So, I went to get my '04 SS inspected today and they failed it because the front left wheel hub/bearing had too much play in it and said I would need to replace it to pass inspection. How hard is it to replace the front wheel hub in a parking lot with no power tools? When I was looking at the hub on O'Reilly's website they also had a hub puller rental tool which leads me to believe this is a somewhat extensive job to change out the hub. I've done wheel bearing replacements on older cars with serviceable wheel bearings but I'm assuming the front bearings aren't serviceable on these cars and that the whole hub has to be replaced?

 

You dont need a puller, its held on with three bolts that come from behind the knuckle so you can just smack it if it sticks. With hand tools, I was able to get it changed with only taking off the brakes, tie rods, and struts.

 

I watched a few videos since I posted this and it looks like the tie rods and struts don't even need to be removed. It looks like you can get to all 3 bolts just by turning the wheel and using an extension so it looks fairly simple.

Do you remember what size your hub nut was? I've seen 34mm, 35mm, and 36mm depending on where I look.

 

You've got this for sure, even with hand tools. If its super rusty, you may need some hammer action to break things free.

For the axle nut, I'd just rent the axle nut set from your auto parts store. Its probably going to be a one time use for you anyways and the size is all over the place 32-36. Ive seen some doing axles where the stock was 36 and even the same OEM replacement was a 35.

 

I've got some PB Blaster and a heavy rubber mallet if I need them. Also, I just ordered a 34mm and 35mm axle nut socket on Rock Auto while I was on there ordering the hub. They were like $7 and $8 and hopefully it's one of those 2. They won't be the first tools I've ever bought and never used or only used once. At some point the passenger side hub will likely have to be replaced as well. He said that side was tight so I'm just leaving it alone for now.

 

The threads should be the same for whichever nut. Its the head/socket size that changes. Mine are 36 and I never used the new ones when changing the axle. Not sure if thats the proper way to do it but thats how I did it.

Ive also seen a video where the guy used an extension to get to the bolts without unhooking the tie rod. I just couldnt manage that so everything had to come apart for me.

 

As long as it doesn't look like it was recovered from the titanic, lol. Too many bad experiences working on salt belt cars here

 

I haven't taken a good look yet, but it shouldn't be that bad since it's not a northern state car. We do get a little snow here though, so I imagine it'll have some rust after 164k miles. Although I live in Missouri and it's technically part of the "salt belt", the worse winter weather in Missouri goes north of I-44 and I live south of that line so our winters tend to be not that bad.

 

The nice thing at least is most modern wheels do a pretty good job covering that area up so at least its not constantly soaked in crap like exhaust and suspension.

 

So I attempted the swap today with hand tools. The axle nut broke free easily, easier than the lug nuts actually. Then there was the brake caliper bracket. Those bolts wouldn't break free for anything. I didn't have a ton of leverage since I was doing this with the car up on a jack and jack stand. I sprayed those bolts and the hub bolts with PB Blaster, put the wheel back on, torqued the old axle nut back down and the lugs then went inside and ordered a Milwaukee cordless impact. 😁 Should be a lot easier next weekend with the impact. I miss the days when I was younger and in better shape to spend hours outside working on a car. I'm too old for that **** now. LOL!