Wheel Bearing '98, how difficult?

Firestone told me yesterday that there was a lot of play in one of my front wheels and said I needed a new bearing. Got a good deal on a set of Firestone tires with lifetime road hazard and rotation, $100 a piece total.

The part is $20 at the AZ but after skimming the manual it appears to require a lot of special tools I don't have yet and looks like a lot of work.

Is this too dificult first time for a novice? Maybe I should let a pro do it.

Is it possible I don't really need a new bearing and it could be re-packed? How hard is that?

I have a 2000 and have done that job. Not really that bad but you will need the bearing puller and a few other tools you may not have. I'd wonder about the inner/outer tie rods before the bearing. As you didn't describe the symptoms or signs the wheel is making it's kinda hard to say for sure. I'd be inclined to take the van to another shop and ask them to do a good shake down of the front end. What other work has been done on the van from a suspension/steering point of view? How many miles?

Piper

I bought this van in 2001, I think, from a used car lot. I don't think it had any records in it. It used to have a dead spot at the top of the steering, a mechanic told me the rack and pinion conical bolts had been installed backwards and he fixed that. Now, the steering wheel is a little crooked and it pulls to the right constantly. The weird dead spot is gone but it is a little loose.

I talked to a friend of a friend who works for Butler Tire who said bad wheel bearings usually make noise and they may have just been trying to make a sale. As a favor to our friend, he's going to look at it on his day off, Thursday, and see what's up. He said it could just need a real thourough alignment.

The REAR wheel bearings can be re-packed.....I seem to recall that the repack interval is 30K miles.

The FRONT wheel bearings cannot be repacked.....they must be replaced when they go bad....

As advised.....you will need a qualified mechanic to give the front end a good going over.
I try to do a LOT of my routine maintenance on my own....however, I get my vehicle in for a good going over once a year......as I am not experienced enough to be a good judge of when there is too much play in worn suspension parts.......as I like to catch problems early on in the game.
The trick is to find someone you can trust to do a good through job.....and catch problems......and not rip you off for work that does not need to be done.

Yeah, that's the real trick. I'll let y'all know what the second opinion is Thursday.