GM 457049
Wheel Bearing

Before servicing the front Wheel Bearing and hub, you need to raise the vehicle and hold it up using suitable safety stands. After taking off the wheel and tire, use a wire to hold the brake caliper and avoid harming the Brake Line. Cover the inside and outside of the c/v joint boots with shop towels to prevent them from being damaged during the process. After that, remove the brake caliper, drive axle nut, washer and brake rotor. When the tie rod nut is removed, disconnect the Tie Rod End from the knuckle and place the hub and bearing assembly on the side of the hub bolt so it does not get dirty. Place a puller on the hub and bearing assembly to release it and then use a socket or ratchet to unscrew the bolts that hold down the halfshaft and the splash shield before you remove the shield. Place a jack stand beneath the lower Control Arm, remove the upper and lower Ball Joint nuts and detach the ball joints from the knuckle with j 36607 before you take out the knuckle and seal. While installing, insert the seal into the j 36605 first, then connect the ball joints to the knuckle, install the nuts on the studs and tighten the lower one to 128 nm (94 ft. Lbs.) and the upper one to 100 nm (74 ft. Lbs.) without applying too much torque. Put on the new cotter pins, fit and bolt in the splash shield and tighten them to 26 nm (19 ft. Lbs.). Treat the seals inside the steering knuckle with grease, slip on the half shaft, place the hub and bearings assembly, arrange the holes for evenness and tighten the bolts to 180 nm (133 ft. Lbs.). Attach the Tie Rod End to the knuckle, fasten it using the nut and tighten it to 48 nm (35 ft. Lbs.). Then, set the washer, followed by the drive axle nut that you should tighten to 225 nm (165 ft. Lbs.). The last step is to add the rotor and Brake Calipers, attach the tire and wheel setup, take down the jack stand, lower the vehicle and make sure the trim height is correct and alter it if needed.

Inspect all parts during disassembly and review their condition before starting repairs to determine the reason for wheel bearing damage. Replace both bearings and check the seals but keep everything else when you detect light wear from small abrasives affecting tracks and rollers. The same cleaning and inspection process applies to both minor and major wear detections on the races and rollers. If brinelling occurs as subsurface indentations on the raceway and makes bearings surface rough or creates loud noise then engineers must replace the bearings as well as any harmed shaft material. To fix indentation damage from hard foreign objects you must purify the parts and replace the bearing if it becomes noisy. When the shaft shows damage it needs to be replaced. Fatigue damage at one race edge demands bearing replacement accompanied by all associated parts cleaning plus new shaft when the shaft gets hurt. Foreign object misalignment needs a new bearing plus the right setting for races before replacing the shaft if the bearing surface gets damaged. The damaged bearings need replacing along with full component cleaning plus checking seals and fixing proper fit plus lubrication with a new shaft required if damaged due to frettage corrosion from movement without lubrication. Poor joint alignment combined with heat stress or handling issues along with excessive weight and inadequate lubrication force us to replace the bearings while cleaning the surroundings parts and inspecting the joint fit.

Use the J 23690 (Bearing Installer).

Begin by raising the vehicle and removing the tire and wheel assembly.

Remove the axle joint cover, install the tire and wheel assembly, lower the vehicle, and check the master cylinder fluid level, adding fluid if necessary.

Remove the safety stands and lower the vehicle.

Install the retaining ring, ensuring it is fully seated in the groove.

Install the inner wheel bearing into the hub/rotor with additional grease, followed by the new seal, ensuring it is flush with the hub/rotor flange and lubricating the seal lip.

The required tools are: J 8092 Universal Driver Handle, J 2222-C Wheel Bearing Nut Wrench, J 24426 Wheel Bearing Race Installer-Outer, J 24427 Wheel Bearing Race Installer-Inner, J 44419 Hub Outer Bearing Race Installer, J 24428 Axle Shaft Seal Installer, and J 24428-A Axle Shaft Seal Installer.