Bearings are a pain because, even if you're a DIY'er, not everyone has a press, and the front bearings need to be pressed in and out. My front left went somewhere around 100k. Others seem good. I'd ALWAYS get the more expensive bearing of the choices. At Advance we sold National bearings, and they're a good brand. Even come with a two year warranty. But like said above, conditions will make or break a car.
I'm over 158,000 miles and have noticed a "whirring" noise from the direction of the RF wheel over the past few days while driving the freeway. Based upon past experience with my PITA 2002 Ford Explorer, I'm thinking its the wheel bearing. Does anyone have an idea of how much longer I can realistically drive it and how much I can expect to pay (dealer and or non-dealer) for a replacement?
Wheel bearings are essential to safe operation of your car. The longer you wait, the worse they'll get. When wheel bearings completely fail, the wheel will either flop around in the fender or completely separate from the car. Get it fixed asap. The longest I've driven around on bad wheel bearings is 2-3 weeks.
Improperly aligned or tire(s) with an already cupped tread pattern can also simulate that maddening "whoo-whoo" noise bad wheels bearings emit. I bought my Vibe used thinking it had a bad rear wheel bearing, only to discover one of the rear tires was cupped from misuse by the previous owner.