Front Wheel Bearing Replacement Question

[OldBavarian]

So I took my 323is for state inspection, and when the reinstalled the right front wheel, they cross threaded and stripped every one of the lug bolt holes. Of course they deny doing so, and they deny any liability at all, so I'm stuck biting the bullet. I could just helicoil all of holes, but I'd rather just replace the hub assembly.

My question is this- do I need a puller to remove the hub/bearing assembly? I've seen multiple conflicting diy videos of people who did and did not need a puller to remove the hub on their E36s.

[Eric93se]

Mine came off by hand, if it were sticking you might tap it lightly with a hammer all around to free it.

Heli coil would not be good for something like this.

Write reviews for that shop on yelp and google.

[E36328Coupe]

Often the hub pulls off and leaves the inner bearing inner race on the stub axle, it can be a pain to pull, some have come off with a 3 leg puller some I have carefully cut a nick in and split.

You don't see conflicting DIYs, just different people had different experiences

[XnWarden]

My front hubs also came off very easily. The inner bearing race was left on the knuckle though. It has an indentation in it, so i filed down a 2 jaw puller and sucked it right off

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[OldBavarian]

My front hubs also came off very easily. The inner bearing race was left on the knuckle though. It has an indentation in it, so i filed down a 2 jaw puller and sucked it right off

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Sounds like it's not too bad of a job.

You don't see conflicting DIYs, just different people had different experiences

Understood, I'm mostly trying to figure out if the majority of people needed a press or not.

Mine came off by hand, if it were sticking you might tap it lightly with a hammer all around to free it.

Heli coil would not be good for something like this.

Write reviews for that shop on yelp and google.

I agree on not using helicoils. That's why I'm replacing the hub. The shop I used wasn't my usual shop (not that I use shops that often anyways) but I had just gotten a ticket for driving with expired stickers and needed to get into a place quickly. I didn't find out that they cross threaded it until a month later when I removed the wheel myself.

[Nanniepoo]

I needed a puller for one side, other side came off by hand but inner race stayed on. So still needed a puller for that one anyways.

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[Eric93se]

Basic propane torch would probably expand the ring and then pry it off with a big screwdriver or small pry bar.

You also need a torque wrench that can go pretty high.

[XnWarden]

No press needed. I pressed the hub on as best I could by hand to line it up. Then I put the socket with the nut on it in the center and tapped it down with a 5 lb sledge until I could get the threads on the nut to catch the knuckle. Then just tighten the nut down and it sucks the hub down. Obviously dont hit too hard with the hammer or you could damage the bearing or the threads

The hardest part of the job was finding a 46mm 6 point thin walled socket. Several online vendors sell them for about $50 each. I went to a northern tool and found one for $20 but it was too thick walled so I had to grind it down.

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[XnWarden]

You also need a torque wrench that can go pretty high.

Torque spec is something like 210 ft lbs. Local tool stores will rent you a proper torque wrench. Make sure to use a breaker bar and NOT a torque wrench when taking the nut off. I snapped the drive on 2 torque wrenches before going to a 3/4 inch drive breaker

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[E36328Coupe]

Torque spec is something like 210 ft lbs. Local tool stores will rent you a proper torque wrench. Make sure to use a breaker bar and NOT a torque wrench when taking the nut off. I snapped the drive on 2 torque wrenches before going to a 3/4 inch drive breaker

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If you had not snapped those torque wrenches the calibration would have been destroyed anyway in all likelihood so it's best they broke.

[jmo69]

A 2 jaw puller will take the hub off but always leaves the inner race. A puller with small jaws will get the race off but you can cut it with a dremel and then use a chisel. Use a 36mm socket to drive the new hub on till you can thread the nut on. Torque is more like 280 lb ft. You'll need either a 46mm or 1-13/16 non impact socket. I'm able to borrow an injector puller from work to get the inner race off.

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[TostitoBandito]

A 3 jaw locking puller will make short work of the wheel bearing. Some auto parts stores may loan them. I bought one when I did mine. I also bought the specialty tool for putting the new bearing on, since I didn't want to screw anything up trying to improvise something.

There's no way you'll get the giant nut off the hub without both a helper and a long pipe attached to the breaker bar. It's a two person job because there's no way to hold the shallow socket in place and apply torque to the bar at the same time by yourself. You can also use an impact driver, which is what I did. It made a bunch of noise for a few seconds, but eventually broke it loose. As for getting it back on, I got a big ass torque wrench loaner from an auto parts store that went well above 200 ft/lb and cranked on it as hard as I could. I had to more or less put my body weight on it.

[Nanniepoo]

I broke the nut loose by myself, with a wrench, like a real man

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[XnWarden]

I broke the nut loose by myself, with a wrench, like a real man

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Attaboy. I also had no trouble with this.

Thread some lugs into the hub, wedge something between them braced against a wood block on the floor. Crank that wrench

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[jmo69]

Attaboy. I also had no trouble with this.

Thread some lugs into the hub, wedge something between them braced against a wood block on the floor. Crank that wrench

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Why do you have to brace anything, the spindle won't turn when you loosen the nut.

[jc43089]

Why do you have to brace anything, the spindle won't turn when you loosen the nut.

I thought the same thing but figured he must have been referencing the rear or has never done a front bearing.

[E36328Coupe]

Biggest cheap ebay slide hammer which came with various tools including...................................


Hub attachment

1.JPG

2 and 3 leg puller...........

3.JPG

Which has a wind up end to grip the inner race

2.JPG

[XnWarden]

I thought the same thing but figured he must have been referencing the rear or has never done a front bearing.

Yea lol i got the rear and front mixed up. My bad! Front is even easier

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[jc43089]

Yea lol i got the rear and front mixed up. My bad! Front is even easier

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All good, it's pretty much the same process.

[1215]

The BMW tool is not cheap but really makes life easy.