MK4 fiesta rear wheel bearings
Discussion
Hi guys
A friend has a mk4 fiesta on an 02 plate. It's the one that was shared with the Mazda 121 so the last of the 'round' shape before they went all boxy!
Anyway, the rear wheel bearings are grumbling, noise changing with road speed etc and as she his in a tight spot financially at the moment, the circa £100 the garage quoted her is unaffordable at present.
I see you can get bearing kits online for £20 or so. I'm moderately handy with a spanner, but how easy are these to change? From what I can see online, they are all drum brakes on the rear with a taper bearing
Am I opening myself to a world of pain, or could I whip the hubs off, tap out the bearings and tap te new ones in with a decent socket? What about tightening up the hub nuts after?
Anyone know of a decent guide out there?
Cheers in advance
A friend has a mk4 fiesta on an 02 plate. It's the one that was shared with the Mazda 121 so the last of the 'round' shape before they went all boxy!
Anyway, the rear wheel bearings are grumbling, noise changing with road speed etc and as she his in a tight spot financially at the moment, the circa £100 the garage quoted her is unaffordable at present.
I see you can get bearing kits online for £20 or so. I'm moderately handy with a spanner, but how easy are these to change? From what I can see online, they are all drum brakes on the rear with a taper bearing
Am I opening myself to a world of pain, or could I whip the hubs off, tap out the bearings and tap te new ones in with a decent socket? What about tightening up the hub nuts after?
Anyone know of a decent guide out there?
Cheers in advance
Don't know the specifics of that car but a generic method for tapered bearings is as follows.
If tapered tap the bearing out of the drum, tap new outer race in carefully using a drift. Pack the bearings with grease, watch youtube for tips on this, it's very important to get right and not as easy as you'd think. When tightening nip the bearing up whilst turning the wheel. When you feel the wheel start to get tight back off a couple of turns. Re-tighten the bearing until whilst spinning the wheel the wheel just starts to drag on the bearing then back off a touch to make sure the bearing's not binding. Over tightening is way more dangerous than under as it will cause the bearing to over heat and possibly shear the stub axle.
If in doubt check manual or take to someone who knows what they're doing.
Good luck.
If tapered tap the bearing out of the drum, tap new outer race in carefully using a drift. Pack the bearings with grease, watch youtube for tips on this, it's very important to get right and not as easy as you'd think. When tightening nip the bearing up whilst turning the wheel. When you feel the wheel start to get tight back off a couple of turns. Re-tighten the bearing until whilst spinning the wheel the wheel just starts to drag on the bearing then back off a touch to make sure the bearing's not binding. Over tightening is way more dangerous than under as it will cause the bearing to over heat and possibly shear the stub axle.
If in doubt check manual or take to someone who knows what they're doing.
Good luck.
steveo3002 said:
is there any local garages that youre pally with ? option B might be whip the drums off and if it looks beyond you nip to the garage with a £20 note and ask them to press the new ones in
cant see it being too hard really ...
Yeh. I think that's starting to look like the favoured option!cant see it being too hard really ...
Just a bit too busy to hold people's hands for them (granted I cocked up the first time) - http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/261812812456
In their defence eBay is a very tricky place to pick tools out from! That looks like quite a good set though, £18 can't complain.
Definitely do this - I've got a press and it's easy, but doing it without is a s
tty job. My local garage are more than happy with £20 in their pocket for 10 minutes work when you run into a tricky job like that. 
eltax91 said:
steveo3002 said:
is there any local garages that youre pally with ? option B might be whip the drums off and if it looks beyond you nip to the garage with a £20 note and ask them to press the new ones in
cant see it being too hard really ...
Yeh. I think that's starting to look like the favoured option!cant see it being too hard really ...
tty job. My local garage are more than happy with £20 in their pocket for 10 minutes work when you run into a tricky job like that. Taper bearings are a doddle with that tool - use a small punch to knock out the old race and the tool to knock in the new one.
Pressed bearings are a whole different story - definitely a garage job if you don't have a press, some of them are so tight a cheaper press will struggle!
Pressed bearings are a whole different story - definitely a garage job if you don't have a press, some of them are so tight a cheaper press will struggle!
Edited by Toaster Pilot on Saturday 21st November 20:46
Fiesta drum brake model rear bearings are dead easy, I've done similar on many different cars. You don't need a press, just get the old ones out with a steel drift or round ended punch, and replace the new ones with ideally a soft drift to prevent damage. That's why the tools in the kit are aluminium, in reality you can use any soft metal bar, just tap it in all the way round. Alternatively, you can use a socket of the right size in a vice if you have one. The happy thing is that once you assemble it the bearing will go all the way home, that's the part of the purpose of the preload when you reassemble it. It's easy, 1 hour a side tops even for an occasional home mechanic.
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