Wheel bearing replacement

Milly · Post by **Milly** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 10:06 am

Hi. . .

You'll probably soon get fed up of me on here...!

I'm very much a novice and need to replace the wheel bearing on my 356b.

Is this a fairly straight forward process or would I be best off getting garage to do it..?

I'm willing to give it a go but not I'm not sure exactly how to go about it..!

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance

hot66 · Post by **hot66** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 10:11 am

front wheel bearing?

It is a pretty easy job if you are used to working on cars / drum brakes.

What level of mechanical work are you used to?

Milly · Post by **Milly** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 10:14 am

rear wheel bearing..!

I'm not very mechanically minded as I push paper for a living (I hear you asking why the hell did you buy a 356 then

).

However I'm more than willing to get stuck in and get my hands dirty

hot66 · Post by **hot66** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 10:29 am

I have replaced rear wheel bearings on swing axle VW's ... so should be very similar to the 356. Best thing is to just get stuck in

Not the easiest job to do but you should be able to do it with the right tools etc. You will need to buy / make a puller to remover the original bearing.

Do you have a workshop manual ?

Milly · Post by **Milly** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 10:37 am

Yeah got a manual with the car so I'll take a look tonight

Thanks for your help fella. . .much appreciated

hot66 · Post by **hot66** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 10:53 am

you will need a BIG socket & breaker bar to undo the rear castle nut on the axle. Remember to undo / loosen this 1st before jacking the car up & removing the wheels. Additionally remember to adjust the brake shoes away from the drum so it can be removed. Also, have something ready to catch the oil thats in the swing axle tube

Nige · Post by **Nige** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 11:36 am

Rears are abit awkward, you may as well replace the seals as well.

Best thing I found to loosen the nut is with a 3/4" drive bar with suitable socket. Then with a lump hammer smack the sh*t out of the end of it to loosen the nut. Watch you bodywork! Better than bouncing up and down on length of scaffold tube.

IIRC the threads are handed too depending what side you're working on.

There is an inner and outer bearing too.

Milly · Post by **Milly** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 11:39 am

cheers fellas. . .

I'll have a go and see how far I get tonight

Thanks again