How to tellwhich wheelbearing is badwhile driving

To know if the wheel bearings in your car are going bad, listen for snapping, popping, or clicking sounds when you turn. These sounds are all signs that the joint connecting your wheel to your axel is starting to wear out. Notice if the sound coming from your wheel is changing as you change your speed, and notice if you feel your steering wheel vibrating when you drive. If you feel your wheels wobbling while you drive, you should stop driving immediately, since this is a sign of severe bearing damage. To find out how to evaluate your bearing damage, keep reading! Did this summary help you?YesNo

Although modern wheel hub assemblies (also known as wheel bearings) are designed to last as long as your car, they’re subjected to such tremendous strain that hub damage is fairly common. Most drivers will have to deal with a damaged hub assembly at some point in their vehicle’s lifetime.

Badwheelbearingnoise

XHTML: You can use these tags:

To check individual wheel hub assemblies, you need to look for “play”. “Play” is any looseness in the wheel’s connection to the axle when it’s fully bolted down. You can check for play by grasping the wheel at its top and bottom, and pushing one side while pulling the other. You shouldn’t be able to wiggle the wheel to any significant degree this way; if you can, then the wheel has a dangerous amount of play.

Damaged wheel hub assemblies may fail catastrophically, causing you to lose control of your vehicle. This is a worst case scenario and few people suffer through it. A damaged assembly still impedes the proper functioning of your car, though! It can increase the wear and tear on other vital components including your brakes and tires. By reducing those parts’ effectiveness, a damaged wheel bearing can compromise your safety while you’re on the road.

How tocheck forbadwheelbearing

When you discover a damaged wheel hub assembly, make sure it’s replaced with either OEM parts from your manufacturer or quality aftermarket replacement parts like WJB’s that meet the same standards. Making sure your vehicle is running on healthy wheel hub assemblies is a vital part of keeping your vehicles – and you – safe on the road.

Fortunately, a damaged hub assembly is easy to spot once you have your wheels jacked up off the ground. If at all possible, check your wheels two at a time – either both front wheels or both back ones. You can often spot a broken wheel bearing simply by comparing the behavior of two wheels after you spin them at the same time. If one of them shudders, slows down, or grinds to a stop before the other, it likely has a bad bearing.

Some people said, a car is a collection of thousands of carefully-designed parts that are needed their attention to maintain with. When it comes to your wheel hub assemblies, you definitely need to muster your patience and go the extra mile to make sure they’re in good working condition; these components are vital in keeping your car safe and efficient.

There are a lot of different signs you may run into during day-to-day driving that can indicate a problem with one or more hub assembly on your car. Grinding, roaring, knocking, or popping sounds from your wheels can indicate a bad bearing. These can be constant or only noticeable when you turn; they’re usually not audible unless you’re moving faster than 30 MPH.

How to tellwhich wheelbearing is badin the front

This article was co-authored by Hovig Manouchekian. Hovig Manouchekian is an Auto Repair and Design Specialist and the Manager of Funk Brothers Auto, a family-owned business operated since 1925. With over 30 years of experience in the automotive industry, Hovig specializes in the process of auto repair and maintenance. He is also very knowledgeable in common automotive issues and needs including engine repair, battery replacement, and windshield accessory and maintenance. Hovig's knowledge and hard work have contributed to Funk Brothers Auto winning Angie's List Super Service Award for five consecutive years. There are 7 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 177,285 times.

In the longer term, you need to check your wheel hub assemblies if you notice uneven or abnormal wear on your tires or brake components (rotors, pads, and discs). If you let a professional mechanic handle your tire rotations and brake maintenance, they should perform routine hub assembly checks while they do these tasks. If you like to handle your own maintenance, though, it’s especially important to make sure your bearings are in good working condition.

Wheel bearings are metal balls held by a ring and allow the wheel on your vehicle to spin with as little friction as possible. Over time, bearings can break down due to a lack of lubrication and typical wear and tear. Driving on a bad wheel bearing can be dangerous, and could cause severe damage to your vehicle if you continue to drive on it. Luckily, diagnosing a failing wheel bearing is relatively easy and you can usually determine if there's a problem by listening to your wheels and evaluating any changes in your car's handling.

Image