josephdstone

I believe I'm going to have to replace my front wheel bearings on my 06 HHR. There is a significant droning coming from the front end when driving about 30 or 40.

I have an LS model and I don't really know how to find out whether it has ABS before I go and order the new part.

Another thing, I'm just about religious when it comes to the part store that I buy from "Oreilly." I'm finding that Oreilly doesn't sell Timken wheel bearings, they sell National, Master Pro and Precision brands. Are any of these brands of the same level as Timken bearings?

843de

Look at your build tag inside the glove box, check for code JM4, if its there you have an ABS equipped unit.

KingMaddog

When you turn your key on, there will be an ABS light that comes on briefly (like the check engine light) if you have ABS.

donbrew

Don't start that again, please. Get whatever you want, everybody here will swear that their favorite brand is forged by the thunder god Thor. I am guessing that the brand you mention are "cheap Chinese", but then there is no guarantee that a particular Timkin unit was not made in China, or India, or somewhere else. BTW, they can be had for around $11.00 if you shop around and don't insist on the $200 brands; I have a pair that I bought on spec sitting in the garage $27 for the pair delivered both are in National boxes and stamped, but the seals are different.

josephdstone

Well the point I'm trying to make is that I don't want anything near what the OE bearings are. I have 100k on the HHR and I've never had a wheel bearing go that fast, I have an 03 F150 with 206k on it with no bearing noise at all.

whopper

And somewhere, there is an owner of a 03 F150 with 206K on it that has needed 3 sets of bearings. So it ain't worth the sweat looking for the "golden bearings of ole".

donbrew

Not to mention they are entirely different types of bearings. My last Toyota Pickup only got new bearings because I decided that they needed to be replaced after 200K. anyways the type of bearing is the reason for "failure" at an early age, not necessarily the brand. Back in the 70's when I was a TBA salesman, you would not believe the number of wheel bearings I sold. I could convince anyone that needed a brake job that they needed new wheel bearings, that was in the 10,000 mile range. 100,00 is good when compared to the "good old days", just more expensive. Back then 100,00 miles on any car was exceptional!

And, just because there is no "bearing noise" does not mean the bearings are not bad, The old type could go to black smudges of grease wearing the spindle down before they made noise (I have done it). Anyway, compared to the days of yore 100K is good. I bet that I could sell you new front wheel bearings on any rear wheel drive vehicle after 5K of use!

843de

I'll second donbrew here, bearings are tons better than they were even twenty years ago and 100k on a set is very acceptable. I remember well the days of new front bearings at every brake job, and during my days busting tires at Firestone, new bearings were SOP with new brakes on RWD cars and trucks.

diskullman

Bearings used to be replaced on brake jobs because they were CHEAP back then. A set of tapered roller bearings might cost you an extra $10 nad it really wasn't worthwhile cleaning and re-packing the old bearings. Bearings are made much better these days, but not wheel bearings. They stoped using the tapered roller bearings in favor of double row ball bearings, and the load ratings , as well as thrust load ratings are much lighter than the old tapered roller bearings. It's simple physics, as the tapered roller bearings provided a much larger surface area of contact. Also, the tapered roller bearings could be tightened to adjust for wear.
Ifyou buy an $11 bearing instead of a $200 bearing, you can be sure it's one of those Chinese bearings you should avoid. The big automotive jobbers, National and even Timken, often buy from each other, and you get a total surprise when opening the box. You'll find Timkens in National boxes as well as SKF.
Stick with the better known names of bearings and alsways open the box to see what bearing is inside.

Zagohhr

Backing to the original topic, remove any of your front wheels. If you see an electric connector on the hub bearing, has ABS. if not, is not an ABS.