Wheel bearing maintenance

[mbatdorf]

I have a 98 Sportage, 4 door, 4wd. I've had this Sportage for about a year. I had to replace the front wheel bearings recently. The driver side bearings was totally gone while the passenger side was well on the way. I've never had bearings go out before. Is there some sort of maintenance that should be done to help extend their life? Thank you for your advice.

[mgbgt1972]

The reason the bearings fail in the sporty is mainly due to the vaccuum hub set up. The rubber/plastic tube running from the engine bay thru the fender well into the hubs tends to crack, allowing water and dirt to be drawn into the hubs, which will destroy the bearings if left un-checked. Best solution get rid of the vaccuum ubits and replace with cam auto-lockers or manual lockers. Making sure you compleatly block off both vacuum ports on the hubs. Or simply keep an eye on those lines and replace them on a regular basis. Also once a year or after you have driven the sportage off-road in deep water and mud, you should remove the hubs, clean them out and re-pack them with bearing greese!