My rear-left bearing was replaced about a month ago. It was making this horrible noise, so I decided to have it looked at...and sure enough that was it.
I've driven my cars short distances since, but this weekend i drove to Palm Springs (150 miles), and I started hearing the noise again when I was driving on friday night!!!
I'm going to have it checked, for all I know it's the right one this time, but still...Iwas wondering if there was some sort of technical service bulletin out on it that I did'nt know about that someone here might have experienced.
Thanks
Sarah

i'm sure there is...seems quite a few people have gone thru bearings. How many miles do you have on your car?? I am trying to figure out when i should make sure i have non noisey tires on so i can listen for the bearing whine.

Jeremy

Had my right rear replaced once at 15000 and now at 30,000. Go figure. I hope its done now.

Anyway - have them replace it with legacy bearings. There is a subaru tech bulletin about it somewhere. It should be your option to choose.

When my first bearing got replace, I had about 12,000 miles on the car...now (about 300 miles later) I think I have the same problem...does anyone know if SD service centers just suck?
Sarah

What kind of noise are you talking about exactly? I ask 'cause I have had lots of noise from around my rear tires and am not sure if it's the tires or not. I just installed new ones and the noise is still there, so I wonder.

I just had my right one done and am going back for my left one Friday. They said it was gonna be some $650.00 but I was able to get them done under warranty with 39,000 (a mistake on their part). Although I still have one to go the noise seemed to get louder since and my tire is beginning to get choppy on the front edges of the tread. I'll post again after the left one is done to see if the noise is gone, but I am concerned now with the increased noise.

Also, this doesn't inspire confidence on the front bearings either. Do the front bearings have the same set up as the rear?


I stole the claw

Just wondering have you guys lowered your car? Anyway I know that Subaru have some problem of leaking bearing grease in some legacy model. This might cause a premature bearing failure. Was there any grease leaking sign? or do you guy usually drive long period at highway speed?

to doobie:
I was wondering that same thing about the front bearings. Everyone I talk to actually only talks about the rear bearing, which makes me wonder. And I suggest you start a case with subaru (call 1800 SUBARU3) talk to a rep and tell them your problem. Start a case number, that way they know it's a reoccuring problem...go to the post in SoCal club same title...and read the info that it has there about the bearings...someone posted a great link. Gives info about what you can do to fix it (if you really want to pay) and other people's complaints if you need proof.

to GGB: my car is not lowered...I know there are some other repercussions for doing that without necessary items (struts and sway bars etc) so that's not it. My car is nice and stock (hehe) the problem has to do with a faulty bearing and bad ass service...what can I say.
I'm trying to Subaru in culver city, hoping their workmanship is better. They guarantee that after replacing a part 3 times, anything to do with that part again is free...sounds good to me..but the hassle...grr
Sarah

I've lost 10 on my Outback Sport, all done at 6 different dealerships. There is not, to my knowledge, an official Subaru Bulletin stating that Legacy wheel bearings are to be used now. An official bulletin stating that there's a known defect with the Impreza/Forester wheel bearing design would cost Subaru quite a bit of money; it's in their best interest to tell the dealers "unofficially" to use Legacy wheel bearings and pretend it's a non-issue.

I hoped that after my second bearing it'd stop. Now I'm used to maneuvering the car off the road. I even know some of the local wreckers; I'm skilled at driving my car up an inclined flatbed as well. When I drive my car over 150 miles, I anticipate a bearing failure.

do you have to pay for the bearings? Have you confronted subaru about the lemon laws? If you haven't, i strongly recommend you call Subaru and start a case with them, get yourself a number and all so if you don't actually want a new car, or money back, then you can at least make sure you will never have to pay for the bearing.
The website is unofficial...you're right, but apparently Subaru of Canada is okay with. I know that doesn't help us in the US, but at least if you decide you're done with subaru and their warranty, you could permanently fix it...
10 bearings would throw me over the edge, that's for damn sure
Sarah

Already litigating. ;)

cool,
if it's not too much to ask can you update me on how it goes...how to go about doing it...my email's PunqRock@aol.com
Sarah

Depends on if SOA wants to settle with me or I have to have a court date set. If they choose to take it to court, and I have to get a judgment in my favor via trial, then I'll be glad to share all of the info. If we go into confidential settlement negotiations and reach a confidential agreement, you won't hear anything from me.

kay, thanks...i'm crossing my fingers for ya :)
Sarah

Just got my other rear one done, all I hear now is the whine of the gears and revs of the engine!!

