Just wondering if anyone had to replace their wheel bearrings in an 97 accord. If so what are the signs of them wearing out? Can I do this project myself or with some help in a day or two? I got a quote from Honda saying it would cost just over $1000 for parts and labor for all four tires. Just thought I would get some feedback from here before I moved forward with this. It's a stock 97 accord lx nothing special with 155k miles on it. Thanks for the help.

 

Grinding noises,play in the wheel when you grab it and wiggle it I've got a 1990 and just replaced the wheel bearing on the passenger side and it really wasnt bad yet never have touiched the rear bearings 240,000 miles make sure you reallly need to its a bear to replace these bearings if you have the rotor style thats pressed in between the hub and bearing Search on this forum about converting if you do to the Acura Rotor Over hub style I just replaced my rotors took me Day and a half and a lot of %$#@*&%^ at Honda for designing the worst brakejob known to man.Good luck

 

Great, thanks for the info. I will definitley check it our before I do. I do not have any play in the wheel yet, but I do have the grinding noise. It almost sounds like road noise but it can be heard on brand new pavement and even lessons when I slow down. Better get started lol.

 

^ if your really worried get up to a comfortable speed and put the car in neutral( or depress clutch) then move the car side to side. If you hear a whir/grinding noise to one side then the bearing is bad.

ie: left turn, right bearing.

 

I actually just replaced my driver side front wheel bearing. All you relly need is wrenches and a slide hammer to get the hub assembly out. then once thats out use a hammer to pound the bearings out then replace with the new one make sure to buy wheel bearing greease and grease up the bearings because the lube thats on it wont do any justice

 

Ah ha. Nice. I will check them out this week on my day off.

 

I have a 97 LX as well and luckily my bearings are still okay for the moment even at 200k miles (knock on wood). If you hear a rubbing or grinding noise at all speeds no matter turning, stopping, etc., then it's more than likely the bearing. Make sure to check for bad ball joints when inspecting as well.

I have done a replacement on my brother's 93 Accord SE and it is practically the same process. The bearing itself cost roughly $40, but because I didn't have a press I had to take it to my local machine shop which cost me an extra $50 to have the old bearing removed and new one pressed in(dunno if thats a fair price...felt kinda ripped off TBH), and as far as I know that's the only way you can do it unless you buy the hub and bearing together already assembled. Luckily there are already several nice articles here at Honda-Tech that involve the removal of the bearing which I used in my replacement:

ramoneguru's brake article uses a hub-puller that you can buy from JC-Whitney, which is real nice. Wish I had one but can't justify the cost as I don't do it often enough.

His article can be found here: https://honda-tech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1281812

JDM_DC4_Fanatic's rotor-over-hub conversion article also involves the hub removal and is more like what I did in my replacement. If you don't have the hub-puller tool then this article may be a better guide for you as removing the knuckle was by far the only other way. I emphasize using a BFH on step 8, little hammers definitely were a no go.

His article can be found here: https://honda-tech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2027047

Of course having a Helm's manual is always recommended (www.helminc.com). If you do this on your own, cost is less than $100 per bearing depending on parts and (if you don't have a press) machine shop charges, this is also assuming you don't have to purchase any extra tools but you should be able to rent a ball joint separator at your local auto parts shop (ie. Autozone). Although I don't see why you need all four bearings replaced...I replaced the one that was bad and everything else is just fine. No point fixing what isn't broken...maybe someone can argue my poor man's motto but I think it was just dealership antics to get more cash out of you.

Better than $1000 at the "stealership". Its a good amount of labor, but hey your personal energy doesn't cost you money.

Good luck, and happy savings of $900.

 

Cool, I appreciate the info. After reading deeper into the bearing symptoms, I have concluded that it is less likely the my case. I am still going to look into different possibilities, and more avenues of approach to try and troubleshoot whats going on.

Thanks Again

 

Doe sthis really work. I have no play iin mine but a horiable growling noicse at any speed, that changes on left turns vs right.

 

If that side bearing is going out u can hear it more when u turn to that side..Mine howled sp when I drove straight but when I turned it was worse then moving straight.. I bought my front bearing on ebay for 40shipped to my door then had a machine shop press the new ones in for 20.. U can get then out urself but u will need a press to get them back in..I agree with the comments above, honda came out with a shitty design for this..