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D30 hub bearings

F

Ferris73

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Nanaimo, BC
Hey guys,

I lifted my 92 5.5" a year and a half ago, put some 12.5"x33" tires on and had to replace the front wheel bearing hubs about 6 months ago. Just redid the axle seals in the D30 and noticed that the units have some play in them which leads me to think that they have failed.
My question is: is there a bomb proof hub bearing unit I can get that won't fail in 6 months?
 
I've been running Timken unit bearings and they have lasted 2 years so far. I have run 32" and 33" tires but they are on stock 15x7 wheels with stock offset. I think they have helped with the unit bearing life.
 
I ran a 33x12.50 on 10 inch wide with 3.5 backspacing.... i was changing hub assemblies every 6 months.... i don't know of any brand that will last much longer....
 
I'd bet on the backspacing killing yours.

I went through 4 hubs in 2 years, then figured out I wasn't getting enough preload on the bearing with the axle nut. Haven't had a problem since.
 
both of my brand new Timken bearings have failed, and are awaiting return.. I bought them in feb, they lasted 3 months.. axle shaft bolt was torqued to spec..
 
my timkens didnt even last a year before they started howling. im also looking for a superior replacement with a better warranty
 
It's about the tightness of your nuts. :shhh:


I used to have issues with bearings failing prematurely until I torqued my last set to 175 lbs. No issues with em in two years and these were used off a 2006 TJ at Davey's Jeep yard in ohio.
 
My Timkens lasted maybe a year as well. Only a few wheeling trips on them and maybe 5k miles total. Running 35's with 3.3" BS on the wheels, which is probably my issue. I just started noticing some issues with my axle shafts before I realized both my unit bearings had a TON of play. I'm lucky they didn't break going down the road.
 
I also had problems with unit bearings until I actually started torquing them (pro tip: that means using a 200 ft pound torque wrench set to 175, and not just standing on the breaker bar or estimating 175 by hand).

Never had a problem with them again.
 
Have not used their hubs, but it looks like MOOG has them now... for my 95 at least...

Rockauto.com (MOOG Part # 513084) they sell for $110

EDIT:
http://www.rockauto.com/lang/en/warranties.html#moog

has a 12 Month warranty and RockAuto has a good return policy that makes things easy, where you can order new ones and then have shipping costs and part costs 100% refunded after you pay to ship the old one(s) back
 
Last edited:
I had a timken fail and start to leak grease out of the seal within a few weeks. I have both my timkens seem like they are starting to go bad and are not that old at all. I have been considering other options as well. Napa has some I may consider as I have a good thing going with my local napa. Also I saw someone post a link to an american made unit bearing site, I failed to save that though but I was considering them too.
 
cal said:
I also had problems with unit bearings until I actually started torquing them (pro tip: that means using a 200 ft pound torque wrench set to 175, and not just standing on the breaker bar or estimating 175 by hand).

Never had a problem with them again.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I just got some new bearings and I'm definitely getting a good torque wrench before the install.
 
Greets; I've read here at NAXJA that the D30 wheel bearings are narrow, and hence require more or less stock wheels, and tires, with especially no wheel hub spacers for the wide wheel stance, as the pressures are all wrong. Therefore there is a need to upgrade the axles to better, stronger ones in order to gain the advantages of better wheel bearing designs to augment wider stances, bigger wheels, or tires, i.e., the greater weights, and thus pressures in tough turnings. For me, that cost is not practical, so I will have to 'limp' along in 4X4 terrain running stock, and all.

http://mibearings.com/Parts/JEEP.html is one site that has 2 American made wheel bearings for vehicles, i.e., TIMKEN, and Wheel Bearings inc. The aforementioned link offers Timken for my XJ. Here is another example look-see page regards my XJ: http://wbi.mycarparts.com/products/202/interchanges It is made by SKF, here in the U.S.A., (rather than in Japan where some fellow with a Mercedes had read the imprint on his SKF's as to having been made). First Link: Timken. Second Link: SKF. POI: Torgue value for the SKF bearing is 180 pounds.
 
