QuestionQUESTION: Hello, I am at my wits end and empty in the wallet. I have a sebring 99 convertible and Since last september I have replaced front wheelhub bearing both sides twice and now i am hearing the same noise and I need to know what can be causing this. My mechanic is stunned too he suggested a spindle? Please help I love my car!
ANSWER: Hi Tammy,
The hub/bearing is sold as an assembly and the stub axle (maybe what the mechanic means by a spindle?) is part of the drive half-shaft. There is no 'spindle' as such. I don't see how the stub axle could be damaging the hub/bearing. Perhaps you are not hearing a bad bearing but rather one of the cv-joints has gone dry because its rubber boot has torn and allowed the grease to spin out? That too will cause a rumbling sound, louder when you are turning/accelerating. A simple visual inspection of the boot on either side would answer that question.
Other than that, I cannot understand what is going wrong with the hub/bearings. They are pre-manufactured and bolt into the steering knuckle with no possible adjustments. It seems almost fool-proof. I wonder if he is using a good brand of bearing/hub? Perhaps he could get credit on the defective ones and re-do the job for free? Maybe he needs to buy them from a Chrysler dealer's parts department? Small claims court could be your last resort.
Roland
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QUESTION: I just recently had the right front cv joint replaced and they never mentioned the left. When I turn to the right the noise stops. But you are right when I accelerate it gets louder. The wheel hubs I bought at autozone. They are pricey too. Too bad you dont live close it seems you really know your stuff. Also I do have another question. My transmission shifts kinda hard sometimes is there something i can do that would eliminate this. Thanks, Tammy
AnswerHi Tammy,
The change in noise with turning points more toward a cv than a hub/bearing. So check the other boots (there are actually 4 total, two on each half axle).
On the transmission, I would suggest going to Autozone and getting a free code readout for any 4-digit fault codes. Then let us see if any of them pertain to the transmission. Harsh upshifts can be caused by the internal hydraulic fluid pressure being too high or too low, maybe a clogged filter causing the latter. But let see what codes come out.
Roland
