hey all.. im getting a loud humming noise from the front end of my 98 honda accord v-6. got about 119 thousand miles on it . the noise is coming from the front passenger side .i recently changed the front axle (which was bad ) wondering if it could be the front wheel bearing ?? i dont want to go out and buy one yet. i thought i should ask first ? the noise shounds like bad tire noise , it starts going at about 30mph car has new tires and about 8,000 miles on a rebuilt tranny

 

That is the classic symptom from what I've seen. Also from my experience, if you drive on a windy road it'll get louder when you turn the opposite direction, loading up the bearing on that side, and when turning the other way the noise will decrease as the bearing is slightly unloaded.

 

yeah thats what i'm thinking too ... i just dont want to go out and spend the 50 bucks on the bearing and it not be the problem

 

In general for Hondas (for what I've seen), front wheel bearings last about 100k miles and rears last about 150k. Mine lasted 105k/170k.

Purchase both hubs at the same time so you don't have to do the same job at two different times, and don't even attempt it yourself if you live in anm area that gets salted roads in the winter unless you have a friend, a torch and some patience to get those damn screws out. It took me an hour per hub.

 

so did you actually buy the entire hub ?? or did you just get the bearing ?? i thought that all you needed was the bearing but i'll be glad to get hubs gets me away from having the bearings pressed in ..

 

Replace it soon because there is a possibility of the wheel to separate as was told from my mechanic. The hub may not be damaged, but the old bearing needs to be pressed out and a new one pressed in. Jack the car up on the bad wheel bearing side and check for looseness of the wheel, there should be little movement.

 

Yeah, you replace the whole hub. This requires removing the caliper. It's a not-so-fun job if your car has been attacked by salt - there are 2 screws in the hub that barely come out (God only knows why they put screws on there) and, for me, the hub seperated when I tried to take it off and required another 15 minutes on each side using an impact wrench to jar it loose.

fac90: Newer Hondas all require replacement of the entire hub for wheel bearings. I was forced to drive on my bad rear bearings for about 3k miles and they looked horrid when I got them off, so I don't suggest going more than 1k on them or when they started to squeal badly.

 

Did you get oem parts or aftermarket replacement?.

 

I always go OEM. I plan on driving it awhile.

 

now i'm confused are we talking about front or rear ??? i know that the rear you need to replace the entire hub .. is the front the same ( replace the entire hub ) i looked at several web sites for replacement bearings and they just offer the bearing for the front and hubs for the rear ?? can anyone clarify according to fac90 it's pressed in and 98coupe says its the entire hub ??? sorry if i sound like i'm slow i just want to be sure thanks