If you suspect you are driving with a broken — or nearly broken — wheel bearing, stop in and see us today. Our team of trained technicians will quickly assess and repair your vehicle and have you back on the road in no time!

Choosing the right bearing There are a variety of measures that manufacturers can take to ensure long bearing life. The first step is to limit the radial load to between 6–12% of a bearing’s dynamic load rating. Although a bearing is able to tolerate a much higher load, its life will be shortened.

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A radial load acts perpendicular, at 90°, to the axis of rotation, while a thrust load — also known as an axial load — acts in parallel to the axis of rotation. Any misalignment of the shaft can also result in a moment load, a tilting force that can increase wear.

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Bearing loadcalculation example

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A: While possible, replacing a wheel bearing requires specific tools and expertise. It’s recommended to seek professional help for accurate installation.

Bearing radial loadcalculation

Vehicle Pulling to One Side While Driving. Are you doing the steering, or is the car driving where it wants to? When a wheel bearing corrodes or becomes pitted, the smooth exterior lining is gone and the vibration is transmitted to the tires which may feel like it is “pulling” to one side or the other. As the bearing on one side deteriorates, it puts more pressure on the opposite bearing, leading to uneven wear and increased friction. This uneven wear generates heat, which further accelerates the degradation of the bearing. As a result, the affected wheel may start to wobble or vibrate, robbing the vehicle of its stability and smooth handling, especially when cornering or driving at higher speeds.

A: Typically, wheel bearings last between 85,000 to 100,000 miles, but this can vary based on driving conditions and maintenance.

Axialload bearing

The next step is to choose the right material. In SMB Bearings’ experience as a specialist in thin-section, corrosion-resistant, and miniature bearings, choosing the right type of bearing can also make all the difference. While all radial ball bearings have some thrust load capacity, it’s often better to use heavy-duty bearings that have deep raceways if greater thrust loads are present as these can withstand axial loads of up to 50% of the static radial load rating.

A: Common causes include poor maintenance, water and dirt contamination, extreme driving conditions, and manufacturing defects.

By choosing the right type of bearing and considering key factors in the battle to control radial and thrust loads, engineers can ensure they continue to innovate while delivering the highest levels of accuracy, smoothness, and bearing life.

Bearing loadcalculation

Tire Wear and Tear. What about your tires? We all know the importance of rotating your tires to promote even wear, but did you know a broken wheel bearing can lead to uneven tire wear too? The looseness of the wheel and the vibration that reverberates through the wheel cause your tires to wear unevenly, meaning you are more likely to have to invest in new tires sooner.

A typical radial ball bearing, which is designed primarily for radial loads, has a maximum static and dynamic load capacity. The static load capacity is the maximum radial load that a bearing can withstand before the load causes a total, permanent deformation of the bearing balls or the raceway equal to one ten thousandth of the ball’s diameter.

Bearingaxialloadcalculation

When wheel bearings wear out, they can have a significant impact on vehicle performance, leading to increased friction and resistance within the wheel assembly. This extra friction forces the engine to work harder to maintain the same speed, resulting in decreased fuel efficiency. Additionally, worn bearings can cause uneven tire wear, as the compromised alignment and stability of the wheels lead to irregular contact with the road surface. Hitting a pothole or other road hazard can exacerbate bearing damage, potentially causing sudden bearing failure and loss of vehicle control. The deterioration of wheel bearings also affects the proper transfer of torque from the engine to the wheels, further compromising handling and increasing braking distance.

Radialand axialloadonbearing

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Although a bearing may be able to tolerate a high static load, it will do so at the loss of accuracy and smoothness, making it impractical for use in high accuracy environments, such as electronics manufacturing and in robots used in food and beverage production. The typical static-load rating for a stainless steel bearing is approximately 75–80% of the load rating for chrome-steel bearings, due to the hardness of chrome steel.

Although thin-section bearings — where the difference between the inner and outer diameter of the bearing is small — are great for compactness and saving weight, they can only support axial loads of between 10 and 30% of the bearing’s static radial load rating due to the shallower raceways. Additional radial loads or moment loads will reduce thrust load capacity even further. Excessive thrust loads on a thin-section bearing can cause the balls to ride dangerously close to the top of the raceway.

Bearing loadcapacity chart

Chances are when you start hearing a loud noise from under the hood of your car as you’re driving, you automatically think it’s an exhaust leak or your car is going to break at any moment. But have you thought about the possibility of a broken — or nearly broken — wheel bearing causing that noise?

Wheel bearings are essential in the operation of your vehicle. More precisely, a wheel bearing is crucial for the proper function of the hub, tire, and wheel assemblies to work together. The wheel bearing allows friction-free movement and rotation of the hub assembly, and thereby provides smooth tire and wheel rotation. Worn-out or damaged wheel bearings can lead to a range of problems that affect vehicle performance and safety, making it essential for drivers to recognize the signs of trouble.

A: Driving with a bad wheel bearing is dangerous as it can lead to wheel failure and accidents. It should be addressed immediately.

Radial loadformula

Applying a thrust load to a bearing can be beneficial. For example, applying a permanent thrust load (preload) to the inner or outer ring, using washers or springs, can eliminate play in the bearing and provide more accurate rotation. Conversely, applying an excessive load can be catastrophic. If engineers fail to adequately match a bearing to the radial and thrust loads in an application, it can drastically reduce the life of the bearing.

Excessive loading can also lead to other signs of fatigue such as overheating, degradation of the lubricant and abrasion caused by flakes of particulate matter.

The dynamic load rating, on the other hand, is the ability of 90% of a group of identical chrome-steel bearings, with only the inner ring rotating, to endure a radial load of a constant magnitude and size for one million revolutions before the first signs of fatigue develop.

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Car Feels Loose. Does your car feel loose? When you hear professional drivers talk about a “loose” car, you may not know what that means. It often refers to the steering of the vehicle, which can include wheel bearings. Wheel looseness, or also called wheel play, is another common symptom of a bad wheel bearing. As the bearing begins to wear down, they become loose inside the wheel hub and spindle, which makes your vehicle feel loose while steering.

When calculating bearing life, it is important to consider load ratings, these are a measure of how quickly the rotating elements of a bearing will experience fatigue and the total number of revolutions a bearing can withstand before it fails. These ratings can be categorized into static load ratings and dynamic load ratings.

Where accuracy is required, it is important for engineers to consider the forces acting on a bearing. Because a bearing typically supports the free motion of a shaft about an axis of rotation, two forces normally act on the bearing: a radial load and a thrust load. But, what is the impact of these forces? Here, Chris Johnson, managing director of miniature bearings expert SMB Bearings, explains.

The greater the load, the higher the level of stresses the balls and raceways will be subjected to. This will lead to more rapid wear and a shorter bearing life. Fatigue failure results in the ball path being eroded, leading to spalling, where a fracture on the surface of the raceway causes material to be removed, ultimately leading to failure.

Unusual Noises Coming From the Wheels. Listen carefully. The most common and often most-identifiable symptom associated with a bad wheel bearing is noise coming from the wheel or tire area of the moving vehicle. You may mistake this as engine noise, but when you listen closely you will likely hear grinding or grating that gets louder as the vehicle accelerates. Since wheel bearings are not known for wearing out too frequently, the noise is typically suspected to be something else and the problem gets overlooked.