"clicking" noise around the right front

[dukeofchurchill]

I have a "clicking" noise around the right front. It is not there when the van is stationary. And it increases with speed. I pulled the wheel. But found no problem with the brakes and when I rotated the rotor all seemed fine. The CV joints looked to seal OK. And the Transmission shifts fine.

Any ideas what kind of problem I have?

2001

[Dan_in_WA]

Bad bearing in the hub, I think. I spent $600 at a shop on mine; you'll do MUCH better if you can buy the bearing from a bearing supply house and do it yourself.

A parts store will have it available too; but I've found that I can do the best by using a bearing distributor - and they will look up which one you need based on make, model and year, just like calling NAPA on the phone.

[dukeofchurchill]

Dan, this noise does have some clicking in it. But indeed is more like a low to medium pitch whine which increases with speed. I had begun to believe that I was dealing with a bad CV Joint.

Does what I just described still sound like your bearing?

[Dan_in_WA]

I'd say so. Better have it checked soon; real bad things can happen if the bearing fails completely while you're at highway speed.

[umina]

I'd put money on a bearing. They will moan and whine at speed when they go out. Not sure on the Montana (havn't looked at it yet since buying) but I know on other GM cars (like Lumina and Grand Prix) the bearing is not serviceable and has to be replaced as an entire hub unit. Theyre like 90 bucks, but easy to replace, just a few bolts.

[dukeofchurchill]

And the winner. The bearing. The bearing hub assembly at NAPA was $179.99 plus tax. Labor another $60.00. good deal on the labor. The part well not too cheap.

Thanks for all the help. Obviously there are some here better at diagnosis than I.

[rsatter22]

I've had two of the bearings go on my 2001. Both times on the drivers side. Right around 40k miles each time. Dealer replaced the first. I found a Timken replacement at a local parts house for $120 and took about 2 hours to tear down and replace the second time. On the 2001 models they changed the style of mounting on the speed sensor connector from a steel to a plastic one mid-year. I had to swap the hardware on the connector from the old hub to the new one to get it mounted. Not too difficult, more of a nuisance than anything. Biggest aggrevation was the fact this was the week after rebuilding the hub on the '94 Escort. That's enough wheelbearing work to suit me for a while.

[dukeofchurchill]

My biggest problem with this was that the bearing hub assembly was a bit pricy. At least in MHO.