Expensive Repair, Any similiar experience in the Group?

Spent about $1K on the front end of the truck I love the other day. Both front hub assemblies were replaced because the bearings were shot; $400 each! I knew there was a problem from wear on the passenger side tire and noise I was hearing but did not expect the bearing issue (maybe should have). About 95,400 miles on the truck.

Has any one else with a diesel had this problem? The repair place said it happens because of the weight of the engine.

I kept the old parts. One of my NCOs told me he thought that new bearings could be pressed into the old assemblies for ~$150 and they could be kept for spares. Does any one have any knowledge about doing that?

Appreciate any ones input.

Glen
4 wheel drive front hub replacement is expensive, tack on it's a diesel that automatically raises the price. Sorry to hear of the troubles you are having staying on the road. I hope this is the last of your troubles for the rest of the camping season.
Happy Camping from Minnesota.

Take Care

Bear

My brother had the same problem with his Chevy. He blamed it on pulling a heavy trailer; about 14k.

scottz wrote:My brother had the same problem with his Chevy. He blamed it on pulling a heavy trailer; about 14k.

My camper does not change the weight of my steer axle when hitched (Cat Scale posting) . I don't think that is true in my situation.

My Dad had the same thing done on his 06 Duramax. Same story. He pulls a 14,000 5er also.

scottz wrote:My brother had the same problem with his Chevy. He blamed it on pulling a heavy trailer; about 14k.

I believe the wear would be due to the stopping of the heavy trailer more than pulling of trailer........

My F-350 had about the same repair done last week. Both hub were leaking a very small amount on to the rotors make it feel like the rotors were warped. $1059.00. Extended warrenty paid $1000.00 of the bill. They would not pay to turn the rotors.

Sorry for your trouble sounds to be about time for that. Diesel is very heavy compared to gaser, here is a link to a great place to buy those out of Canada (mostly OEM stuff) I have used them alot great company and you can see just how much they really cost. I think you will find rebuilding your old ones just won't be worth the trouble.
www.primechoiceautoparts.com/c-47-hub-assembly-hub-bearing-mmy-CHEVROLET-SILVERADO2500HD-2006.aspx
They used to make them where you could take apart and clean and repack and be good again. We have become a throw-away world. Happy camping for the rest of the season.

Thats a common issue on Dodge's too but $1k sounds good to me. Runs closer to $1400 around here.
I can hardly wait!

We have several GM trucks in our landscape fleet. Even the old 90's style, hubs were a problem. Most of our trucks last around 100K and then we usually fix hubs, ball joints, and some or all steering parts. Maybe put brakes in. Kinda go through it. But in my experience anyway, once we go through it, the truck seems to be problem free after for a lot of years. I've had all the brands at one point or another. I think they are all good. We just seem to have pretty good luck with GM and have better resources for service etc. where we are located.
Our one Ford truck has u-joint issues and axel joints etc. They all have something. We just fix it and go on. Never spent $1000.00 just on hubs though. Usually about $700.00 with labor for both. I don't think front end parts have much to do because you tow. Ours have more to do with plowing snow.

Also, forgot. I don't think the new bearings should be pressed in the old hubs. We use aftermarket hubs and have great luck. Carquest. These hubs have your ABS brake sensor in it. I think it is best to do more " Plug and Play " with these newer trucks as far as replacing parts.

I replaced mine just before Labor Day 2008 on my truck. Since they are assemblies, they aren't cheap. I paid $600 for both and replaced them in about 1-1.5 hours. It's an easy job on a Ford. Just take the tire off, remove locking hub (5 second job), remove the brake assembly (2 bolts) and the hub assembly is 4 bolts. Grease up axle stub shaft and replace o ring. reinstall. I was in a pinch. I was heading home from work before our trip when I heard a grinding noise. I could move the tire easily in the axes it wasn't supposed to move. Mine came with the ABS sensor wire as part of the assembly.

Yep, just replaced the drivers side of my f350 a few months ago.
I paid 250 I think at Advanced auto with the abs line. National brand I believe it was. I was lucky enough to have a mech friend at the house to fix it for me. I still owe him one.

Thanks for all the input. Sounds like I need to get used to it; but maybe I can get it done for less if i'm paying attention to the tell tale signs.

If you just changed them, you should be good for quite some time. Usually we can hear howling, especially when rounding a curve. If you jack up the wheel off the ground, you can feel and see the play in the wheel by lifting it up and down. It shouldn't move much. If it does, look at the upper and lower arms first. Maybe a ball joint bad too.

Good advice, azandy. I'll keep that in mind. It might have helped if the truck had been with me since November. I'm sure I would have noticed something which prompted me to get it checked out sooner.

I drove mine back home with the needle bearings completely gone.

I took off one morning headed back home with the camper and you could hear the most awful noise you ever heard coming from the front end. I knew what it was and figured it was either gonna make it or fall off on the road. It would grind metal for a little while then stop and get quiet for awhile. But you still have the larger sealed bearing to ride on, So I kept going and made it home. About a 150 mile trip.

My spindel was worn a little when we took it off . We hit it with some sand paper and smoothed it out the best we could. I'm looking for a spindel to have on hand for the next fix. Putting that on looks a little more involved. I'm hoping I'll hit the lotto before that comes due and get a brand new truck.