1. What is an auto (wheel) bearing? And what does it do in a car?

An auto bearing is a crucial part of the wheel assembly that connects the wheel and the axle. It is a set of steel balls (ball bearings) or tapers (tapered bearings), held together by a metal ring. It enables the wheel to rotate smoothly with a minimum of friction. 

2. What does a bad bearing sound like? And how long will a wheel bearing last after it starts making noise?

The classic sounds of a bad wheel bearing are cyclic chirping, squealing and/or growling noise. You can also tell that the sound is related to wheel bearings if it changes in proportion to vehicle speed. The sound can get worse with every turn, or it can disappear momentarily. 

A wheel bearing can last an average of anywhere from 136,000 to 160,000 km which is about 85,000 to 100,000 miles.

If your wheel bearing fails, it can cause the wheel to stop while you are driving or possibly even to fall off. At the very least, before a wheel falls off, a failed wheel bearing can/will cause significant damage to your vehicle, so it's very important to keep an eye on these and keep them maintained.

1. How much does it cost to replace a wheel bearing?

The labor cost for a wheel bearing replacement also varies and will generally cost anywhere from $60 to $300. It should take between 1 to 1.5 labor hours to change the wheel bearing. In total, the cost to replace a wheel bearing is around $150 to $800. The national average is about $350 to fix the wheel bearings at one wheel. As you might imagine, however, luxury brands cost more. Please note: If the wheel bearings need replacing at one wheel, you don't necessary need to replace the bearings at the other wheel on the same axle. It's not like matching a pair of tires.

Sunspeed offers good quality wheel bearings with the most competitive price. Learn more or inquiry, please click Sunspeed Sales Center.

Any questions, please do not hesitate click Contact Sunspeed to let is know. We will get back to you as soon as possible.   

More about Sunspeed:

Sunspeed was established in 1996 and is a large bearing enterprise in China. The company focuses on 10 categories of bearing products, with a total of more than 5,000 kinds. Products include: deep groove ball bearings, tapered roller bearings, self-aligning ball bearings, self-aligning roller bearings, cylindrical roller bearings, angular contact bearings, thrust ball bearings, thrust roller bearings, needle roller bearings, spherical plain bearings, etc. Bearings are widely used in motors, machine tools, automobiles, wind power, mining and other fields.

Sunspeed bearing production personnel have undergone strict technical training, are familiar with every production process of bearings, and are proficient in various production equipment to ensure the normal production of bearings.

Sunspeed has various types of testing equipment for bearing size testing, noise testing, vibration monitoring, etc. After the bearing production is completed, each bearing must undergo strict quality inspection to ensure that each bearing product delivered to the customer meets the customer's quality requirements.