Got bored while changing font wheel bearing alst thursday and figured I would make a write up.

Tools Needed:
Sockets - 36mm, 15mm
Box Wrench - 13mm, 10mm
External Torx - E16
Jack/Jack Stand
Pounding Device

1) Before jacking up car, loosen axle nut (36mm socket) In the pic is my 4 foot pipe over socket to get extra torque. (image 1)

2) Safley jack up the vehicle and remove tire. (image 2)

3) Remove 2 15mm bolts to remove the caliper assembly and safley secure it out of the way. (image 3 and image 4)

4) Remove mini stud in rotor with 10mm box wrench or deep socket. (image 5)

5) Remove Rotor. Take care of braking surface as rotor is to be re-used. I hit center rim area and it popped right off. (image 6)

6) Remove axle nut completely (image 7)

7) Remove one side of control arm. I chose to do the Ball joint end. Bolt 13mm and Nut 15mm (image 8)

8) Wack out axle from the wheel bearing (image 9)

(suggestion: leave the nut on the end of the shaft flush with the end to protect the threads and give you a larger striking surface. Also remember the axle is still in the transmission and if you don't hold the spindle out a bit you are banging that shaft into the transmissions guts. If it's difficult I suggest going to the auto parts store and getting the loaner tool that bolts to the wheel studs and screws down on the shaft forcing it out of the hub assembly rather than a bigger hammer. A good coat of anti-seize on the splines is good when reassembling.)
Kiss4aFrog


9) Remove 4 E16 bolts from rear of wheel bearing. (image 10)

10) Assmeble in reverse order

Torque Specs:
E16 bolts - 65 Nm + 60*
Ball Joint - 37 Nm
Brake Caliper - 100 Nm
Axle Nut - 120 Nm + 60*

Notes: Took me just under 2 hours including needing to find a ride to get the external torx socket (i had up to e14 and needed a larger one)

Also, my bearing did not come with new hardware so I was careful when taking off older bolts to re-use them.

 

images 6-10

 

still need to do mine...great write-up..the noise is finally getting to me

 

Made a sticky!!

 

for what its worth i just changed mine under the moon light with out a work light

 

Very good!

I am considering one that has a fubar wheel bearing!

 

When your car squeeks when it goes over bumps, thats the wheel bearing, right?

 

I doubt that is the bearing.

 

Nope... probably the spring seat/ strut mount. Or a bad sway bar link. A bad wheel bearing will make a rumbling or grinding noise that changes with speed, and usually gets worse when changing lanes in the opposite direction of the side the bad bearing is on and quieter when changing lanes the other way.(a bad left bearing will get louder when changing lanes to the right, and quieter when changing to the left)

 

Thanks carrots(and tech)! I'm gonna do the susp eventually so i can deal with a little noise for now lol.

 

Thanks for the write up! I did my passengers side this summer at a shop. Now I can do the Drivers side on my own!

Cheers
VVod

 

It's a bitch when you strip one of the torx heads. If it happens, take it to a machine shop or a drill press and drill though the head of the torx head, it will pop right off.

 

Thanks so much for this! I just wish I had seen it before I had mine done at the shop! What a waste of money! Thanks again!

 

I had the same problem and replaced the spring seat mount but I still have a horrible creaking noise that comes when I turn the wheel right to left, it seems to be coming from the passenger side front.

 

I've read at other sites it is an E14 and here, it is an E16? Did Volvo change the bolt size during the run of ths model?

 

Mine (1996 850 Turbo) is an E14 Torx socket. Otherwise the same. I was replacing my axle (your boot looks iffy), when the "bashing the axle out" method managed to blow apart the bearing. It's just held together with seals, so try to take the axle out as gently as possible (if you're not replacing the hub assembly anyway).

 

On my 1996 850 it was an E15

 

I took apart my front wheel bearings on my 740. Cleaned them, reassembled them, and got the car back on the road. Dropped by a dealer for parts and they explained to me the it was impossible to disassemble the wheel bearings. Silly me.

 

Ha thats funny. I totally took mine apart too and had no problems at all, Those dealers are just looking to make a buck on anything....

 

To everyone who was able to just release the the 4 torx bolts without a fight, you were lucky.

I just replaced both front bearings 2 months ago after 14 NE winters and road salt, those bolts were brutally tight and the bolt head flanges were beginning to thin out.

Nex time I will liquid wrench the bolts for a day, heat the bells out of them, wack the heads a few times, thighten them down first and then back them out. Hopefully that will save me a trip to the machine shop to remove 4 stripped heads. Otherwise that job is a snap.