How to Remove a Front Wheel Hub on a Front Wheel Drive
Manufacturers have come a long way in terms of providing at-home mechanics with a way of repairing front-wheel-drive wheel bearings. Today's front-wheel-drive cars, and many rear-wheel-drive cars and trucks, are equipped with replaceable hub and bearing assemblies. Gone are the days of having to get bearings pressed out of steering knuckles; now it's just a matter of unbolting the old one and bolting in a new one.
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Things You'll Need
- Hub assembly
- Car jack
- Jack stands
- Lug wrench
- 1/2 inch drive socket set
- 3/8 inch drive socket set
- Large hammer
Instructions
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Disassemble
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1
Raise and support the vehicle with the car jack and jack stands, and remove the wheel with the lug wrench. Position the jack stand on the frame out of the way of the wheel opening, to allow room to maneuver.
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2
Select the proper 3/8 drive socket and remove the caliper retaining bolts and caliper from the rotor. (The 3/8 drive set comes with a range of different sizes to fit different size fasteners--usually 5/16 to 11/16. Select the one that fits the bolt you are trying to remove.) Once the caliper is out of the way, remove the caliper bracket by removing the large retaining bolts located behind the rotor. Remove the rotor, and lay the bracket and rotor out of the way.
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3
Remove the outer tie rod end by removing the cotter pin, and retaining nut and giving the steering arm a sharp hard blow with a large hammer. It may take several sharp blows to release the tapered tie rod from the hole in the steering arm. This step will allow the spindle to be rotated so that access to the hub assembly bolts can be gained.
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4
Remove hub assembly by first removing the large axle nut with the correct size 1/2 inch drive socket. A large breaker bar, or a pipe slipped over the socket wrench will help provide leverage need to loosen the axle nut. Once the axle nut is off, push the axle back into the hub slightly, and rotate the steering knuckle to gain access to the three hub retaining bolts. Remove the three bolts, and slide the hub out of the mounting hole, and off the axle.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Axle nut torque varies by manufacturer. Consult your manufacturer's specifications when tightening this nut.