No I didn't have to pay at 40,000 but it was close they almost weren't gonna do it. Still waiting on info about the front though.


peeeaaase and good luck

What kind of noise were you all getting?

okay, I got it fixed. and it was the left rear bearing again....that's 2!
uh oh, subaru better get its act together, that's total BS they're not fixing this defect. That bearing was on there less than a month, about 100 miles, before I had to get it replaced again. What are they thinking?!?!?
Sarah

Well, took mine in today to the dealer to check and guess what? ..Yup, broken wheel bearing. They're fixing it as I write, supposedly.

For all those wondering what kind of noise it is: At earlier stages of the problem it sounded to me like tires were out of balance or alignment was off. Increased road noise, seemingly from the tires. True that my tires were in pretty bad condition at the time, but since the noise continued after I replaced them with brand new Dunlop SP5000s, I decided to take it in to dealer to inspect. The noise is audible even at around 30-40mph, virtually drowning my stereo at highway speeds (with all windows and sunroof closed). As the problem gets worse with time, the noise might become more metallic, sounding a bit more like bad rotors or break pads, but not quite the squealing sound of worn-out pads. Not grinding or knocking sound, but you can hear every turn of the wheels. May become more grinding-like as it gets worse. When the problem is bad enough you'll definately notice - the noise will be so loud that even driving the regular street speed of 35-40mph would be scary! Trust me - I know: My mother had that problem on her '99 Legacy a few months back and she lived with it for a few months.

Is the metallic noise constant? I have a metallic noise that sounds like it is coming from the front. It only does it when I have been using the brakes a lot in stop and go rush hour driving. I thought the rotors were warping especially when their is a groove forming in driver's side rotor. The metallic sound I'm getting sounds exactly the same as the squeak that you get when you apply your brakes and it is a rotational sound that changes as the wheel turns but disappears when you begin applying the brake.

Is that what you were hearing?

Sean

Like I said earlier, metallic-like noise is only when the problem is really bad. Even then, it's still a more dull sound than the screeching of the breaks. What you're describing sounds more like something's wrong with your breaks. And yes, the sound of bad wheel bearing is constant, irregardless of break application, intensity dependent on the car speed (frequency of rotation of the wheels).

The good news is that I got mine fixed today and WHAT A DIFFERENCE! I can hear the engine, finally! :D

P.S. I am in no way a professional in this matter - I'm only trying to help out others by describing my personal (and my mother's) experience. Others' may vary.

Ha ha! Nice disclaimer! :D

You are the first person that has mentioned the metallic sound so that's why I was so interested. I've never had the "roaring tire" sound, but I keep getting paranoid hearing about all of the bad wheel bearings.

I wonder what percentage of Impreza bearings go bad! :confused:

Glad that yours was fixed!!

Sean

your breaks....sounds like something I have too sometimes. I don't really think it has anything to do with your breaks being worn out or the bearings...definitely not the bearings, that sound does not sounds metallic really.
The thing with you breaks, does it usually happen when you're slowing down and not really pushing hard on the breaks? Try that next time, just push on the break harder and see if the noise disappears. It might also just be that since you're not applying the break really hard, the sound of the disk sliding might just be creating that metallic noise...just an idea.
Sarah

Mine failed after the warranty ran out. Had them replaced in May 2001. Cost me about $650, including alignment. It only takes about 2 hours, but they charge for 4 or 5 hours because that's what SOA pays. Tried to get them to reduce the price, no cigar.

Two month later, same problem. At first they told me it was my summer tires (Dunlop SP8000, 205/55-16). So I put on my winter all-seasons (Bridgestone RE930, 195/65-15, very quiet) the same day and the noise was still there. Made another apointment (another couple of hours wasted) and they agreed to replace the right side again, under parts warranty. OK. Noise gone.

Less than a month later noise returns, this time worse and seems to come from the left. Left bearing gone. They order the part. Sept 11 screws up delivery. About a month later the noise is so bad, I drive straight to the dealership on Saturday and leave the car over the weekend. On Monday they say that I now need a new wheel housing (the part bearing is pressed into) because it failed too. Another $150, please! I don't have time or energy to fight with them. It's clear that it's their fault but I bite the bullet and fork over the cash. By now I wish I had bought the special tools needed to replace the bearings and had done them myself right the first time. Left bearing replaced. No noise so far -- knock on wood!!! I am hopeful...

Sarah,
My noise happens when I completely take my foot of the brake and am coasting or slowly accelerating. It disappears when I am going fast and doesn't happen at all when I am not in stop and go traffic. If I don't use the brakes much the sound doesn't appear. However, it is VERY loud when it does appear and sounds exactly like the sound that your brakes make when you just start to apply them.

