Hot Rod Forum banner

1998 Buick LeSabre

1K views 5 replies 5 participants last post by  T-bucket23 
#1 ·
Looked at a 1998 Buick LeSabre this afternoon that we are thinking about buying for our daughter to drive a little over 20 miles each way to college daily. I took it for a test drive and there is a noise coming from the right front. Kind of a grating grinding noise with accompanying vibration. Turning to the left made the noise better, turning to the right made it worse.

I'm thinking wheel bearing. What else could it be? How big of a job is it to change wheel bearings on one of these?

They are asking $700, It seems to work pretty good with the exception of that noise. Cold AC! Cracked windshield. Body is clean with the exception of a dent in the right front fender. 3 of the 4 windows roll down. The passenger side rear doesn't seem to function. 147,00 miles

Is it worth a shot?
 
#3 ·
CV joint, common..

I bought one with minor front damage for my daughters college car also. She drove it till the sub frame rusted away and wouldn't hold front alignment. 280 thousand miles and rhe engine still was strong.. Was sorry to see it go. Now she has a junk jeep, an MBA and no job.:pain:
 
#4 ·
You need a wheel bearing. pretty simple job.
Pull Wheel
Brake Caliper
Caliper bracket
Rotor
Axle nut
3 bolts from the back for the bearing unit.
Disconnect the ABS wire if it has ABS.

I do a lot of them. The hardest part usually is getting the bearing assy to brake free from the spindle. PB blaster and an air chisel makes this a little easier. If you dont have air tools you can just hammer the bearing assy off. I have loosened the bolt half way and smacked them with a hammer when air tools were not available.
When you turn the wheel back and forth it changes the load on the bearing, this is why the noise changes. Usually an axle makes more of a clicking noise, not a grind.
Whole job should take less than an hour if you have good tools.
Once you remove the axle nut if you push the axle in it will make it easier to get the top bearing bolt out.
it is also important to torque the axle nut when you put it back together.
One last word of advise, buy a good bearing. If you buy one of those $59 dollar ones you will be doing it again soon.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top