

Quick question guys. I'm about to tackle this DIY and am getting ready to order parts.

Do the F A G hub/bearings come with a new 46mm axle nut or do you have to buy a new one separately?

Thanks in advance for the info

Originally Posted by sb2007

Quick question guys. I'm about to tackle this DIY and am getting ready to order parts.

Do the F A G hub/bearings come with a new 46mm axle nut or do you have to buy a new one separately?

Thanks in advance for the info

I had to pay extra for them to be included with mine (from Turner)

Check harbor freight. It's just a regular big ass socket.