V50 General : DIY rear wheel bearing?

[the pasty]

Hi. Quick question regarding wheel bearings. As they come in a complete kit, does one need any special tools to change a rear wheel bearing on a 55 plate 2.0D? Local garage advised the hub is part of the complete assembly suggesting an easy changeover as the hub would not need extracting/pressing, etc.. Price quoted was £195, so was wondering if I could attempt,...
Many thanks for any advice.

[850Chris]

In theory a very straightforward job but, from first hand experience, very different in practice!

I was in this same position a few weeks ago and, spurred on by how easy the Haynes manual makes it look, bought two new complete hubs from Volvo Part Store. To fit the new hubs you have to

1) Jack up and support car - easy
2) Take off relevant wheel - again, easy
3) Remove brake calliper and disc - access to caliper retaining bolts constrained by hub and makes them easy to round off so use an extension of suitable length on the socket (around 2.5" extension bar worked for me) and a decent high impact hex (i.e. six sided) socket on the bolts themselves
4) Undo ABS sensor plug
4) Become a contortionist and squeeze your hand into the rear of the hub to undo the 4 torx bolts which hold the hub in from the rear - on doing so find they are rusted beyond any point of getting them out. Give up and go to garage with tail between legs!

So, in theory it's simple but in practice rusted bolts and tight access make it a bugger of a job. Unless you have access to decent garage facilities where you can work on car yourself, my advice would be garage job!

[the pasty]

Thank for the reply. I'll take a look at the torx bolts and see how they look (rust wise). If too bad, then I'll probably pass onto the garage with extra expense :-(

[benr7310]

I found that cleaning the thread's with a wire brush, loads of penetrative fluid on both sides and then when you do get some movement to tighten it back up - wack some copper grease on the exposed threads helps a lot.

The only issue I had is once all the bolts were out the hub was rusted in solid. Smashed the f*** out of it with a hammer - nothing. Wheel back on with no hub bolts at all, jacked car down and jumped about on the rear corner - nothing. Hit it from the rear with the hammer too - nothing.

The hub is completely seized on.

Damn.

Round 2 will start this Saturday and it will be removed, even if I have to use my mates hydraulic rams.

[Hoochienoballs]

I found that the Transit 125mm bearing torx drive and removing the rear shock hepled with access (fat hands). Apart from limited access it's a doddle.

[DavieC]

Easy in theory, bit of a pig of a job if the bolts are rusted.

[benr7310]

Remove the rear shock and some decent 1/2 drive t50 buts do the trick with the bolts.

I had all the bolts off, I just need some extreme power to get the hub off as it's rusted in situ. mate of mine has a load of hydraulic rams so ill get it out one way or another!

[Tayway]

This thread comes closest to the information I was looking for for guidance about changing the rear wheel bearings on a 2008 V50 (1.6L B41423 Engine). However, it does not seem to come to any conclusion, so I thought the following might be of help.

The bearings are in the form of "Generation 3" (GEN3) hub units made by several manufacturers. An excellent source of technical information is the French parts specialist [https://www.oscaro.com/] if you can find your way around, but they do not supply to the UK and their prices are suited to the different conditions in Europe.

In principle these bearing units should be very easy to change but the job is made much more difficult by the limited access and the potential difficulty in removing the four mounting Torx screws. The blue band on each screw is thread locking compound and it is this which holds the screws very tightly.

The comment in the previous post about undoing the shock absorber is very useful; only the bottom end needs to be undone allowing the shock absorber to be compressed and tied in its retracted state.

With the wheel, brake caliper, caliper bracket and disc removed, the next step is to remove the ABS sensor. This is reached from the inside and the sensor is fixed by a single Torx screw, recess TX20. A new screw is supplied with the bearing unit. A long bit or extension is helpful.

To undo the four Torx mounting screws, an external Torx E12 bit is needed together with 6 and 12 inch extensions and ratchet handle. Half inch square drive is advisable as 3/8" , though neater, may not be quite enough for the starting torque.

These screws may appear to be very tight to undo, but I don't think the reason is rust - see first image. The rust is confined to the head and the part of the free end of the thread which protrudes into the space behind the disc. The rust on the free end can be cleaned up a bit with a wire brush.

The rusted heads are a problem so it is important to make sure that the E12
socket is a tight fit; use a plastic mallet on the extension(s) to force the socket onto the head. (You don't want to damage your extensions, so don't use a steel hammer). Notice that two of the screw heads are burred due to attempting to unscrew them without any further procedure.

The grade of thread locking compound appears to be a very strong one and it is very much easier to release if heat is used. Especially on the right-hand side a flame is not a good idea due to the proximity of fuel lines and the fuel tank. A heat gun with a reducing nozzle worked well for me. If an assistant is available, ask them to hold the heat gun close to the screw being undone. Heat for a few minutes. Keeping the heat on will allow the screws to be undone almost as easily as new fasteners. An improvised heat gun mount will work in default of an assistant. (Image 2)

The long extensions allow the screws to be reached from well inboard and clear the anti-roll while using it as a support.

After cleaning the mounting surface for the hub unit, reassembly is just the reverse procedure but great care is needed not to drop the ABS sensor screw as it is not easy to retrieve form the box section in the sub-frame. This a where the long T20 Torx bit will be a great help, with some thick, viscous grease in the screw head to hold it in place.

I hope this will be of help.

Tayway