Tom,

Good info to know, I guess either one could cause a significant wobble. And I admit I am ignorant about the swivel pin mechanism.

 

So now I am very unhappy, I paid my mechanic to fix my problem yesterday, I told him that I thought it was the swivel pins, he said he would first check the tie rod ends, then he calls me to tell me it is my drivers wheel bearing. He then charges almost $500 to do the drivers wheel bearing and today I hit a good bump and the death wobble showed itself again.

so what should I do? I could have done the wheel bearing myself for $60 plus shipping (AB's kit) I already have the socket and the know how from doing the other side. I let him do it because he is supposed to be able to pinpoint my problem and he could have my truck done and back to me the same day, and because I don't like doing that much work at my apartments. so now I am thinking swivel pin (actually I have been thinking it all along)
so here are some questions, I have been researching this and the rave manual says if one is loose to adjust the shims (remove or add as needed) to get the tension right. in order to do this all I have to do is remove the steering bars and the upper pin correct? so I guess what I need to know is when I get into this am I most likely going to discover that there are other issues inside or is it a straightforward adjustment 90+% of the time?
should I just go ahead and get the whole kit and tear into the whole assembly and replace it all? if so how much time am I looking at? how extensive do I have to take this stuff apart? I can't afford more expenses and I can't afford to have the truck apart for big repairs here.

 

A few questions:

1. Did he kiss you, cause he dang sure should have. 5 bills to do one wheel bearing. OMG.

2. Why were you doing the other side? Did it screw up and you only did that one side? Had this side ever been done that you know of?

I would never go into any repair on one of this expecting it to be a simple straight forward remove and replace type of job unless I had owned it a very long time and knew it inside and out, just like an old girlfriend.

And if you need it back up right away without very much expense or delay, that is rich my man. I found out early, if you don't want severe frustration, adjust your expectations.

It is great to have high expectations, but maybe it's time for a reality check.

 

the passenger side started making a loud clunking sound out of no where, it felt fine one day then a loud clunking could be heard and felt through the pedals the next. checked the wheels and had play on the passenger side, but tight on the drivers side. I was not aware that wheel bearings are like brakes and that both sides should be done together. I overnighted the bearing kit and hub nut socket from AB to get it done ASAP. As for my mechanic I only take the truck to him under 2 circumstances. 1 if I am not 100% sure what the problem is and 2 if the problem requires "extensive repairs" that I should not or can't do in my parking lot. not to mention here we are at the end of September and it was still over 100 degrees here this week! My mechanic does charge alot and yes it is a huge kick in the nuts to pay that price for parts and labor on a wheel bearing, but to overnight the kit from AB would have been over $100, $100 of that $500 is the initial 1 hour diagnostics charge that I would have had to pay regardeless, so I saw it as I would have had to pay for half of that amount anyways, and I would have had to do the work myself, in a parking lot, in 100 degree weather and with no kind of warranty, and have the truck off the road for an extra 2 days. or just pay what I did and have it back in 6 hours. conveniences suck sometimes!

I do agree that the price was high for what it was considering any mechanic could have done the wheel bearing, and because I told him that I thought the problem was something other than what he fixed, and the problem is still there, yah I am upset. not so much because I paid so much for a wheel bearing, but because I didn't get what I wanted.

 

I had my reality check 2 months ago when I decided it was time to get rid of the Rover, so I bought a Pontiac minivan with high miles and the engine blew 1 month later. The reality check was that the disco although needs quite a bit of maintenance and upkeep, has never left me stranded, the work has always been pretty straight forward I did struggle with one of my U joints, the centering bushing inside the driveshaft at the rotoflex, and the panhard rod bushings. I believe everything else I did was pretty easy and straight forward. oh yeah and I got hung up on the 12 point caliper bolts while doing the passenger side wheel bearings, I did not have a 12 point wrench in that size so I had to run across the street to walmart but that backed me up only about 20 minutes. I am the only licensed driver in my family of four both of my daughters have school (not to mention the oldest has high school marching band 4 days a week) and my wife works 6 days a week. the Rover is our only vehicle so when it is off the road the number one priority is fixing it ASAP. I bought the rover because I have high expectations and so far (at least for the last 2 years) it has met them (of course the price for parts and the constant need for them hurts a bit) I have had the rover off the road I think 4 or 5 times since I owned it and with the exception of the overheating issue it has never been off the road for more than 3 or 4 days.

