The most common mechanical failure is due to a seal leak, which allows the lubricating grease to exit the bearing, and water and grit managing to worm its way in. This all amounts to the degradation of the balls and the outer and inner housing of the bearing, often creating that gritty, skimming sound as the wheel is rotating. Looking inside a worn-out bearing, there will often be small specs of metal that have broken off from inside the bearing itself and are grinding their way around the racers, causing more damage. If you have had a minor shunt, it’s always worth having the hub assembly checked over afterwards.

S52 camtrays

Although it can be a labour-intensive job if one were to fail, the shift to selling entire hub assemblies should make a bad wheel bearing fixable from home, with a decent tool kit and a bit of know-how. So do not fret the next time that horrid whir begins to creep into the cabin, as a fix may be only a ratchet spanner away.

E36 Camshaft

I feel dumb because I cant figure out how the bearings work with the rotating axle and how it doesnt just spin and the wheel not move.

M52s52 camdyno

They never seize immediately. No need to fear. I have a comparison to make. My Skoda had 5 out of 4 changed in its 175 000 km lifetime. Only one bearing failure might have been caused by an accident. My E46 has had the originals for 245 000 km and 13 years. And none of them seems to be on their way out.

As long as you catch a wheel bearing issue early, though, it shouldn’t be a massively expensive or time-consuming fix, and if you’re decent with a spanner, it’s potentially something you can sort yourself. Here’s what a wheel bearing is, why it’s important, and how to tell if there’s something wrong with one.

Hey, i have driven a car to the limit where humming sound is so loud inside that you can’t even hear a Radio. They can last a long time before they go, even if they are shot.Also had an situation where from the moment bearing started to hum, till it disintegrated it self, it lasted about 2 km…. I guess it depends on how good brand you use and how lucky you are.

S52Schrick camshafts

S52 camspecs

A car’s wheel bearing does this by using small metal balls or cylindrical rollers that roll between two smooth rings of metal. Helped along by grease, the bearing rotates in tandem with the wheel’s rotation, the rolling motion of the balls or rollers allowing the wheel hub to rotate as freely as possible. It also helps absorb some of the forces exerted on the car’s wheel during acceleration, braking and cornering.

The Turner Motorsport Stage 2 system almost completely restores the mid-range torque lost from our larger manifold while yielding significant gains from 4,150rpm all of the way to the new 7,000rpm redline. The 24whp gain from the M50 Manifold and TMS Stage 2 takes our 240hp S52 up to 268hp at the crank (Assuming the same 15.8% drivetrain loss).

Back on the dyno for the third and final time of the day. By further freeing up the intake, adding larger fuel injectors, and optimizing the tune, the TMS Stage 2 made huge gains in power and torque across the board. The S52 screamed to the note of 226whp @ 6,375rpm and 208 lb-ft @ 4,375rpm; A 15whp and 9 lb-ft torque gain over the manifold alone which puts us at 24whp over stock. On average, there is a 7 lb-ft torque gain across the entire rev range with as much as a 19 lb/ft gain @ 5,000rpm.

If left to wear down further, a wheel bearing could seize and lock the axle, causing all sorts of additional damage to the drivetrain. Worst-case scenario, the wheel may come off the car altogether, so it’s best to get the car looked at as soon as possible if you suspect a dodge bearing. However, considering the forces that a drivetrain has to counteract during its lifetime of usage, it is impressive how long wheel bearings can last if inserted properly and looked after - depending on the car, original bearings can generally last for comfortably over 100,000 miles.

S52camshafts in M52

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How unbearable, those bearings look like Lindor balls all melted up. I’m losing my bearings, I think it’s hazelnut Lindors, but i’m not sure if it’s Dark chocolate or not, or milk chocolate bearing a dark top layer. Bare with me here……….., cuz i don’t really care, I’ll eat them both.

Wheel bearings are generally made from hardened steel, so they can withstand a serious amount of rotational abuse. But apply heat (through lack of lubrication) or dirt and water (broken seal) and all hell can break loose (this is yet another reason to avoid driving through deep water). Hitting one too many potholes or taking speed bumps too quickly can also exert excessive force on your bearings, shortening their useful life.

The Turner Motorsports Stage 3 includes everything from the Stage 2 but adds the (264/256 degree) Schrick cams and a revised Shark Injector tune.

The wheel bearing is housed within the hub assembly, providing the static connection with the hub carrier through an outer ring or ‘racer’. On driven wheels, the driveshaft travels from the transmission and passes through the centre of the wheel bearing through the inner ring, creating the rotational partnership. Ball-type bearings are generally used on the driven wheels of a vehicle, while tapered roller bearings, with cylindrical rollers arranged around an inner ring, are predominantly used on the non-driven wheels.

