Lord knows I've had/seen/replaced my share of shot ones over the years, but always accompanied by the telltale signs- moaning/howling/etc. I've been having problems w the front pass side on my 00 Si for years now- no noise or anything and feels fine when driving, but the axle nut keeps loosening up and when it does the hub/bearing asm gets really loose and wobbly

thoughts? (other than loctite)

 

How is it coming loose? Aren't you supposed to stake it so it cannot move?

 

apparently it wants to loosen up so bad that it keeps unstaking itself which is why im thinking there's another problem somewhere... like maybe a previous owner replaced the hub/bearing with an aftermarket one that wasn't machined 100% true? I even cut the groove a little deeper so I could really get the nut staked in there... no dice. Last time I restaked it and used some loctite 272 which is basically one step away from structural epoxy... and now its loose again. I've thought of drilling and pinning it but if there is something wrong thats making it want to loosen up I'd rather find the problem than forcing it to stay together

 

Make sure all the splines on the axle and hub are clean and shiny and that there isn't any gunk on the backside of the hub/bearing.
I always tighten them to 140 ft/lbs and then crack it loose and re-torque to 135 ft/lbs just so everything is seated properly.
Any chance the splines on the axle or hub are stripped just enough that under load the axle is slipping but are fine checked by hand?
Somehow the axle is turning in relation to the nut, and on the right side that = loosen = BAD!

 

aftermarket hubs/hub bearings are made to the same standards and specs as OE parts -even the cheap ones.

it sounds to me like you have a axle/hub mismatch. maybe an undersized axle... it fits in the hub but the splines don't mesh.. this is the only situation i can think of that could cause the nut to come un-staked. try to rotate the hub/rotor independent of the axle with the nut off, or even better, measure each.

 

Good thing it's not drum brakes up front! (can only imagine the wheel flying off at speed)

 

what's it matter?