Xantia bearing

IanR · Post by **IanR** » 26 Aug 2005, 16:27

Need to change a Xantia front wheelbearing. I know the general setup having dismantled a BX before, however was wondering about the best way to extract/refit the bearing into the hub, as I don't currently have access to a hydraulic press. I believe there is an approved Cit tool for the job, which allows you to press the bearing out in-situ, however that might be hard to get hold of.
Any advice on this?

Mosser · Post by **Mosser** » 26 Aug 2005, 16:43

I've got to do exactly the same, my front right bearing is starting to get noisey and will need changing soon so i will be watching the repies to this thread !

bxbodger · Post by **bxbodger** » 26 Aug 2005, 17:39

Once the hub is off and bare, its heat, and lots of it, that you need!!!! The way in the old days was to put the whole hub assembly in the oven on high for an hour or so-get it really hot and then the bearing can be quite easily bashed out with a big hammer and a suitable sized drift, usually a big socket or any handy chunk of metal.
While its cooking, have the new bearing chilling out in the freezer and then once you have the old one out you can use it as a drift to thump the new one in, using the big hammer again!!
Now that a lot of people have cheap mig or arc welders, the usual way is to run a few seams of weld round the inside of the outer race which normally heats it enough to shift it.

Post by **Peter.N.** » 26 Aug 2005, 20:30

Running a seam of weld round the inside is the easist route, when it cools it shrinks the outer bearing shell and you can easily remove it with a couple of screwdrivers

oilyspanner · Post by **oilyspanner** » 27 Aug 2005, 00:14

Sounds reasonable if you cannot get to a fly press, but what about the lower balljoint? surely it would not benefit a lot from being cooked?
Stewart

IanR · Post by **IanR** » 27 Aug 2005, 00:38

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by oilyspanner</i>

Sounds reasonable if you cannot get to a fly press, but what about the lower balljoint? surely it would not benefit a lot from being cooked?
Stewart
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
Yep, that does seem to be a problem with using heat, especially as balljoints often have plastic spacers in them. I suppose one option would be to change the balljoint at the same time anyway, mind you. Then there's the issue if the devilish thing won't unscrew.. [:(!] Heat it? [:)]

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 27 Aug 2005, 03:06

i just knock them out with a large old socket and a club hammer with hub laying on a lump of wood,that is after you have removed the large circlip
regards malcolm

xantiabreak96 · Post by **xantiabreak96** » 30 Aug 2005, 16:09

Having recently done one myself :- Here's how...... Romove locking pin and slacken hub nut....VERY TIGHT !
Remove pads/disc/caliper mounting....disconnect and remove ABS sensor... Break taper on lower ball joint and remove.(remove ball joint as you will be applying lots of heat later ! ) disconnect track rod end from hub....undo hub to strut pinch bolt and insert an 8mm allen key into the slot then turn slightly to open up groove in the hub carrier, with a bit of wiggling the hub should now release from the strut.
Now whilst holding the drive shaft in place to prevent it pulling out of g/box draw the hub off the drive shaft.If like most of us mortals you don't have a hydraulic press you will need to drive the centre of the hub from the bearing....a well fitting socket and a club hammer worked for me ! don't be alarmed if the inner race comes with it, that can be removed by turning the hub face up then heating the race enough that it will drop down and easily be prised/pulled off....Next remove the large circlip from the rear of the hub....suprisingly strong and usually rusty ! Now take the whole hub/carrier and put in the over on high for a good 30 minutes...go and have a cup of tea !(you may want to put the new bearing in the freezer at the same time)....Once hot enough, the old bearing will just fall out of the carrier - maybe a sharp tap to assist it!
Now quickly put the new bearing into the hot hub carrier...it should just fall in.... give it a tap on the OUTER edge of the race to check it's fully home.
Go and have another tea while it cools off.Once it's cooled down sufficently to handle, insert the circlip and then place the hub on a block of wood with the splined shaft uppermost.
Drive the bearing onto the hub using a deep socket /suitable pipe but only on the INNER race, this can be a bit fiddly to start as it must go in straight and true, once started, you can flip the whole thing over and supporting the inner race from below drive the hub down from the top with a block of wood and a clup hammer.
You should now have the new bearing in the carrier and the hub inserted through the bearing.
Refit all the bits you removed(a new bottom ball joint might be a good idea as you have it off ?) Tighten the hub nut... when all is finished and the car is back on all 4 wheels....recheck after short test drive.
Go and have yet another tea and get cleaned up !
Hope this is of some help.

wrinklet1 · Post by **wrinklet1** » 30 Aug 2005, 21:02

Not everyone has the luxury of having a mig welder though [:(]

bxbodger · Post by **bxbodger** » 30 Aug 2005, 21:22

If you haven't got a mig the next best thing is the blowtorch- you just prop the whole assembly up and spend ages sitting there moving the flame round and round and round and round................[:(]
It does the same thing, just takes a lot longer............

aengus · Post by **aengus** » 30 Aug 2005, 21:31

or spend £40 at B&Q - don't think it was a MIG, but they were flogging a welder for that yesterday, may be a special, would likely do the job tho...

IanR · Post by **IanR** » 02 Sep 2005, 23:43

Well, changed the bearing today and all went straightforwardly, didn't heat the hub, just bought a really good hammer for the job ,which got the bearing out in no time. Froze the new bearing, which was a good tip, went in quite easily.
Only thing is, the old inner race won't come off the hub. No clearance behind it to get a puller on it, or even to get a chisel in properly. Tried everything I can think of that won't actually damage the hub, including heating to a deep shade of blue. Any suggestions?

oilyspanner · Post by **oilyspanner** » 03 Sep 2005, 00:27

I have resorted to a mini grinder in that situation, once the circle is broken the track will come off easily.
Stewart

IanR · Post by **IanR** » 03 Sep 2005, 20:47

Definitely a job for Angle Grinder Man..

Unfortunately he only covers the South.
As luck would have it, Halfords had a medium-sized grinder on offer for £13, did the job nicely. Handy tool if I need it again, anyway. With care the damage to the hub was very minimal.
So, for Mosser, apart from the usual tools you will need:
16, 22mm amd 35mm sockets. 16mm ring for the strut pinchbolt. Decent bar for the 35mm job. Some Cit bolts are 18mm too.
Strong T55 Torx for the calliper, and a smaller size for the disc retainers.
Decent hammer, I used a 2lb club. A brick to rest the hub on. (it's lopsided)
Angle grinder, or source of intense heat to get the inner race off.
Probably missed done or two things, but that should be a reasonable checklist before you start.
Hope this helps, Ian.
Now for as cuppa and then a testdrive. Fingers crossed... [:D]