I've had the rear drums turned so its not them. Now, I'm going to replace the front rotors and/or the calipers.

Sean

you have rear drum breaks?
Is it only newer Subarus that have all disc.
Yea, that doesn't sound like you need new breaks or something, sorry I didn't quite understand when you were getting the noise, but it's not a bearing, you're right.
Sarah

My MY98 2.5RS was going through left rear bearings very regularly, and the right rears were also going often, at a rate of 3 lefts to one right. Finally, after dealing with the bull***** from SOA for 3 years, I decided on a new car (A WRX....no less.....Some days I really do feel like a glutton for punishment).

My problem was this. With a new Scooby, you get a 3yr/36K mi warrantee. If the bearings are replaced under the initial warrantee, then they are free. However, when your warrantee expires, you have to PAY for the first bearing change--read this: EVEN IF IT HAS BEEN REPLACED UNDER WARRANTEE! Then any subsequent replacements fall under the part warrantee, and can be replaced free of charge. Is that furstrating or what?

My MY98 car had 2 right rear bearings replaced before 36K mi...then when it went AGAIN I had to pay for it! Then the next 2 replacements were free.

Thanks for your post. I am glad that I am not alone, even though I sold the darn thing and started over.

Tobias

well, had you opened a file with Subaru...or gotten a case or whatever with them?
That's the solution they proposed, so they have records that at 13000 miles my car has had two left rear bearings replaced

aww crap. tonight I started hearing this ticking noise. like a card in bike spokes. getting really annoying.
Is this the sound people are hearing from the failed wheel bearings?
:mad:

Sarah,
Yeah, unfortunately the '98 OBS had rear drums. Earlier versions had discs like the RSs.

kaos200,
Clicking is usually a CV joint. I'd take it into a park lot and drive in a tight circle. If it clicks while you are going around. It most likely is a CV joint. Turn both directions. If you are turning right and it clicks, it is probably the left CV joint and if you are turning left and it clicks, it is probably the right CV joint.

However, I'm not a mechanic so don't take my word for it. Standard disclaimer to above advice goes here. :)

Sean

Hi,

I'm quite interested about this wheel bearing problems. I have a MY00 2.5 RS, complelety stock. The only problem I got with the car is the O2 sensor and bent rims (I wonder if wheel bearings would cause that). Anyway, it's mileage is 39,000 and it's been a good Subie. Anyway, if the wheel bearing should fail, I should use the Legacy bearing then, right? Is there any specific year or model that I should know about? In anycase, this is great input. I hope you guy's problems are solve by SOA.

Originally posted by cruzito
Hi,

I'm quite interested about this wheel bearing problems. I have a MY00 2.5 RS, complelety stock. The only problem I got with the car is the O2 sensor and bent rims (I wonder if wheel bearings would cause that). Anyway, it's mileage is 39,000 and it's been a good Subie. Anyway, if the wheel bearing should fail, I should use the Legacy bearing then, right? Is there any specific year or model that I should know about? In anycase, this is great input. I hope you guy's problems are solve by SOA.

Id be worried that your bent rims damaged the wheel bearings, NOT the other way around.

The sound is definitely along the lines of a howl. It becomes more pronounced as you turn to the opposite direction of the bearing in question. It becomes very apparent as it continues to fail.

Again anyone know about the front bearings are they the same design? and do they fail as often as the rears?

Steve

Have your dealer check the Brg. housing.
If its warped the bearing will keep going out.
They should replace the housing if it is more than
.001 mm out of round.

Gee, all these problems are making me not buy another subaru. I had always thought subaru's were reliable cars. First the 02 sensor problem, now the wheel bearing problem. I think my next car will be Toyota. Boring but bulletproof.

Toyota? are you serious? Have you ever driven in the new celica? Its already gone through three manu. recalls. One of them was for the tranny.

I thought that all that noise was the RE730's that I had. I had both rear bearings replaced. One at around 7K and the other around 17K. I had read all the TireRack posts about tire roar being mistaken for bad bearings with the RE730's. So with two newish bearings I figured, hey, its gotta be the tires. Well I swapped tires with another I-clubber (as in, sold him my RE730's and took his old meats until I can get the new ones) and guess what? The noise/roar is still there. So I have a few people take a ride in the car and the consensus is that its probably the bearings. Again. So not only was it a waste of time and money swapping the tires, now I have to go get the bearings done. Its still under warranty but its just a drag.

