peener

Great thread! I replaced my left front wheel bearing last night. I had to resort to using a 3lb sledge and chisels/pry bar as my hub puller pulled the bad hub apart (much like a few posts earlier in the thread). The good news is that droning noise is noticeably less (I now think I have other wheel bearings that need replacing soon). The bad news is that I have a new noise. It's not as low pitched as the wheel bearing moaning (but not high pitched), is very cyclical (like I have a bad spot in the new bearing), and is most notable when coasting around 20-25mph or slower. Any ideas?

Sometimes the brake splash shield gets bent when you're wrestling with the assembly and rubs against the rotor. Is that a possibility? You can usually just reach around the tire when it's turned to its fullest extent and bend it with your hands.

Hi everyone-

I'm going to have to do something about my moaning front wheel bearings. I've got a 2002 Legacy L wagon.

I've worked on my friend's more recent subie which has a replaceable hub unit as described in this thread, but I don't know if my older vehicle can be as easily dealt with.

Does anyone know if I can simply replace the front hub unit on my car as described here, or will I have to use a bearing puller/press to install a new bearing?

I guess another way to put it might be "What is the difference between a front bearing replacement on my friend's newer Subaru and my older '02 model?"