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Hi guys and gals, how's everybody doin.. ive been a civic owner for a while now and i am loving it. anywho the time is coming where there are some things that need to be fixed.. my car has started to act up a little, and i have done a little research about the issues. but before i do anything i wanted to reach out to the online community.

one of the problems is my bearings, at least that's what i think anyways. i know that the sound is coming from the tire, and most people have told me that's what it probably is. now i have heard that usually, with wheel bearings, that they tend to go one side at a time. that is, one might start making noise, and if changed, that the other side might still work fine for long after. so it is not necessary to change them both at the same time.

either way, whether or not i should change them both is not the question im wanting to ask.

i have been hoping to start doing my own work soon, and so ive been picking up a few tools. and while some people have told me changing wheel bearings is a simple enough job, and that i can do it myself, i have also been told that it is one of those things you should have a garage do. this is because it's not terribly expensive, and that there are some things that can go wrong that are really annoying.

i know there are a few things you can buy, say just the bearings, and then the hub or assembly with the bearings. or the assembly that includes the "knuckle".

my question is, do i buy the assembly, or just the bearing, and is this something that should be attempted by a novice, or not?

any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks in advance

 
Rep Power: 99

I'm going to assume you mean FRONT PRESS-IN BEARINGS. Rears should be much easier.
I disagree with this. If one side has gone, the other is probably not far behind. When my front bearings went bad, they did so within 2,000 miles (probably much less, but I can't remember) of each other.

It's certainly not impossible for a DIYer, but it's more involved than a brake job. You need the right tools and the ability to use those tools properly. If you get stuck, things can go downhill real fast.

The easiest thing to do is buy the entire assembly (knuckle with bearing already installed). I don't know if the hub is included. But that's a fairly straight forward swap. A good torque wrench for when you re-install everything would be very beneficial.

If you want to save money, then just buy the bearing and hub. However, you then need to rent or buy a slide hammer kit and wheel bearing press kit. Or you could just remove the whole knuckle and bring it to a shop to press the old bearing out and new in. It all depends on the tools you have and confidence level.

Watch some YouTube videos on how to do it and decide which way would work best for you.

 
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Hey bro,.thanks A LOT..Really appreciate you taking the time to respond. This community can be a real life line at times. So basically what I'm gathering from this and all the other research I've been doing is that, I either have to spend some money and buy a special tool, spend some money and buy the piece with the knuckle attached, OR spend some money and have a garage do it.

Well, I'm not sure which route I'll go but I am probably leaning a little towards ordering the part (knuckle free) and getting one of my mechanics to do the dirty work. Considering that, for one, I am in fact a novice. And I don't have a ton of tools or money if something unexpected were to happen or go wrong.

There are two or three more minor and intermediate level repairs I would like to tackle within the next few months and into next year. Hopefully everything goes smoothly and my stallion is back in top top shape again before long.

Thanks again for all the help. I wish everyone the best in their endeavours

 
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I like how you put that lol.. This is something I've learned is true about many auto related issues.

And so I normally try to get as much info as possible before doing any car maintenance stuff

 
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correct.

depending on how many cars you have, getting a press is worth, if not...

 
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It is likely I will get the press in the future. I plan to own many more vehicles XD

I will post some updates in a few weeks and let everyone know how things went

 
Rep Power: 367

if you get only one at a time, not worth