96 Achieva Front Hub/Bearing Replacement

[HanlonsRazor]

Hi,

Last time I had my wife's Achieva (1996 Achieva SC, 2.4L Twin Cam 4 cyl.) in to the shop, the mechanic noted that the front bearings were beginning to fail. I'd felt it, too, so I picked up the parts. Since the car is not starting right now, I decided to go ahead with the hub/bearing replacement. I've never done it before, so I was thrilled to find instructions here. I've taken out the old hub / bearing, and cleaned up the steering knuckle, but when I got to steps 10 and 11, I was a little confused. I couldn't find anything approximating the replacement seal on the existing assembly. I understand from the instructions in step 10 that the seal is different on the factory unit than on the replacement - but I didn't see anything even close. Unfortunately, the details of the seal installation are sketchy: "Install the new hub and bearing seal in the steering knuckle using a suitable hub seal installer tool." I take it that I should simply press the seal into the opening in the knuckle. I don't have a special tool for that - can I simply use the hub / bearing assembly for that, putting the three mounting bolts in, and tightening them each a turn or so around and around until it's in? Should I coat the seal in grease before pushing it in? I've got until the IPC is fixed before this thing's going to be back in business, so any tips would be helpful.

Thanks,

Russ

[xeroinfinity]

I didnt read those directions, but I would not use the hub to press the seal in.
Though any seal tool would work , you can use a large socket the size of the seal metal rim and tap it in with a hammer working your way around the seal.

Also make sure the spline is clean before inserting it into the hub.

[HanlonsRazor]

Originally Posted by xeroinfinity

I didnt read those directions, but I would not use the hub to press the seal in.
Though any seal tool would work , you can use a large socket the size of the seal metal rim and tap it in with a hammer working your way around the seal.

Also make sure the spline is clean before inserting it into the hub.

Ah, too bad. I don't know if I have any sockets that big - I think the biggest I have is probably a 36mm axle nut socket (maybe a 38mm). Maybe the Advance or AutoZone has something I can borrow. The dust boot on the lower ball joint has a hole in it, so even though the ball joint itself it feels solid, I think I'm headed back to one of them to pick those up, too. Probably no better time to take care of that than now.
I'll clean up the spline before putting it in the hub.
Thanks,
Russ