I've got an 85 GSL-SE that im trying to get through inspection. The guy said that I need to 'tighten up the front wheel bearings'. But when i pulled the tire off, all I see is a cap, and no tightening screw, and inside are the ball bearings i guess. Anyone know what he is referring to?

Thanks

 

take the wheel off, remove the cap on center of rotor, wipe grease off a bit and you should see a cotter pin, remove it, followed by small silver cover (not sure of name) looks like a crown. You should see the end of the spindle and the nut in question. Tighten it, but make sure your rotor still turns freely or you will experience premature wear. Regrease it and reinstall everything in the reverse order.

 

Pry that cap off and under it is a cotter key locked nut. Remove the cotter key, take off the little 'castle' looking thing and tighten the nut. I don't know if there is any listed torque setting but you don't want it all the way tight, just enough to keep the wheel from clunking when you shake it. They are tapered roller bearings that your are squeezing together.

 

I'm in MD, Catonsville area, if you're close by (~30 miles) and need I'll be more than happy to stop by or if you want to come here. And yes the about post are correct and is very easy to do, I had to do mine about 3 weeks ago.

 

i did mine recently also, make sure you check back on them after a few hundred miles to make sure they havent loosened up at all, my right one did for some reason.

 

Rechecking them after 100 miles is actually recommended by the FSM, since the bearings will have 'worn in' by then.

As the previous posters have generously offered, getting these torqued correctly is CRITICAL to getting good life out of your wheel bearings. If you can get the car up on jack stands (suspended front end), and then grab the tire/wheel at 12 O'clock and 6 O'clock - pull and push toward and away from you to see how much flex there is - there shouldn't be very much at all. If you hear a 'clunking' noise your wheel bearings may need to be tightened a bit. Now grab at 9 O'clock and 3 O'clock and do the same - if you get clunking now when you didn't before, your steering ball joints are bad. If you get clunking when you DID before, more than likely your wheel bearings need to be tightened. Now, let go and give the wheel/tire a good spin in a forward direction - how long does it turn? If torqued to spec (with stock wheels/tires), it should make about 2 to 3 full turns before coming to a stop, and it should be a gradual, smooth stop; not a clunking, 'bumpy' stop. In other words, you need enough tension on the front bearings to ensure that they track straight and true.

The 'Castle Nut' under the cap, and held in place by the cotter pin should be tightened just enough to get the correct 'spin' as outlined above - this can be accomplished with the wheel/tire still mounted, so have at it.

USE NEW COTTER PINS ON REINSTALL. I cannot stress this enough. Losing a cotter pin will allow the castle nut to spin loose and you will LOSE that wheel ending in a steaming heap of FB...

After you get it adjusted, retest by grabbing it as outlined above, and then take it for a drive. HTH,