Bad wheel bearings can cause noise and vibration in the rear of the car. The rear wheel bearings in a 2002 Dodge Neon are integrated into the wheel hub, and the two parts are replaced as a single assembly. Because of this, replacing the wheel bearings is a simple task that should only take a few minutes.
Loosen the lugnuts with the lug wrench.
Raise the car with a jack. The groove on the jack should line up with the bottom edge of the body panel in front of the tire. It is safe to jack the car anywhere behind the small arrow molded into the panel. Your Neon's owner's manual has a diagram of the proper jack point.
Remove the lug nuts. Pull off the wheel and the brake drum. This will expose the bearing and hub assembly.
Pry the dust cover from the center of the hub with a flathead screwdriver. The dust cover is a light-colored metal cap in the center of the hub. Use a socket wrench with a 20 mm socket to remove the nut in the center of the hub, then slide off the hub.
Coat the spindle with a bearing grease and slide the replacement hub and bearing assembly into place. Replace the nut and tighten to 160 ft-lbs of torque using a torque wrench.
Slide the brake drum and wheel onto the lugs. Hand-tighten the lug nuts.
Lower the jack and finish tightening the lug nuts with the lug wrench.
