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Re: Wheel bearing is driving me nuts. Posted by eric in vermont [Email]  (#2058) [Profile/Gallery]
(more from eric in vermont) on Wed, 29 Jul 2015 18:50:45
In Reply to: Wheel bearing is driving me nuts., Dave G., Wed, 29 Jul 2015 17:09:36 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
Hi Dave,
Very sorry for your frustration. Sounds like having bolts rounded off like that has added to the problem. I got my first VSaab way back in 1978 and stuck with them ever since. One of the reasons is that I found them pretty straight-forward to work on. But I have had my days, let me tell you!
So, let's start with ball joints. You can remove the bottom one easily with compressing the spring. Two bolts thru the lower A-arm and one pinch bolt on the wheel assembly. As you found out, the top one SHOULD NOT be removed without taking pressure off the coil spring. As you noticed, the two bolts that hold it in the A-arm also hold the spring perch. You take out those two bolts and the spring perch can slide off and the spring, believe it or not, still has enough energy to, well, maybe take your head off. So you ended up doing the right thing- take pressure off the spring for the top ball joint.
Next, let's tackle the tie rod. The bottom of the tie rod is a taper fit into the steering arm with a nut on the bottom. You have to remove the cotter pin and then the nut. The problem you may run into is loosening the nut. When you try to, the innards of the tie rod may spin right along with it. You will have to use an air impact to spin it off if that happens.
Next problem may be that you won't be able to pop the taper out of the steering arm. Don't be tempted to pound on the bottom of the tie rod end- you may ruin it. If you insist on trying it, put the nut on the end loosely and just give it a few easy taps. If it doesn't pop out, you need a tie rod removal tool. Cheap to find on Amazon and they work like a dream. I think I paid $20 for mine and its well made and will last forever.
Finally, I recommend that you pull the whole axle assembly out as one unit. That means loosening the big clamp on the inner CV joint. Now here's the next challenge- inside that CV joint is the end of the axle and it's shaped like a TEE. On each end of the tee is a bearing, about an inch in diameter. Inside it is 25 needle bearings. In the disassembly process, these may come out and the greasy mess may spill all over the place. Try not to let this happen, but it probably will. Then you will loose one of the 25 of the needle bearings and want to shoot yourself. How do I know this? Anyway, don't shoot yourself- if (when) it happens let me know- I can come up with a spare needle bearing or two for you.
So if you're with me so far...the next step is to get the wheel bearing OUT of the axle. I'll save that for another time.
All of the above should be relatively straight-forward. No special tricks. Just common disassembly techniques. I can do the above in less than 30 minutes, maybe 15 if I'm in a hurry. That doesn't count for rounded off bolts though.
Hope it helps.
eric in vermont
posted by 209.99.213...
, Wed, 29 Jul 2015 18:50:45 <-- Viewing This Message, Wed, 29 Jul 2015 18:52:46
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