Greets; I've read here at NAXJA that the D30 wheel bearings are narrow, and hence require more or less stock wheels, and tires, with especially no wheel hub spacers for the wide wheel stance, as the pressures are all wrong. Therefore there is a need to upgrade the axles to better, stronger ones in order to gain the advantages of better wheel bearing designs to augment wider stances, bigger wheels, or tires, i.e., the greater weights, and thus pressures in tough turnings. For me, that cost is not practical, so I will have to 'limp' along in 4X4 terrain running stock, and all.

http://mibearings.com/Parts/JEEP.html is one site that has 2 American made wheel bearings for vehicles, i.e., TIMKEN, and Wheel Bearings inc. The aforementioned link offers Timken for my XJ. Here is another example look-see page regards my XJ: http://wbi.mycarparts.com/products/202/interchanges It is made by SKF, here in the U.S.A., (rather than in Japan where some fellow with a Mercedes had read the imprint on his SKF's as to having been made). First Link: Timken. Second Link: SKF. POI: Torgue value for the SKF bearing is 180 pounds.
 
Alaskan89XJ said:
Greets; I've read here at NAXJA that the D30 wheel bearings are narrow, and hence require more or less stock wheels, and tires, with especially no wheel hub spacers for the wide wheel stance, as the pressures are all wrong. Therefore there is a need to upgrade the axles to better, stronger ones in order to gain the advantages of better wheel bearing designs to augment wider stances, bigger wheels, or tires, i.e., the greater weights, and thus pressures in tough turnings. For me, that cost is not practical, so I will have to 'limp' along in 4X4 terrain running stock, and all.

http://mibearings.com/Parts/JEEP.html is one site that has 2 American made wheel bearings for vehicles, i.e., TIMKEN, and Wheel Bearings inc. The aforementioned link offers Timken for my XJ. Here is another example look-see page regards my XJ: http://wbi.mycarparts.com/products/202/interchanges It is made by SKF, here in the U.S.A., (rather than in Japan where some fellow with a Mercedes had read the imprint on his SKF's as to having been made). First Link: Timken. Second Link: SKF. POI: Torgue value for the SKF bearing is 180 pounds.
Click to expand...
I like your avatar, I was a UH-60 Crewchief.
 
careful John, part of your gov't informant relocation program insists that you never publish past life experiences. dont you remember when they said next time you will have to be relocated to downtown LA? thats worse than syberia.

now back to the unit bearings... has anyone come up with a heavier duty one that can be machined down a bit to fit? im sure the center splines are used in alot of other applications.
 
Alaskan89XJ said:
Greets; I've read here at NAXJA that the D30 wheel bearings are narrow, and hence require more or less stock wheels, and tires, with especially no wheel hub spacers for the wide wheel stance, as the pressures are all wrong. Therefore there is a need to upgrade the axles to better, stronger ones in order to gain the advantages of better wheel bearing designs to augment wider stances, bigger wheels, or tires, i.e., the greater weights, and thus pressures in tough turnings. For me, that cost is not practical, so I will have to 'limp' along in 4X4 terrain running stock, and all.
Click to expand...

? My OEM wheel bearings are 13 years old with 190k miles. They've run stock tires, 30's, 31's, 32's and two sets of 35's. I've run stock wheels, stock wheels with Spidertrax spacers and custom heavy steel wheels with 4" backspacing. I've run fire roads to Sledgehammer and can daily driver the same bearings any day of the week.
Oops, I nearly forgot, I checked the torque 8 years ago when I swapped in Alloy USA shafts. :shhh:

In other words, don't let 'stock' D30 wheel bearings be an excuse for limping along. Yeah, one of these days my D30 will be retired, but I'll mount the OEM bearings on the wall as a trophy. :laugh3:
 
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