Do replacement wheel bearings need to be re-packed or not?

[Huskymaniac]

As I mentioned in another thread, I got some information from Timken that contradicts what many people on this forum have said. According to Timken, the bearings come packed in grease that is sufficient in both quality and quantity to be installed as-is. They did mention that, if you are going to re-pack them with a better grease to completely clean out the original grease. So they imply that there is better grease out there but that you don't have to re-pack them. They said only their unit bearings on rear axles come with shipping grease sufficient only for startup operation.

Was the grease issue just with bearings purchased from Subaru? My mechanic said that they just install the bearings with the supplied grease unless otherwise instructed. I didn't ask him if that was aftermarket bearings like Timken or all bearings including the ones supplied by Subaru. Perhaps the repeat failures people were seeing were mainly due to the hubs needing to be replaced, use of crappy seals or incorrect torque used when installing them instead of the grease in the bearings.

Thoughts?

[zaueugen]

i used timken and i repacked them with mobill synthetic grease and put about 10,000 miles... no problem thus far..

[SVX8588]

Some vehicles (like trucks with solid rear axles) have bearings that get lubricated by the oil from the differential. But when you replace the bearings, there is no oil in them to start with, so they are supposed to have some grease at start up. I'm guessing that's what they were referring to.
Obviously, that's not the case with our cars. I personally would repack any bearing I install just because then I know exactly what kind and how much grease was used, and that it's clean

My 2¢.

[92 SVX]

Originally Posted by Huskymaniac

As I mentioned in another thread, I got some information from Timken that contradicts what many people on this forum have said. According to Timken, the bearings come packed in grease that is sufficient in both quality and quantity to be installed as-is. They did mention that, if you are going to re-pack them with a better grease to completely clean out the original grease. So they imply that there is better grease out there but that you don't have to re-pack them. They said only their unit bearings on rear axles come with shipping grease sufficient only for startup operation.

Was the grease issue just with bearings purchased from Subaru? My mechanic said that they just install the bearings with the supplied grease unless otherwise instructed. I didn't ask him if that was aftermarket bearings like Timken or all bearings including the ones supplied by Subaru. Perhaps the repeat failures people were seeing were mainly due to the hubs needing to be replaced, use of crappy seals or incorrect torque used when installing them instead of the grease in the bearings.

Thoughts?

Take this for what it is, hearsay
From what I have read the subaru bearings are shipped from overseas and to keep the saltwater damage down they are coated with a different grease and so when you get them you need to clean them completely and repack them with the correct grease.

Now other companies Ie timkin may use different procedures. Personally I got to agree with SVX8588 it only takes a little time for true peace of mind.

[Huskymaniac]

Originally Posted by 92 SVX

Take this for what it is, hearsay
From what I have read the subaru bearings are shipped from overseas and to keep the saltwater damage down they are coated with a different grease and so when you get them you need to clean them completely and repack them with the correct grease.

Now other companies Ie timkin may use different procedures. Personally I got to agree with SVX8588 it only takes a little time for true peace of mind.

I agree but one can also re-pack with too much grease so there is some chance to screw it up whereas Timken says that they ship their bearings with the proper amount of grease. Not too much and not too little.

[SVX92-97]

Tony, the previous owner of my 97 ebony had his rear bearings replaced four times within a four year period from the Subaru dealer. Sounds like they just put them in with the packing grease. My mechanic replaced both rear bearings in my wrecked 96 timken, and left rear in my 96 polo timken both which I no longer own, and we washed out the packing grease with brake cleaner, dried them off and repacked them by hand with Amsoil red synthetic grease. No problems and quiet as a mouse. Your asking for trouble if you dont repack them with proper grease

[1986nate]

Originally Posted by SVX92-97

Tony, the previous owner of my 97 ebony had his rear bearings replaced four times within a four year period from the Subaru dealer. Sounds like they just put them in with the packing grease. My mechanic replaced both rear bearings in my wrecked 96 timken, and left rear in my 96 polo timken both which I no longer own, and we washed out the packing grease with brake cleaner, dried them off and repacked them by hand with Amsoil red synthetic grease. No problems and quiet as a mouse. Your asking for trouble if you dont repack them with proper grease

Sounds like an untrue hub....

[kwren]

For many years SVX owners have felt the consequences of not repacking the wheel bearings with grease before they were installed. They were originally sold packed only with only a substance that protected the metal surfaces of the components in the bearing between the time of manufacturing and were sold to the consumer, and installed.

It would make no sense to just install them without making sure they are correctly greased. What "some guy" that answers the phone at "tinkers" said would never be good enough for me. That could even be where that old saying "not worth a tinkers damn" came from!

Considering the history of problems from not flushing the bearing out and installing them the way they are when sold. I for one would take the little effort required and make sure it is correct. Too expensive and time-consuming if it isn't done correctly.

But... that is just me.

Keith