 

Man, I am sorry to hear your trail of horrors, but it sounds like the rash purchase of a Pontiac Minivan with high miles was like jumping from the frying pan into the fire.

Reminds me of that country song, " Sounds Like Life To Me " They had to put mama in the home last week, my old trucks worn out and the washing machine quit too.

But hopefully, some others may learn an important lesson from your lack of knowledge regarding wheel bearings. When one goes, it's wise to consider the other side as well, since they probably started off together, if one dies, the other may be right behind it.

Education does not always come from those Grand Institutions of Learning that some people hold so highly. It comes in many forms, often at high cost. May others learn from your suffering. An old Rover blessing.

 

sadly enough I was limited to about 2500 for a vehicle at the time and I had about 3 days to get one, I was over frustrated because over 90% of the vehicles sold out here for under about $4000 are either over price used car dealership junk or mexican rebuilt junkyard specials, so when I came across a 99 pontiac minivan with a clean title,a good looking engine, a clean emissions test, and a perfect scratch free body for my price range.... how could I say no? I test drove it and it ran great. then about once a week the tranny wouldn't quite shift right (came to find out they have a computer controlled tranny with issues) then with the cruise on the engine shifted into passing gear climbing a mountain and never shifted out, engine red lined and threw a rod! yah its been a rough past few months. The sad part is I would be willing to live with this death wobble for another week or two as it only hits when I hit certain bumps just right (lived with it in a jeep I had years ago for a while), but I don't feel comfortable taking any chances with my family in the truck, and today we were all there when it happened.

 

A couple of things.
Get a few RTC3511 hub seals and keep them on hand, 8 should be enough for a 2-3 years dpending on how many miles you put on. Those have to be bought from a Rover parts house. (check www.rovahfarm.com, he has good prices and ships USPS priority flat rate so you get it cheap and quick)

With the hub seals on hand you can get the hub bearings locally for $12-$15 each.
Timken SET37, SKF BR37, *** KIT38 or National A-37
Hub bearings aren't like brakes, you don't have to do both sides at the same time. They only need to be replaced if they are showing wear. Usually a clean, inspect, repack is good provided they are adjusted properly.

I only skimmed the posts but it sounds like you've checked everything but the swivel pins. If so, get the kit and rebuild both sides.

Finally, I'd find a new mechanic. If he works on Rovers he should have hub seals in stock so parts would be at most $50 (allowing for a 50% markup) Sounds like he charges $200 or so an hour. That's way too much to be getting it wrong.

 

Alot of people say not to remove shims, and a rebuild is the only correc`t long term fix. But, removing shims is good for diagnostics. It will tighten the swivel bearing up, thendrive and see if the wobble continues.

To do so, pull the wheel, pop the abs sensor out the middle of the swivel pin(just pry under the lip with screwdriver or anything flat), remove the mud shield,then the 2-17mm bolts holding the pin,move the brake line holder out the way. Then the swivel pin will come right out. Shims will be underneath the head of the pin.

Just watch putting it back together, everything is clean. And there is a needle bearing sandwiched between two thrust washers in the bushing for the pin to ride on. Sometimes they come out stuck to the pin.

Rebuilding is much more involved, requiring the caliper be removed, then the hub/rotor removed. Then the stub axle comes off, along with the cv joint and axle shaft. Disconnect the steering drag link. remove the upper swivel pin. Then the spinle will come off the swivel ball housing.

Took about 4hrs/side the first time I did it. Almost 1hr cleaning everything.

 

I just saw this and I will add another post for re-building. Just removing the shims will not get you what you need...