Changing A Front Wheel Bearing On A D4D

[LordBucketHead]

Hi, first post. Pleased to meet you all. It's my intention to change the front wheel bearings on my Avensis this week.

It would be great if anyone could advise me what I'll need for the job so I can be prepared (ie go to Toolstation before the job rather than in the middle of :-).

For example, what size socket is required for the large hub nut ? What size circlip pliers etc.

I haven't got a hydraulic press so it's my intention to knock the bearing out (and back in) with a hammer & punch (I worked down the pit for 10 years lol)

The last wheel bearings I changed were over 20 years ago but I've got more time on my hands nowadays to roll my sleeves up. Any tips would be appreciated.

Thank you for reading this and thanks for any advice. Much obliged.

[gazza1286]

Brave man. You'll need more than a hammer and punch. 

Personally I'd just disconnect the hub assembly and take that and the bearing to a local garage that has a press to hand. It only cost me £20 last time I did it. 

I can't recall the size of the drive shaft nut but they easily come off with a medium breaker bar (1/2") and a short length of scaffolding pipe. I've always used a couple of lengths roofing bar to brace the hub using the studs. The bars are bolted together (left of image) and they brace against the ground.  See below (available from Jewsons) you just need to drill a couple of the larger holes to fit over the wheel studs. Extra care is required for the abs sensors. I prefer to leave them on the hub and thread the wiring from the engine bar as they can be easily damaged. (not had to remove them from the latest Avensis so the design may have changed). 

[Konrad C]

I have changed the front wheel bearing on my old Mk1 Avensis and have my own 10 ton press. The socket for the original hub nut is 30mm. I have sockets for both 30mm and 32mm sizes. The bearing kits I used supplied with bi hex 30mm nut, instead of the standard hexagonal nut. 

You need WD40 or Plusgas to help free up any bolts that may be seized. It is best to spray some of the bolts about an hour before.  I have power bar for the hub nut and other bolts that need a lot of leverage. 
The most tricky to remove is the 10mm bolt securing the ABS sensor. Spray that as soon as you can, and wait a while before trying to undo it. I had the nut shear in half, but managed to extract the remainder without damaging the thread. There has been horror stories where garages have just drilled out a broken bolt, damaging the thread, then retapped new threads out of alignment. This causes the ABS malfunction disabling  

The ABS senor can be disconnected via a connector further along.

Other tools you will need are circlip pliers and I use an angle grinder to remove the inner race from the inner inner hub after pressing that out.  

My press in action - 

Notice the small bolt for the ABS sensor. That bolt was the replacement after the other sheared off.

Apparently large bolts and nuts with suitably sized spacers can be used to force out the bearing, but I cannot say it would work in every situation!

I kept part of the old bearing to use to make a spacer to press the new bearing back into the hub.

Everything applies to the Mk1 and Mk2 Avensis. Mk3 use hub bearing as used on the rear of all  Avensis, but on the front axle -    

I did a friends series 2 Prius a year and a half back and that had its own problem. 

Personally if you can get to a garage with a press, then take the hub off and let them press out old and press new. 

    

[LordBucketHead]

Thanks gentlemen for the responses and the pictures. Very much appreciated & very interesting indeed. There's a little one-man car workshop tucked away off the High Street that my neighbour told me about yesterday that I didn't know existed. I went along there today & the first thing I spotted was a gleaming hydraulic press. After half an hour chin wag (car technicians are better talkers than hairdressers) I asked him about pressing the bearings for me and he just told me to fetch the car along on Thursday morning with the new bearings and 'we'll' lash-it-off as someone had cancelled. I couldn't really say no to be honest. The sight of a car lift always wins me over tbh lol. Thanks again gents.

 

Gazza1286 - Thanks for sharing your brace bars idea. In my youth I had boxes of such 'pit' made devices while trying to keep old Cortinas, Minis, Landrovers etc from dropping to bits lol

Edited February 20, 2018 by LordBucketHead
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[gazza1286]

That brace has helped me numerous times over the years - mainly for removing crankshaft pulley wheels to replace timing belts. Something else which seems to be consigned to history as manufacturers all seem to be switching over to timing chains.... 

[LordBucketHead]

20 minutes ago, gazza1286 said:

That brace has helped me numerous times over the years - mainly for removing crankshaft pulley wheels to replace timing belts. Something else which seems to be consigned to history as manufacturers all seem to be switching over to timing chains.... 

When I saw that picture I felt a little nostalgia. I'm sure I've made something like that for some reason in the past. I'm an ex colliery fitter (followed by road crane manufacture and quarry truck manufacture) I overhauled the engine on an H reg Landrover in the early 80s and I'm guessing it was for that. In those days I was living at home at my mother's house and didn't have a garage or even a shed and so I used to keep my tools in the boot of my Ford Cortina which could be opened with either end of a spoon. Consequently, one night, it all went. No use or value at all to the thieves I imagine. 

[Owdjockey]

I had to modify my 10 ton press to take the hub of my D4D. Another tip is before pressing in the new bearing, place it ibn the freezer for a couple of hours.

[Konrad C]

On 2/20/2018 at 9:22 PM, gazza1286 said:

That brace has helped me numerous times over the years - mainly for removing crankshaft pulley wheels to replace timing belts. Something else which seems to be consigned to history as manufacturers all seem to be switching over to timing chains.... 

I have read that VAG have reverted back to cambelts after a spate of chain cam failures (mainly on the TSI engines), due to the supplier not maintaining the machines that made the chains and tensioners.  Links to the following - 

https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/112764/vw-group-tsi-engine

https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/askhj/answer/62917/polo-chain-cam-failure

http://www.adamlewin.co.uk/vw-mk5-golf-tsi-engine-timing-chain-problem/

[Cyker]

Wow... so VW manage to take a system that's supposed to be more reliable and robust than cam belts and make it worse through half-assedness and the compounded the issue by ignoring and denying it?

This sort of thing will not do their already declining reputation for reliability any good...

I really hope Toyota takes notice of this sort of thing whenever they feel tempted to cut corners!

I do find it a bit weird we still use such primitive things as camshafts and belts/chains - Surely electronic valve actuation should have filtered down to newer cars by now! - The possibilities for altering timings on the fly for power, torque or fuel economy would be far better and less mechanically complex than things like VVTi, plus you can fully open and shut the valves much faster giving more time for air and exhaust to move within the same time interval!