WHEEL BEARING Q&A: What, When & Why How much load can a wheel bearing carry? On a typical passenger vehicle weighing around 3,400 pounds, each pair of front-wheel bearings, as well as the rear-wheel or axle bearings, support around 850 pounds, depending on the weight balance and driveline configuration. If it’s a 6,000-pound SUV, each bearing might carry about 1,500 pounds More

Diagnostic Solutions: Building Off-Road Suspension Systems Judging from weekend traffic, desert off-road and mountain trail driving is becoming a major past-time for many import vehicle enthusiasts. Most of the off-road import vehicles I see in Colorado are the late '80s and early '90s Toyota and Nissan pickups and SUVs that feature mechanical simplicity along with the structural ruggedness needed to navigate miles from any service facility. More

Tech Feature: Diagnosing and Replacing Chassis & Ride Control Parts Worn chassis parts are often-overlooked causes of tire wear, steering and handling problems, and even road noise. Worn tie rods are the most common culprit for causing rapid tire wear, but worn control arm bushings or ball joints can also contribute to tire wear. More

Subaru Legacy Outback 2.5L Tech Tip: ABS Motor On, Pedal Descends, But Doesn't Run Customer Concern: When you come to a stop, just before completely stopped, the ABS motor kicks on and the pedal goes down, then comes back up. Doesn't matter what kind of stop. Always does it right before the vehicle is completely stopped. No codes are present. More

Honda Front Wheel Bearings With Integrated ABS Tone Ring This tech tip provides part numbers and technical information for SKF double-row, angular-contact front wheel bearings with a split inner ring. The part numbers noted pertain to specific Honda applications. More

Tech Tip: New Hub Units May Exhibit Rough Feel When Rotated by Hand In a recent technical bulletin, SKF addresses the rough or coarse feel of some new hub units if they are rotated by hand before installation and explains why these conditions are normal for technicians to experience. More

Tech Tip: SKF Offers Preventive Maintenance Recommendations and Tips for Avoiding Bearing Failure A recent technical bulletin by SKF provides preventive maintenance recommendations for avoiding premature bearing failure, including tips on how to prevent repeat failures and assure customer safety. More

Tech Feature: Servicing Worn Wheel Bearings When a wheel bearing goes out on a vehicle, it may or may not give much warning. Typical clues include noise from the vicinity of the wheel, possibly some steering wander or looseness in the steering, and/or some abnormal tread wear on the front tires. Also, an ABS light could illuminate. More

Tech Tip: Diagnosing a Noisy Wheel Bearing The classic symptom of a bad wheel bearing is typically a cyclic chirping, squealing or growling noise that changes in proportion to vehicle speed. The sound may disappear at some speeds or only occur at certain speeds. The noise may get worse when turning, or it may disappear momentarily. So it's difficult to make a diagnosis based on noise alone. More

Cleaning Bearings The Right Way Proper bearing cleaning can mean the difference between good performance and bearing failure. If cleaning is done improperly, the bearing, shaft or housing may become damaged, creating a more costly repair job. More