2005 Vibe Wheel bearing going bad???

[rlfreese]

I turned 35850 miles on my vibe and it sounds as though a wheel bearing is going bad. I Had it aligned and tires rotated and still the front left wheel area makes a roaring sound. Sounds like a bearing to me. Now here is my problem. I was in ONANCOCK VA when this hapened and there is no dealer nearby, so I go to my local dealer when i get home and of course am over the 36000 mile mark. no warranty. that is just rude. now I have to pay out of pocket to fix this. good thing I am a mechanic and can do it myself. just have to get the bearing pressed in the hub. anyone got a idea of a good replacement.

[jasonvibe]

these use and inner and outer ball bearings. Seen pics in the Matrix manual.

[pingber]

really interesting that you posted this ...I have an 05 with 56000 miles on it (yes, 100 miles per day) ... and it was diagnosed by a local guy (who I trust) as a transmission transfer case problem. He went over the entire car, using a stethoscope and sore up and down (and still does) that is the transfer case. BUT he does say bring it to the dealer to see if they'll help as a courtesy warantee repair ..so off to the dealer I go ... a day leter, with 3 different techs driving it an diagnosing it, they say LEFT FRONT WHEEL BEARING ... let me tell you, this car is LOUD, especially on a right hand turn ...it sometimes goes away on a left turn, sometimes comes back ..I thought it was a tire. ANyway, I figure a $275 bearing is better than a $3000 tranny, so I'll take the risk. My tranny friend is still betting on the sound being there when they are done and that it is the transfer case. We'll see. THis car has always had a few unusual problems that could be bearing related ... 1-> In puddles or standing water during very bad downpours, GRINDING sounds when I apply the brakes ... NOT from rust, but like metal to metal, no pads left grinding .. as the weather dries, the sound disappears. 2 -> the front left tire gets a scallopped edge (replaced 3X) and NO, the car doesn;t need an alignment (but its been done twice anyway) 3-> A terrible shimmy in the front when breaking, BUT, NOT all of the time, just sometimes, so I don;t think its a warped rotor because that would happen all of the time.Anyway ..what do YOU think?

[Vibe_dude]

250$ holy %$%& got mine for 50$ CDN with all taxes..another 40$ to have it installed.Ya thats what it would be...the bearing.....replaced my driver side inner last summer.only got about 90,000 kms on it when it went......not to much $$ to buy...just need the right tools to replace it.

[silver_vibe]

is it a 5 speed? if so, you may want to browse through this to see if it sounds familiar http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=17599

[pingber]

nope --- mine is an awd automatic ... my tranny guy insists its the differential to the transfer case, but the dealer says a bearing ...

[Vibe_dude]

i would bet dollars to donuts its the bearings.

[pingber]

It would seem to be that IF it was the transfer case gears, I'd see (hear) some other kind of symptoms and that the sound when doing right/left turns would be pretty identical since the rear wheels drive together under normal circumstances on a dry road/highway speeds.

[Atomicpunk]

Philip, if you replaced that left front tire 3 times because of unusual wear and have a shimmy when braking occasionally it would be safe to say its the wheel bearings. BTW did you or anyone else that drives that car hit anything with the left front wheel, like a curb, big pot hole?

[pingber]

we've hit a few things over the past two years ... definately a curb once, a deer (don't ask ... no damage to car, just kind of ran over it?) ... assorted pot-holes (we're in N.Y. after all) ..... and the car has always had a weird problem when driving through torrential downpours where there is standing water on the road ... metal to metal grinding from that wheel ...I always thought it was brake related, but the pads/rotors have always been fine ...I'mwondering if I've had a bad bearing for a long time and its just gotten SO bad that it finally failed? Anyway, I hope that's what it is becuse its SO much less expensive (and aggravating) than a transmission transfer case. I've owned three other Toyotas and have never had any tranny trouble, but this is the first AWD I've had.

[ramenboy...]

hey philip, roger, i've got the same type noise. but check this...i read this post, then decided to call the pontiac dealer by my work to ask how much/how long it would be. i figured i could drp it off in the morning, get a ride to work and pick it up in the afternoon. well the service guy at pontiac says its a sealed unit, so i'd have to replace the hubs and whatever. i asked if he was sure, and he said 'i should know, i own a vibe.' so i asked how much THAT would cost, and he needed the last 4 numbers of my vin number to find out. ok, on to a toyota dealer by where i live. i talk to the service guy, ask tell him about the rolling noise, etc. and ask how bmuch/how long it would be to repack the bearings. he said $140, and it would take about an hour. no mention about having to replace the hub assembly or anything...so...who's right?

[pingber]

..well. I'm not too smart with cars, but this much I do know .... the hub assembly doesn't need to be replaced ... the bearing presses into the steering knuckle. The only time that the hub assm needs to be replaced is if the axle/hub has also been damaged ... from what I understand that's rare ... as far as my car ...dealer called me today and said it would be another day ... the new bearing was seized out of the box ... sounds like an excuse to me for something else going wrong ... oh well, I really don;t care as long as its right tomorrow ... if its not ready tomorrow, they can expect a visit from me ...I'm tired of messing with this.

[pingber]

...one more thing ... the front bearings can't be repacked ... they are sealed ... maybe that's what the dealer meant? THe part is about $37 - $40 (US)

[Atomicpunk]

"the new bearing was seized out of the box" means they screwed up pressing it in.

[pingber]

Is this something I need to worry about? like being left with defective parts that are installed?

[pingber]

...picked up the car this morning ... all of the crunching/grinding is gone ...only thing left is alot of tire nosie from the chopped up tire edges. So I rotated the tires and about 50% of that went away too .... Now I need to do the brakes, get an alignment, all of the usual stuff ...Oh and btw, my tranny guy is still convinced that its the transfer case/front diff. He even test drove the car again this morning, swinging it from right to left ... all I heard was tire noise, he's hearing diff noise. Oh well ....Thank you everyone for your help and advice! Hopefully this repair will last.

[pacerman]

What is the bearing make and number like in a......... SKF 6205 2 RS type of number???

[pingber]

wow ... no idea ... its not listed on the bill, just the dealership's part number ... that's all

[jasonvibe]

easiest way to tell if a wheel bearing is bad. JACK it up and see how much lateral play you have by grabbing the top and bottom of the wheel.