Wheel Bearing Replacement

Wheel Bearing Replacement

Serving Vancouver WA | Hazel Dell | Five Corners | Orchards

You may not spend much time thinking about it, but wheel bearings are among your vehicle’s most important components. They allow your vehicle’s wheels to spin freely with minimal friction, employing a series of steel bearings fitted inside a metal ring called a race. A bad wheel bearing can cause a number of issues for your vehicle, some of which are potentially serious. At Brown’s Quality Automotive Service, we have the tools and expertise to diagnose and repair faulty wheel bearings on any make or model of vehicle.

Diagnosing a Bad Wheel Bearing

The first sign that one of your vehicle’s wheel bearings may be going bad is often a subtle grinding sound. This metallic noise may appear rhythmically as the tire rotates and it often changes in volume or pitch while turning, accelerating or braking. The noise is often faint at first but may grow to become very loud as the bearing fails. A bad wheel bearing can also be diagnosed by placing your vehicle on a lift or jack; if you can rock your wheel side-to-side by hand, your wheel bearing is the likely culprit.

Wheel Bearing Service

Depending on the style of wheel bearing used in your vehicle, your bearing may be able to be taken apart and serviced. Some older vehicles and rear-wheel drive cars have serviceable wheel bearings that can be removed and taken apart. During a wheel bearing service, the components can be inspected for any signs of wear, replaced as necessary and repacked with fresh oil. This is often performed every 25,000 miles or during routine brake servicing.

Replacing your Wheel Bearings

Most newer vehicles and front-wheel drive cars have sealed wheel bearings that cannot be serviced. Instead, they must be replaced entirely once they’ve begun to wear. The average sealed wheel bearing lasts between 80,000 and 100,000 miles before the components inside start to wear and the heavy lubricating grease begins to break down. Once this has happened, a full wheel bearing replacement is the only solution. If you have a wheel bearing that needs to be replaced, the quality service technicians at Brown’s Quality Automotive of Vancouver, Washington can have you back on the road in no time.

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