Hey Anons,

hoping to get some advice on how to proceed with removal of the front bearing from the wheel knuckles. Currently just working on the front passenger side one. Used a slide hammer to remove hub, worked great. Removed snap ring. Now im at the bearing, moved the axle away and reseated the knuckle to the ball joints and have been using a bearing puller to try working it out. My issue is that it wont budge at all.
is there something i am overlooking? Any tips/advice to getting the bearing freed?
attaching pics. The bearing push piece seems to fit the backside perfectly. Also, is it safe to remove the screw holding the knuckle to the suspension shaft? Or are the alignment type screws? Incase i need to remove the knuckle for further disassembly.

all help is greatly appreciated

Bearing race pulled off w/hub. Snap ring removed.

Noticed a ring around the backside, wondering if its retaining the bearing at all? Removable?

Bearing puller attachment seems to fit perfectly.

Screws holding knuckle to suspension

Screw holding knuckle to suspension

 

You may need to press it out. What kind of puller do you have? Can you get it tight on the outer race and hit it to get it started?

 

i am using a bearing press kit. OMT brand. Reviews seem to have many people successful with it. Which is why i gave it a shot. But i just feel like the bearing is still stuck or something.
I also used a slide hammer to pull the hub with the race out. That was a cinch compared to this.

 

Do you have a way to smack the press after tightening it down good? Sometimes it takes a shock to get it started.

 

Ill see if i can find a way to. the head of the push bolt is on the inside so targeting it to jolt the bearing a bit forward is gonna be tricky while its mounted.
Do you know if removing this knuckle would require realignment procedures after reinstalling it?

i also tried the slide hammer with internal pull hooks to the bearing. No change.
Gonna try a 40” breaker bar to turn the pulling nut tomorrow.
also, would it be wiser to use break grease or motor oil to lube the washer, nut and shaft bolt of the puller?

 

OMG, brings back the memory of doing my 2007 CRV wheel bearings. What a pain in the butt that was.
For me the most time spent was getting the snap ring out. rusted solid. Had to take a Dremel to cut that thing out.
Yes, the bearing itself is going to be tough. You will need to grease the big bolt and grease the washer and the shaft bolt.
That goes under high stress. I had an impact wrench from Harbor Freight. I worked it hard that day.
What might help is making sure the path way is clean of rust. If it is pulled out already then push it back in a little and check.
Should be clean. If needed then heat up the knuckle and cool the bearing. I did not do that. I used the impact to force the bearing out.
For me the bearing came out but not easy. Forcing the new wheel bearing in was a nightmare too.

Everything attached to the knuckle is part of the alignment except for the lower ball joint.
If worse comes to worse then take off the knuckle and bring to a shop to have it pressed out and new one pressed in.
Then reassemble and get a wheel alignment. Yeah, I know it defeats the purpose of buying all that equipment trying to DIY
Just trying to save a little money and learn a few things about the car.

Do not forget to grease the bearing puller/installer kit. After I was done, the kit needed a new washer.
Also helps to have two washers there and both greased. There is a lot of pressure and helps if it can slide a bit.
Good luck.

 

You can lube the bolt if you like but that will not likely give much advantage. It needs to be shocked to get it started. I'd remove the knuckle and do it. Mark everything well and you should be ok with the alignment.

 

Got it, well im gonna give it another go today in the evening. I should be getting my breaker bar today. This might be my last resort before having to go the other route and take the knuckle to a shop. Thanks for all the advise here gents

 

40” breaker bar did it! Damn it was satisfying, that first initial pop from the bearing breaking loose. After that release it was relatively straight forward and not as labor intensive. Next up is loading the new bearing. Crossing fingers for continued success

 

Curious on putting the new bearing and other parts back on, where should i apply this grease? Is it safe to apply to the outer bearing to ease it sliding in? And where on the hub, break discs etc?

also getting the hub back on, do i press it in? Or can i use the axel and axel nut to force it into place while fastening the axel?