here goes. front wheel bearings on the rio are prone to failure.

the OEM bearings fail because of poor lubrication. Aftermarket bearings fail because of improper installation.

you NEED the special service tool to properly preload the front bearings. you will need to buy new preload spacers from the dealer. they should have many many sizes in stock.

you dont need any special tools to remove or install the inner and outer races in the knuckle. a press is handy to remove the outer bearing cone from the hub.

the wheel bearings are two pieces, inner and outer, and they are both the same part number. you should also change the inner and outer seals, they are different part numbers. buy yourself some good synthetic NLGI #2 grease, it will help prolong the life of your bearings if you dont use the special service tool.

any of the aftermarket bearings are good enough, SKF, ***, Timken, etc.. the OEM bearings are KBC, also fine if lubricated properly.

again, beg, borrow or steal the special service tool from the dealership. otherwise, no matter which grease of bearing manufacturer you use they will fail in short order. guaranteed.

 

again, beg, borrow or steal the special service tool from the dealership. otherwise, no matter which grease of bearing manufacturer you use they will fail in short order. guaranteed.

I think buying special tools is to expensive.
Do you know any company/services which can borrow these special tools?
I am in US if it is matter.

 

you can preload the bearings without any special tools. while rotating the front hub torque down the spindle nut to 25 ft. lbs, back the spindle nut off, hand tighten the spindle nut, and finally use a screwdriver as a punch to lock the spindle nut on the spindle (be careful not to hit the screwdriver so hard that you break through it). Just remember that if you aren't using air tools it's easier to break off the spindle nut with the car on the ground when you begin.

 

this is 100% the incorrect way to preload the front bearings. they will fail repeatedly with this method of loading.

the front axle nut must be tightened to in excess of 100lb-ft. usually it is tightened to 200lb-ft.

IF by tightening the axle nut you gain an increase in bearing preload you have the wrong spacers in the hub. the axle butts against the outside flange of the inboard bearing cone. this flange must be on the same plane as the hub spindle. if it is then tightening the axle nut will have no effect on bearing preload. if it is not, then the preload spacer is either too thick or too thin, either situation will destroy the front wheel bearings in no time.

 

just have the dealership change them. it will save you money in the long run. or ask a dealership if you can borrow their tool. the tool is specific to the Rio.

 

The dealership cost of labor is $83 + cost of wheel bearing, seals etc.
I asked them about borrowing tools - they do not do it.
But the good news - is that I can bring them a hub and they will press the bearing in for $40.
Now the question is: To remove/install a hub - do I need any special tools?

 

to take the knuckle off the car you need just basic hand tools. the hardest part will be loosening the axle nut.

if they are only charging $83 for labour, they are not doing the bearings properly. it takes minimum 1.5hrs per side.

 

sportage4x4,
I am not really happy to hear it, since this is the only one Kia Service Center around me. They will give me the warranty for the labor and wheel bearing, I hope it might help me.

Thanks to everybody!

 

LISTEN to Matt (Sportage), he is right. Also, you need to buy multiple sized spacers from the dealer to ensure you get the right torque specs on the bearing or it will guaranteed fail within weeks. I have been thru this garbage for 5 yrs now. If the problem recurs then you have a defective wheel hub and it MUST be replaced in order for the bearings to stop failing, thats assuming you or the mechanic you choose knows how to replace a Kia front bearing and I assure you, 99% of mechanics DONT KNOW HOW!!!!!!. Save yourself the aggravation, go to the dealer, get a new hub and new bearing and the problem will be gone, once and for all.
Trust me, nobody knows more about these cars than the people who have given you advice on this thread. I have almost 8500 bucks invested in new OEM and aftermarket suspension parts on my car and still had bearings problems up until 3 months ago. You can replace the entire under part of the car and if you don't load the bearings right and get new hubs, you will just keep wasting money.
byron

 

I don't know about the rest of you, but this is frustrating.
I called the dealer, and it will cost me $108 in labor for them to replace the bearing.
I guess that is not as horrible as it could be, but I have already bought the parts to fix the car.

IF i don't have the dealer do it, and guarrentee their work, I will be screwed basically if it needs to be replaced in three weeks.

I know that I will be selling a 1999 Kia.
That is for sure.

 

This Kia specific tool, what's the difference between it an a Universal bearing preloader?

I called the dealership to inquire about the service fees and possiblility of buying the Kia tool. I was told that they don't sell the tool and that the labour was twice what I was quoted from another garage. I asked how they could repair the bearing without the Kia tool "because kia doesn't sell the tool" and the service guy said it was because they just used the generic tool.

So now i'm looking for the universal preloader but, was curious as to why nobody was mentioning the universal preloader only the Kia tool.

 

Does it matter what tool was specified.. Sportage has performed bearing changes with the specified tool from Kia Factory Manuals, if you dealership does not perform the procedures of repair the way that the serivice manuals state the repair should be done then I suggest a new dealership. I believe the part number for the tool is 0K130-331-016.. And if you don't believe the information here then do it your way.. Just don't complain that Kias suck when you are replacing the bearings in 15-20K miles..

Secondly there is a detailed step by step precedure on www.kiatechinfo.com Search the tech manuals and select your year and model of Rio. As said earlier 90% of the Dealerships do this incorrectly..

 

the rio is totally different then your 4wd sportage.

your sportage has no recurring bearing failure problem like the rio.

 

Well, I guess It is good to that it can be done at home.

Still frustrated.


The boyfriend can't seem to figure out how to get the roter off.

Is there a step by step in the online manuel?
I was looking yesterday and could not find it.

Maybe he is just missing something.
I don't know.

He had his uncle look at it too, who is a mechanic and neither one of them had a clue!

Blah!

Maybe I should just buy a bike. *Smile*

 

Here in north central In. the dealer wants $300 labor to replace one rear wheel bearing. What a rip-off.

 

To get the proper preload, reassemble the new bearings in the hub with spacer you have on hand. Then cut off the end of a driveshaft from a wrecker and use that to tighten the bearing to 150 ft lb. Check the resistance by using a spring scale at the end of a wratchet on the wheel nut. If not within spec then use the guide on kiatechinfo site under front axle repair to estimate the right size. Get the new spacer, try again and repeat.

The dealers in my experience do not have the proper tools and do not bother trying to do it right- just want to get it out of warranty.

 

Temych267 mentioned that lithium grease is the best for the wheel bearings. Are the greaseable or are you talking about adding the grease when installing new one?

 

temych267 mentioned using lithium grease. Are these bearings greasable or is that what you would use when replacing failed units.?

 

The grease is to re-grease the bearings as a preventive measure (like changing oil/filter).
Once the bearing is bad no amount of new grease will bring it back.
To re-grease you would have to have a "fixture"/tool to force the old grease out and the new grease in...
A home handyman won't have the tools to do it.
It's best to buy the hub with the bearing all ready installed and then replace yours.
Replacing the bearing only will bring nothing but problems as you can not easily pre-load the bearings yourself. With out that ability the new bearings will last less than 10k miles.
Dave

 

I believe (as in I might be wrong) but it looks like everyone has a different opinion here about bearings. I'm tired of paying someone else (6 different repair shops, including dealerships) to screw it up. I did it myself and I got an extra 2000 miles before it started to fail. I refuse to trust a dealership again over this.

Is there a summary of what I need to do somewhere? How long should I expect the bearings to last? (I've been replacing every 20k)