grinding when turning left

[mark in pa]

whast up guys, ive been noticing latley that whenever I turn left I get a grinding noise. does this mean my right wheel bearing is going south? I also get a metalic noise when going in a straight line sometimes. It sounds like its coming from the right too. Its a hard noise to explain it has a metalic noise to it and it gets really loud when you slow down and between 40-45mph. Its really anoying and I would like to get it fixed. Is a wheel bearing a DIY job? what tools are needed and on a scale of 1-10 how would you rate it?

thanks,
-Mark

[randini74]

If you're doing an E30, wheel bearings are DYI if you have the right tools. You need a bearing puller and possibly a torch to get the old ones off, the torch may be used to heat the old bearing to make it expand. They are a special because they are sealed needle type rollers. The old ones can even be chissilled off if necessary, but the new ones should be handled with care because you don't want to break the seal when pressing them on. I had seperated the inner from outer parts of the old wheel bearings while maniacally forcing them off. The old inner section proved to be and excellent bumper for carefully pounding the new ones on.

What I meen is that the new bearing needs to be forced on. I used a hammer to beat it carefully, making sure to keep it straight. I didn't want to beat the new bearing with the small surface area of the hammer head, so I held the old inner bearing ring to the new one and beat on it. This sounds primitive, but worked for me with a little finesse. Be very careful not to pound on the outer bearing ring.

If one's going out, replace them all. The others will follow soon.

[mark in pa]

i noticed the other day, that when I parked with my wheel turned my wheel was rubbing the inside, I have 185-70-14 tires on now, these are my snows. Perhaps this is what im hearing? it also happens when going right and turning sharp.