How to Identify Damaged Wheel Bearings

Wheel bearings are prone to damages. An overused car is more likely to experience a worn out wheel bearing. Sometimes it may be hard to determine and identify the culprits but you should never ignore any of the signs below.

Your bearing’s consists of inner and outer bearings. It allows the wheels of your car to turn right or left. Even though bearings are covered by a disc, drum, and hub, dirt can still creep up to it. You can check your bearings and make sure you clean it with the KevianClean Wheel Cleaner.

Here are some signs that indicate if your wheel bearings need replacement.

• Noise – Whether it’s a humming, rumbling, clicking or grinding noise, it usually indicates that your wheel bearing is already damaged. In some cases, you can hear a metal to metal contact which means that it lacks proper lubrication. Sometimes you can hear it on one side only while other times, a noise is produced whenever you make a sharp turn. The sound increases as you drive faster and longer.

• Worn tires – This is one of the easiest ways to identify a broken wheel bearing. A worn tire usually means that you need to replace your bearings. The best way to determine a worn tire is to regularly inspect your wheels. This way you can check its condition so that you know when it’s the right time to change your tires.

• Shaky tires and steering wheel – If your tires are unstable, it means that you need to change your wheel bearing. Same goes for a vibrating steering wheel especially if it becomes more noticeable as the speed increases.

How to Check your Wheel Bearings

Here are some steps you can follow on how to check your bearings by yourself:

1. Jack up your vehicle.
2. Check each individual tire and move it in a rocking motion.
3. If the tire is wobbling, it may be due to a bad wheel bearing that needs to be adjusted or replaced.
4. If your car has a manual transmission, put it out of gear. If it is automatic, shift it in neutral gear.
5. Rotate the wheel.
6. If the wheel is making a noise or it doesn’t smoothly rotate, then you may need to change your bearings.

Make it a habit to regularly check your wheel bearings. It can prevent you from running into accidents. If you can’t check it by yourself, you can bring it to your mechanic for further checking.