wheel bearings and rear diffs... expensive stuff

[trymonlam]

my car's been making a lot of noise at the wheels lately and i took it to the dealer's to have them check it out. so the sotry was that my wheel bearings were loose and i have some leaks in the rear-diff(pinion seal and output flange seal). so they wanted to change the bearings as well as taking the rear diff off to do the seal. the total came to a whopping $1900...

what do we think? this is about the right price?

i didn't do it.


found an indie shop that quite a few MBCA members recommanded and decided to give them a visit on monday.

[jnenad16]

each rear bearing is about $80-$100, and the labor is about 5 hrs for both sides. the diff pinion seal is about $25 and the labor is about 2-3hrs, without the need to drop the diff, if the axle seals are leaking, then the labor is much higher, but still well under $1900.

nenad

[trymonlam]

it's front bearings. is there any difference in price and labor?

[Pagz]

I replaced both my front bearings and both rear main bearings for around 600NZD,mostly my own labour though except for having the rear outers pushed in hydrolicly...
there was never anything wrong with my bearings either lol(long story)

as a comparison...when i got a price from the dealer it came to around 1000 for the same parts,damn where do they get there prices!

though when your pay'n a cool 100 an hour here for MB guys, 1900 would come around very quickly!!

[trymonlam]

that's the point. i found this place, they charge $80/hr, that's $20 less than dealer's, each hr. the guy that talked to me is a MBCA member himself and he's got 2 MBs of his own. he seemed to be very much willing to help me. so i will go and pay him a visit.
i live in apartment and all we have is a parking building... or else i would have at least taken the wheels off myself to take a look. that guy told me that there's a nut on it for adjusting the bearings as well... arghh....
thanks for the comments, guys.

the dealer told me that this is a wear-and-tear thing, both the bearing and the seals. is this common on MB?

[mayagman]

Front bearings very easy DIY job. I had to do em last year. Disassemble carefully, pack with plenty of grease... throw it back together... really rather idiot-proof... unless you have a problem with the inner bearing race. Just get the right torque figure for the main hub nut, I forget what it is, maybe Nenad, the master of numbers knows :3

[Pagz]

yip fronts are quit easy,hub clamp nut hex key is 8NM torque,my haynes manual said to use a dial gauge to check end float but i rang MB and they said they do it buy feel...

[jnenad16]

the front bearing are an easy DIY job. it takes about an hour per side. what you do is disassemble the brakes, unscrew the little 5mm hex bolt holding the rotor, and if the rotor is rusty, you need to spray the rotor/hub mating area(the circle in the middle of the rotor) with a penetrant and pound the edges of the rotor/hub with a hammer until it loosens up and you can take it off. once the rotor is off, remove the hub grease cap with a flat screwdriver. you will see the collar nut with a cotter pin going through it. remove the pin, undo the nut, remove the outer(smaller) bearing and remember the order you removed them. now you can pull on the hub to remove it from the spindle. once the hub is off, remove the grease seal in the back of it to remove the inner(larger) bearing. inspect the bearing races for scratches and scoring, if the surface is fine on both races, you can reuse them. now, pack the new bearings with grease by putting a ball of grease in one hand and pressing the edges of the bearing onto it with another. once the grease starts to ooze out of the top of the bearing, start doing the same to the other edge of the bearing. once both bearings are packed with enough grease, make sure the spindle and the inside of the hub are cleaned from the old grease and new grease is applied. now install the inner bearing, followed by a new grease seal, install the hub back onto the spindle, make sure its pushed in all the way. then install the outer bearing, followed by a washer(if any) then the nut. now the nut tightening is a bit tricky if its your first time doing it. you need to tighten it just enough so that the hub has no play, but also loose enough for the wheel to spin freely without a braking/grinding feel to it. then just insert a cotter pin back in its place and put the dust cap back on. reassemble the brakes and put on the wheel. pump the brake pedal a few times to replenish the fluid in the caliper. now, move on to the next wheel.:)

nenad

[trymonlam]

just had my right front bearing replaced. and the car is alive again. it's been a while since i felt this much excitement driving my own car...
however, 1 question came to mind. it seemed like when shit happens, it always happens to the right front side. my ball joint went out on that side the first, and now the wheel bearing needs replacement. is there a specific reason to this?

[Kropf]

Originally posted by trymonlam
1 question came to mind. it seemed like when shit happens, it always happens to the right front side. my ball joint went out on that side the first, and now the wheel bearing needs replacement. is there a specific reason to this?

Maybe that side takes more of a beating such as running off onto bumpy shoulders or no shoulders?

[Lordkoo]

For that price, you can buy an entire salvaged w202 for parts!


Originally posted by trymonlam
my car's been making a lot of noise at the wheels lately and i took it to the dealer's to have them check it out. so the sotry was that my wheel bearings were loose and i have some leaks in the rear-diff(pinion seal and output flange seal). so they wanted to change the bearings as well as taking the rear diff off to do the seal. the total came to a whopping $1900...

what do we think? this is about the right price?

i didn't do it.


found an indie shop that quite a few MBCA members recommanded and decided to give them a visit on monday.