Driving the TMS Stage 2 + M50 manifold on the street is addictive, it completely transformed the car. The first thing that stood out was the dominating induction noise at wide open throttle, which is reminiscent of an E92 M3. The car is far from loud and is as quiet as stock under normal driving conditions. The new Shark tuning really improved the part-throttle response of the motor as well. Mid-range power below 4,000rpm feels identical to stock and where the stock car felt like it was running out of steam and laboring from 4,500 to redline, the motor now revs quickly and effortlessly and pulls hard all of the way to its new 7,000rpm redline and feels more like an S2000, NSX, or E46 & 92 M3 –and its flatter torque graph reflects that.

S52tune

I have upgraded my own 1999 M3 using a cold air intake, a Porsche 903 MAF, 24# injectors, removal of the ESC hardware, an RK tunes re-flash, and a Billy Boat cat-back system. I had the car dyno-ed and achieved average of 234 wheel horsepower (approx. 279 flywheel). I can feel a mild loss of mid-range torque with this setup. I AM INTERESTED in any follow up mods you guys may have done; I am thinking about a Shrick cam upgrade, and I want to do more with the exhaust side, such as shorty headers and larger exhaust piping. I am not smart enough to handle the exhaust system changes – I need someone with engineering expertise in exhaust systems to help me. If you guys have done any follow up articles on your experiences, I would appreciate a link or some contact with me as a follow up to this e-mail. Look forward to a response. Thanks, William Lee. 702-539-1421. Fort Worth, Tx

We in fact did see the advertised 15whp gain over the otherwise stock M50 manifold-equipped S52 for a total of 226whp. This puts the TMS Stage 2 and M50 Manifold at a 25whp gain over stock for less than $2,000 (assuming a $100 manifold) which is better than the $100 per hp rule-of-thumb for naturally aspirated gains. Thanks to the TMS Stage 2 package, there are virtually no losses in power in the daily driving RPM range while there are massive gains above 4,000rpm all the way to redline. Overall the TMS Stage 2 and the M50 manifold on top of it is one heck of a deal.

The stock S52 cams have a 252* intake and 244* exhaust duration with 10.2mm of lift. The new Schrick cams have a duration of 264* for the intake and 256* for the exhaust side, with 11.2mm lift.

To replace a wheel bearing properly, it has to be popped out of the hub assembly, preferably using a hydraulic press. Problems can arise with the re-installation of the new bearing, as the alignment must be accurate to avoid the bearing wearing out rapidly and causing further pain.

Just a few months ago I’ve had the rear wheel bearings of my E36 replaced. When the mechanic popped them out, he said that the rear right bearing was shot beyond recognition and it was a miracle that it didn’t break.

Unfortunately we were unable to perform this final install and dyno on the same day due to time constraints and the need for specialty tools that many BMW shops have or that you can buy or rent yourself. This last and final dyno will not be as perfectly comparable as our previous runs but should be as good as any comparison out there. We were eager to see the new gains since the subjective difference between the Stage 2 and the new cam-equipped Stage 3 felt like just as large of a jump in performance as going from stock to Stage 2 had.

Most online parts stores will now sell the entire hub assembly with the wheel bearing pressed into it, saving the hassle and potential scope for mistakes within the specific bearing assembly. It goes without saying, but you should also make sure that, if possible, you or the garage is using an original manufacturer part or one of reasonably similar quality - this is one area you really don’t want to skimp on.

Like all mechanical parts on a car that rotates, rub and roll, they tend to wear out eventually. There are several signs of a knackered wheel bearing. The most common is a constant drone, hum or growl from the affected wheel, which will get more noticeable as speed increases or the car turns. You may also notice less responsive steering or speed-dependent wheel wobble. On more modern cars, which often have anti-lock brake sensors integrated into the hub assembly, you might get an ABS warning light on the dash.

Which means, that a few months prior, I’ve just hit 210 KPH with broken wheel bearings in what’s essentially a 20 years old coffin on wheels. Yay.

S52camshaft removal

There’s a decent chance that at some point, you’ve had your car back from an MOT test and found a patch of orange on the results that says something along the lines of ‘play in offside front wheel bearing.’ It sounds scary - after all, in order of everything you want to function correctly on your car, the wheels are pretty far up the list.

Last year I was driving from Townsville to Brisbane. And about 800km in the wheel bearing on the rear right wheel went which shook the wheel completely off. I was only a learner at the time so it was the scariest thing that had happened to me while driving. The worst part was the car had just been serviced for the trip and the bearings had been replaced.

Wheel bearings should last tens of thousands of miles, but many mechanics will simply hammer the bearing back into the hub assembly instead of precisely aligning it and using the aforementioned press. This will inevitably lead to the bearing not rotating in the perpendicular fashion that it was designed for, accelerating wear and damage to the part. It’s important, therefore, if you’re not 100 per cent confident in your own ability, to ensure you’re using a trusted, professional garage.

Wheel bearings play an important role within the drivetrain of any vehicle, as they provide the first connection between the moving and static areas of the car. A bearing – in its simplest form – is a friction reduction device placed within something like a wheel to aid the efficiency of rotation. This is achieved as rolling produces much less friction force than sliding.

I’m trying to find any before/after tests of the 1995 S50 3.0L engine when installing the TMS stage 3 kit. I’m trying to decide if it is worth it. Would you expect similar results?