aaargh bearing replacement vw golf

DangerMouse27

Hey all..

Decided to do a d.i.y job on my vw mkiv left sided wheel bearings. Everything going to plan and a-ok but the disc wont come off as easily as i expected..rusted on the sides..a mate who works in a vw garage said to hit it with a hammer and wd40 it, but im a bit worried of smashing the disc..

any thoughts..help?

cb900ie

Assuming that you have removed the retaining bolt/screw, you should be safe enough to hit the centre of the disc, preferably with a copper hammer or rubber mallet. Sometimes it helps if you heat the centre with a blowtorch, but not a good plan with the wd40 lurking around the disc!

DangerMouse27

popped right out..easy enough in the end. Ive been looking on the mkiv forums. Next problem seems to be the hub. Doesnt seem like its gonna pivot,maybe it just comes out?

wonder do i need a 3 point claw? seems to be in any diagram or diagnostic ive seen but again the vw friend said it should pop open when ive all the bolts taken off.

any tips?

Nissan doctor

These are very prone to the CV joint seizing into the hub too.

Slidey

I hope you loosened the drive nut before you took the disc off, if not you better have access to an air gun.

TBH, DIYing this job if you have never done one before is going to be a challenge.

Have you access to a press to take out the old bearing and flange? Chances are you are going to leave the inner race behind on the flange. To take this off you can either grind it off with an angle grinder or try the hot spanner on it.

I normally take them out with a hammer and use the vice to put them back in as I don't have a press at home.

It can also be a bit of a fcuker to separate the hub from the bottom of the shock. You can either modify an odd spline bit to be oval shaped and use that to spread the hub or else the trusty chisel will do the job.

DangerMouse27

Gonna have access to the press alright,i made sure of that before i started,was told it was pointless without it.
And yeah def loosened that right up..removed the three bolts along the arm too.

Will the hub come out on its own or will i need to swing the entire knuckle assembly away? seems like the big sticking point now. Once i get to the bearing,should be ok.

need to get hold of a 3-jaw puller tmrw from a mate, think thats gonna help matters

Yeah its a big time consumer but i love it.

Slidey

To take out the bottom ball joint you just remove the 3 13mm bolts.

Take off the track rod end.

Put the nut back on the CV joint and when it is flush with the threads knock it back the way. It may take a good wallop, don't be afraid of it.

Once that is moving take the nut back off and pull the hub out the way towards you and drive the CV joint all the way through.

You have no need for the pullers. You will spend longer bollocking around with them trying to get the legs to stay in place. Drive the old flange out of the bearing. I normally use an impact socket that is a good fit and sit the hub in the vice.

Have never broken anything that way.

You will also need a good circlip pliers to get the circlip out that holds in the bearing in the hub

DangerMouse27

Put the nut back on the CV joint and when it is flush with the threads knock it back the way

is that the twelve point nut? put it right back in? not sure i follow the top wording.

Slidey

Yep, that nut, think it is a 30.

Screw it back on until the nut and the threaded part of the CV joint it flush. That way you shouldn't damage the threads and if you do damage them a bit the nut will clean them up on the way back off.

I would normally do all this before I take off the brake disc though, it is handy for holding it still if needs be.

Nissan doctor

Slidey wrote: »

Yep, that nut, think it is a 30.

Screw it back on until the nut and the threaded part of the CV joint it flush. That way you shouldn't damage the threads and if you do damage them a bit the nut will clean them up on the way back off.

I would normally do all this before I take off the brake disc though, it is handy for holding it still if needs be.

Those 12 point nuts on the vags are very soft unlike the majority of cv nuts. They aren't strong enough to straighten the threads on the joint if they are damaged and definatly don't like being hit with a hammer.

This works for most cars but for vags with the above hub nut a pullers is the only option to avoid damage if the cv is stuck/seized.

Slidey

Well it has worked on my mk4 everytime I have done it. Maybe I just got lucky. Then again, I hit the joint dead centre when knocking them back

DangerMouse27

Slidey..u da man.. Squared the bolt and gave it a few dead centred flakes of a hammer and it popped right in and slid the knuckle out easy as pie.

Getting the bearing out is gonna be tough,any tips..

im gonna need to send you on a basket of muffins btw for your tips

DangerMouse27

Balls...hub came back from getting the bearing pressed in and the bottom ball joint..the one that connects into the 3 bolt arm...has its top nut not moving...every time i turn it,the entire bolt turns too. Wonder did the guy at the garage thread it..even though he shouldnt have touched it.

Ive no idea how to thread it down and have it tighten up the bolt and joint...its really the last thing where i have a problem..

any help?

Nissan doctor

Refit everything back together, then put a jack under the balljoint and push it up into the hub, then tighten the nut.

DublinDilbert

As Nissan doctor says use a jack to force it up as you tighten. It's usually a taper on these that needs to be pulled home...