It turns out i need to replace my wheel bearing/hub. I've never had to do this before but I do know what is entailed for the job (Bentley Service Manual). However, I am unsure of one thing. If I replace the wheel bearing/hub on the front passenger tire (the one that is needed) with an OEM hub is it going to make a difference between that one and the driver side being older?

Basically, do I gotta replace one or both if I go OEM. I reasoned with myself that if I were to go with aftermarket I'd replace both. I really wanna stick to OEM though.

Does anyone happen to know a website where I could get an OEM wheel bearing/hub? Or if I decide to get aftermarkets what are some "good" brands I should look for? Any that are reliable and relatively easy on the wallet?

 

There are alot of "Oriental" mfg. hubs on market, costs $40-70. Very poor quality.
Would suggest buying a set of SKF hubs. More expensive ($180.00) but well worth it. Found sets listed on Amazon.com

 

You don't have to replace them in pairs. You might find that the other one will need replacing soon as well, but not necessarily.

OEMs are spendy. I got SKFs for ~$140 ea from http://www.autohausaz.com

I did all four on mine (live on a dirt road) but the front right was the real problem child. Make sure you get all the misc bits as well as the hub. New castle nut (31106773005), four bolts for the hub (07119904141). I would HIGHLY suggest you also get a new torx keeper bolt (07136772426). I had to repeatedly over two days mapp heat, kroil, and bang on with a 2.5lb sledge with an impact wrench to get that sucker to move. It was fairly mangled when I barely got it off. Torx? Really MINI? The rears were no big deal, but the fronts were ON. Anti seize is your friend when you put it back.

The procedure is pretty straightforward though. It's just road dirt and rust will make it tough. Make sure you moose that castle nut and torque it properly. Helps to have a second set of hands to step on the brakes as it's 132 torques. And on top of that you stake it. Oh, and you need a 1 1/4 six point socket for that castle nut.

 

+1

 

Wow thank you Knotty! This is a great bit of advice. I only have 2 questions: What do you mean by "moose" the castle nut? What is does it mean to stake it? I noticed my Bentley Service Manual said the same thing; no idea how to interpret that.

Thanks!

 

Check the Bentley, but I'm pretty sure that the torque spec is 132 ft lbs which is pretty high. 'Moose' is to apply great force, to honk on it, to give it the old heave ho.

To undo the castle nut, there's part of the rim that has been bent into an indentation on the drive shaft. You'll need to unbend it to get it off. It prevents the nut from coming undone by itself. You'll need to restake it once you've torqued it to spec.

Not MINI, but similar - http://www.discovery2.co.uk/fronthub.html
Look at first/last for the unstake, stake

 

Awesome thank you dude! This helps a lot. And special thanks for the links as well!! Great advice

 

That's what NAM is for.

Couple other things. You need a T50 bit for the rotor keeper screw.

No need to remove the ABS sensor. Just be careful around it. Other threads here mentioned they damaged it more by removing it. Just pull the hub out and don't get crazy and you'll be fine.

If you don't have it, get some Kroil. Excellent stuff. Helps a lot when trying to separate the hub from the knuckle and other stuck together bits, like my experience with the keeper screw... Give it a spritz and then let it rest for 5 minutes to let it work.

 

Awesome, luckily I have all the tools I need for the job :D I just need to exchange my torque wrench for a bigger one and then I'm set. I have this stuff called PB blaster I believe and it works amazing as well. I'm definitely going to see how Kroill works in comparison. Unfortunately I can't start the job for another week or so. Still waiting on that tax return. If I run into problems when I do this job I'll be sure to post about it.

Thanks again!

 

PB is similar. A friend of mine swears by Kroil and had some so I went with that.

Most people don't have a T50 or a 1 1/4 (I had to buy them for this task, hey, typical project) so good that you're ahead. Also good for future search results for other people looking for details.

 

I got mine at O'Reilly Auto Parts for a tad less than $200 each.

Cheers!
RayanMX

 

Can anyone speak on the quality of Timken bearings?

The reviews on Amazon I've found are pretty good...and they're not terribly expensive.

 

Country of manufacture is more important than brand name, and pretty much all the big names are now being made in China as well as other plants around the world. It may sound prejudiced, but I have not had good luck with Chinese made bearings - IMHO buy some made in Germany, US, Japan or any number of other places and you'll be OK.

As to the torx screw, try tightening it slightly before you try to take it out. I had one yesterday that had been soaked repeatedly and I was using an impact wrench on to no avail. Set it to "forward" and gave it a couple of quick blasts. Back to "reverse" and it came right out!

A dab of antisieze on the threads and it will come out easily the next time you need it to...

 

Although I can't verify 100%, I think Timken's are made in the US.

Found this posting on a E46 forum, saying they are very good alternatives to the OEM bearings:

http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=800397

 

Timkens are made not only in the US but all over the world, including China. if you look at the box they come in, it wil tell you where the particular ones you're buying were made. Timken is a well known brand that has been in business for a very long time.

In the most general terms a particular number bearing is made to an international standard, where I find the difference is in the quality of the steel used, I've found Chinese bearings have inconsistant quality control and the steel used can vary widely. With American, or Japanese, German and so on, the quality and manufacture are consistant.

I appreciate trying to save money, but on critical parts like keeping the wheels on and turning, I tend to go with OEM parts.

 

How do I unbend that?