Now why would the Legacy bearings be the better replacement? Are they beefier because the Legacy weighs more? Should I consult with the Subaru mechanics about using the Legacy bearing or ass-u-me that they would use them because of this supposed "Subaru Bulletin"?

to Arnie
First off, make sure you call 1800-SUBARU3 and speak to a customer service rep, tell them you've had two bearing replaced and this is your third. That way, you can be sure that once you're no longer under warranty you can still get them replaced for free if they go out.
If you tell a Subaru tech about the bearings, it'll probably turn out the way it did with me. They won't suggest it, it will void the warranty. So think about it before you do it.

to HomerJay
Toyota's, as any other car, can have problems. I agree that this kind of thing would push my away from Subarus. Who wants to deal with replacing bearings once every year and a half? However, toyota camrys have problems with steering wheels falling off, the new Celica's had a slew of recalls, it's just part of mass production. One thing that it better, however they do make them recalls, but you really never know what the underlying problems are that they do not mention and you'll have to deal with, just like with the Subaru.

Sarah

sarah - what do you mean it would void the warranty? By telling them to use Legacy bearings or what? I'll definitely be calling Subaru and setting up a case number. I did that for my clutch shudder which was never fixed. I gave up on that after the initial 12k limit (I believe on clutches). I've just learned to drive it so I don't experience it as often. What are the Lemon Laws regarding part failure?

Does anyone know how an extended warranty plays into all of this? I guess I should take a close look at my policy.

Hi guys,

I'm just wondering what's the PN# for those Legacy replacement bearing, and also what year Legacy? If you guys know. Thanks.

Arnie,
yes, replacing the legacy bearing with your current one will void your warranty. Besides that, as far as I know you can't go into subaru and ask them to replace that bearing, they probably just wouldn't do it.
If you're in cali, the lemon law states that if you have the same part fail 3 times, your car is considered a lemon and you're entitled to your money or another identical car...as far as i know.

to cruzito
the website you want to look at is: http://www.raindrop.com/subaru/wheelbearings.html

Parts and remedy:

The (original) part Number is 28016AA030 superceded by (legacy bearing) SCI541005. This is a duplex roller assembly and meets form, fit and function requirements. The bearing manufacturer's Part Number is: 46T0807050 and the manufacturer is Koyo, Japan. This was done with the endorsement of Subaru Canada.

For the 'bearing nuts' amongst us Koyo Bearings are located in Plymouth Michigan,
Tel. (734) 454-1500 and SKF has a very technical website with lots of useful data.

Here is a link that summarizes our rights on warrantied purchases. Hopefully it ain't bunk!

http://autopedia.com/html/HotLinks_Lemon.html

PrezzieBaby - thanks for the info.:)

Just got the news right from Subaru.

They will very soon discontinue the use of the
28016FC000 bearing on all RS and WRX models as well as
Forester.

The new bearing to be used by all dealers will beeeeeeeeeeeeee.

TA-TA, the 28016AA030 Leagacy wheel bearing.

No word yet as to a date when this will officially take affect, But I
was told not to order any more 28016FC000 bearings
for my parts department.


FINALLY :)

I'm going in on Wedensday to have my bearings looked at. Should I mention this to the service department? See if they should look into it as well before they put that lame Impreza bearing in there?

Wonderful!

I'm purchasing a set of those bearings ASAP! Thanks to PrezzieBaby, and almurray for the PN#. I'm just wondering, are the front bearing the same as the rear? In either case, I hope Subaru fix this problem and does it under warranty for the customers who had to pay out of their pockets, when all along it's the bearing's fault. Good luck.

P.S.

Anyway, has anybody have experience of replacing rear wheel bearings?

Spoke to Subaru customer service as well as to the dealer who will be doing the repair and both of them have not heard of any "official" or non-official info about the use of Legacy bearings. The dealer said that until they actually get an official bulletin, the use of the Legacy bearing would void the warranty.

almurray - with whom did you speak to at Subaru? Could you give us a name and number so that we could confirm this or at least have my dealer call them to confirm this? I don't feel like going in again in a few thousand miles to get the Legacy Bearings put in when these fail again. Thanks.

I can only tell you that the person works for Subaru Corp.

I was told this off the cuff and he did not have a date
when this wounld go into effect, as I said in my previous post,

Unless your bearings are really bad, you might want to wait
for a while till it becomes official.

(p.s. ask the sevice mgr. to talk to his DSOM)

Thanks for the info almurray. Oh, what does DSOM mean?

