I've now got approx. 130,000 miles on my '04 TL. With two different opinions, I'm fairly sure I have a bad rear wheel bearing.

A local tire company (Tirediscounters) offers to replace w/Timken bearing kit for approx. $200-$250 ($90 of this labor).

My Acura dealer wants $400 ($245 of which is labor) but done by Acura and an 'Acura genuine part'.

Has anyone replaced a wheel bearing kit ? I don't see much on this forum about them going bad. Any input appreciated.


Thanks!
Pete

 

are you sure its the bearing and not the tires???? I had some bad tires on the car when i first got it, and they sounded alot like the rear bearings. but as soon as i got some new rubber, the sound went away. But if your bearings are shot then i would get the acura bearing put in by the cheaper place. OEM quality FTW!!! FYI the OEM part number is 42200-SDA-A51

 

If you don't have another make tire to try, put the spare on and take a short drive. Some tires will cause a drone similar to the sound of a bad bearing, but if you find it's actually the bearing, an aftermarket unit will be fine as somebody makes them for Honda/Acura. Better off saving some money. The Timken bearing at RockAuto is only $75.00.

 

dont worry if its not acura, as long as its an oem replacement part, its fine...... Just make sure they install the beraing correctly. Magnetic part on the inside.= or you will get an abs light...

 

yeah.. OE doesn't always mean higher quality. What's your setup? are you stock? I say if you got 130k on your rear bearings then I would stick with OE but find a better price online. try acuraoemparts.com or ask the AZ Acura parts vendor.

Definitely take care of this now before it gets worse.. and do both sides. If one bearing is bad then more than likely the other side is taking more load and has seen similar wear.

 

That only applies to the front bearings cause they are pressed into the front knuckles,the rear bearings are a hub assembly type(no pressing req'd) and they actually have a reluctor ring on them not a magnetic ring. different type of sensor.

 

I don't mean to take anything away from this thread but how can you tell if your bearings are going bad? I have and 05 6MT with almost 54K.

 

Abnormal noise and/or excessive play/movement in the assembly.

 

Its usually a "howling" noise that changes with vehicle speed. Sometimes bad tires(worn,cupping,separated,out of balance) can cause a wheel bearing like noise too. so make sure its not the tires that are causing the noise.

 

Yeah, take a very close look at your tires. Look at the inside and outside edges of the tread for excessive wear (cupping). 3G TLs are somewhat notorious for the rear tires cupping due to misalignment. I had this happen to me (inside edge was cupped) and it made a terrible noise that I thought was a bearing going bad. It turns out I needed an alignment (and two new rear tires). Bearings were fine. Good luck!