wheel bearing failure

[Stanly]

Hi guys,

quick question. how common is this issue. i have just had my first bearing fail. after around 25K. but of that 20K would be offroad and i run 35s with big backspacing.

did i just get unlucky or can i just expect this to happen every 20-30k because of my offset and tire size ?

also is there anyway to extend the life of the bearings ? ( apart from the obvious changing wheels and tires )

lastly if they are just going to fail again ( ill live with that ) is there heavy duty bearing avaliable ? all i could find was the Mopar bits

[Yom]

my opinions:

Originally Posted by Stanly

did i just get unlucky or can i just expect this to happen every 20-30k because of my offset and tire size ?

Yes and it's possible if they're a bit extreme.

Originally Posted by Stanly

also is there anyway to extend the life of the bearings ? ( apart from the obvious changing wheels and tires )

Nothing proven.

Originally Posted by Stanly

lastly if they are just going to fail again ( ill live with that ) is there heavy duty bearing avaliable ? all i could find was the Mopar bits

Nothing that just bolts on replacing the standard unit bearing.

[JK07]

Stanly Mud is the number 1 killer for wheel bearings. If you are doing a lot of driving thru Mud then yes it is very likely to will kill them pretty often.

Next time pack a lot lot of grease installing them and avoid bog holes.


There is no such thing as heavy duty bearings against Mud. Yes

Unfortunately thats the fine you pay when u play

[Stanly]

Thanks yom and Zac...... That's the fine you pay when you play.... I like that Zak , have to use that next time with the wife

[Yom]

Front unit bearings are sealed. Can't really properly pack more grease into them unless you poke it through the hole for the speed sensor. Excess grease will eventually cause issues with the sensor as well. Some other Chrysler groupies have squirted some diff/gearbox oil into them which they claim extends the lifespan without the negative effects of excessive grease contaminating the tone ring.

[Stanly]

well just got the JK back this morning, the seal was so bad, it melted onto the axle and i had to get a new axle. strange thing was i never heard the traditional howl or sweak, all i got was a bad grinding sound and i stopped the JK and it got towed to the shop. the damage was so bad the brakes were grinding away at the disks. so new pads, new rear axle and new discs was the damage.