Unfortunately my bearings are pretty bad and are getting louder with each mile. Better that I take them in and deal with another bearing swap in a few months!;)

yay almurray...!
now do you know if there's going to be a service bulleting put out, or if is just going to be one of those situations where you don't know about it. I assume you can't really have one legacy bearing and three older ones...is it going to be a recall situation, or is that too crazy?
Sarah

Subaru will not issue an official bulletin if they refuse to acknowledge the fact that there is a problem to begin with.

If it's acknowledged by SoA that these bearings are indeed bad, it's potentially enough of a safety hazard for a recall to be ordered. It's not in their best monetary interests to order a recall.

I talked to him again today and there will not be a recall because it is not cosidered a safety issue. All that I could squeeze out of him is......................

When a warranty repair is made the dealer will use the legacy bearing. Here is how it works, The old number wheel bearing
will (eventually, when stock runs out) will be supercided by the new number (the legacy #). Thats it, no recall, no campaign.
The dealer will simply use the new number (really a old number for legacy) to repair the car. That is because, they claim, not all the Impreza bearings go bad (just most of them).

DSOM

Dealer Service Operations Manager.

Every District Has one to cover serveral dealers.

Mmmhmm. Thanks for that. We'll see what happens tomorrow.

I did a search recently and found an article from a newspaper that said SOA paid out $4 million to a woman whose Impreza flipped several times after her wheel bearing failed and the rear wheel came off the car at highway speeds. She was paralyzed. SOA settled out of court with her.

THAT was kept pretty hushed. I wish I had kept the URL to that article.

Sean

wait, so they will only replace one bearing with the legacy bearing? won't that cause uneven tire wear or something along those lines? that doesn't seem right. I don't want my car to be some random ass collection of bearings and parts from different cars.
Sarah

http://www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/1997/Jun-13-Fri-1997/news/5542649.html - This one was on a '91 Loyale and the award was in excess of $8 million.

The Loyale does not to my knowledge use the same bearing as the Impreza/Forester, however it is interesting to note that many previous Subaru vehicles (Loyale by legal precedent according to the above link), the SVX, and the Impreza/Foresters all have wheel bearing issues. I've yet to hear of a single other auto brand that has such a horrid track record with wheel bearings.

Subaru of America will not acknowledge that these bearings, which have the potential to cause a major accident when they -explode- (yes, mine have exploded, coating the inner wheel with bearing grease), need to be replaced, retroactively.

This is not unlike the Ford Pinto ignition debacle of the 1970's in which Ford denied any defect existed. Internal memos leaked stating that it was basically cheaper to pay off an average of 13 deaths or so a year than to redesign the rear gas tank to make it safer. When lawsuits made it cheaper to redesign, they redesigned. It was all about the bottom line.

I'm not alleging that I know of any deaths that have been caused by bearings going/exploding, but I do know that I've thrice (yes, 3 times) had to avoid an accident when smoke was pouring from my wheel at highway speeds.

It saddens me to think that Subaru of America cares more about the bottom line than it does their customers, much less their enthusiast customers, but their actions (or inactions) speak volumes as to what our safety and reliable transportation is worth in their eyes. They advertise "active safety" but they practice passive dismissal when true safety issues arise.

Just because they don't acknowledge that the faulty bearings are a safety defect does not make it so.
-Geoff

Maybe we should all petition Subaru? We have 10,000 members, right? Or maybe we should petition the NHTSA. They do have a new director and he said he would not go lightly on companies that produced unsafe cars.

Best thing you can do is write the NHTSA site at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/ and file a complaint with them. There are already quite a few people who have posted bearing issues with Foresters/Imprezas (same bearing design).

They replaced the left rear bearing. That is the second one. All covered under warranty. The tech mentioned that they have been receiving bearings that are of defective quality in the past and have seen them make noise directly after install. So we shall see how long these hold out.

They did give me a Passat for the rental car over Turkey day so it was nice to ride in a relatively luxurious car. Getting back in mine was like being thrown in a tumble dry cycle. My suspension is quite stiff compared to that car.:lol:

I think another bearing is dying! Yesterday I started to hear that, now, all too familiar, grinding sound. My wife noticed it immediately. She asked me what I did ( with that look of, "Have you been doing dougnuts in a parking lot or what!?"). :D But I swear, just normal driving. So I'm going to bring it to the dealer again in a couple of weeks, when the noise gets a bit more audible.

I am seriously considering the lemon law on this one. Unfortunately I don't want a new age 2.5RS and I can't really afford the WRX. Hmm, new MINI perhaps? What else is even out there in this price range?:(