Ever since I have started driving my car the front drivers side wheel makes a grinding noise all the time whether I press the brake or not, I was told this was due to a bad bearing. Well I was wondering if maybe putting some grease in it till I could get the bearing replaced would work as far as keeping from causing more damage. Any help will be appreciated.

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Adam,
1986 300E

The wheel bearings are a sealed type. They can't be lubricated. I don't think anybody makes open bearings anymore. Get them replaced, they're not that expensive.

Alright thanks for your reply. I was quoted about 50$ each wheel which is alot less than I expected.

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Adam,
1986 300E

Can front wheel bearings be adjusted?? I had my '89 300E inspected recently (yearly requirement) and the mechanic said there was a little slop on each front wheel. It wasn't enough to flunk the inspection but he did say they were adjustable. Is this doable and necessary.

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For me, in recent years, these noises more often turn out to be tire problems.

Good luck,

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Larry Bible
'01 C Class, Six Speed
'84 Euro 240D, manual, 533K miles
'88 300E 5 Speed
'81 300D Daughter's Car
Over 800,000 miles in
Mercedes automobiles

Larry
at what milage did you see the bearings go bad Larry? what were the symptoms?
thanks,
engatwork
'95 E320
'97 Honda CRV

The front wheel bearings on all 124 chassis cars are tapered roller bearings like they have been putting on every thing since the wheel was invented. The 210 chassis has a sealed hub.

So, can they be lubricated or not? I was told no.

The fronts are double tapered rollers. Can be adjusted and can be lubed. If it's already grinding and you've eliminated any other source for the noise, then it's a little too late for grease to make a difference. Make sure the noise isn't coming from the brakes..

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Jeff Lawrence
1989 300e
2000 Dodge Grand Caravan SE

Adam, the wheel bearings on the 86' 300E are definetely adjustable and not the sealed type. I have the same car. So take the wheel off, get the bearing cover off and see for your self. To adjust it you will need size 5 Allen key. However if the griding noise is coming from the bearing and you are sure about it, then as might as well change it. It is not expensive I beleive it is less then $50.00 but check the price here and see.

Alex

I do not own a Benz that does not have the factory original wheel bearings still in place. Yes, that includes my 240D at 533,000 miles.

If you do pack and adjust the bearings, go get the lubricant from Benz that looks like a translucent plastic fishing worm.

I have never heard a noise from a Benz front wheel bearing. The noises I've heard have always turned out to be tires.

I did allow the bearings to get loose on the 240D. It was handling funny and I could not properly set the toe. That one was embarassing.

To pack the bearings, remove the caliper and hang it from a piece of baling wire, for city people, I expect that a coat hanger would substitute for baling wire, even though it doesn't meet specification.

Then pull off the hub cap and loosen the allen lock bolt on the nut. Remove the nut and then the rotor with bearings in place.

If the bearings are so bad that they're noisy, you should be able to see something in the races. If not pack the bearings well after cleaning and put grease in the area between the races about level with the races.

Put everything back together and tighten the nut very tight to squeeze out the grease. Loosen the nut then tighten until it's just tight enough to take out the play. You can probably tighten the bearings tight and loosen about a sixth of a turn. You might check the Benz manual to see if there is a more precise procedure.

Good luck,

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Larry Bible
'01 C Class, Six Speed
'84 Euro 240D, manual, 533K miles
'88 300E 5 Speed
'81 300D Daughter's Car
Over 800,000 miles in
Mercedes automobiles

Hey guys,

I'm almost positive that the wheel bearings in my 300E have never been repacked, and I've never seen it on any of the service schedules. At what point (years/mileage) does it become a good idea to repack them, and what happens when you don't (failure mode)? Just curious..


thanks,
anthony

Worst case scenario is if you ignore the grinding as the rollers disintegrate, before you know it the races will be chewed up, once the races are gone the rotor will be FUBAR, as well as the spindle. Once it gets to that point, which ever wheel lost it's bearing will be sitting at a rather unusual angle, that is if it doesn't get the inclination to run off and leave you behind.

Generally, if they're squeaking, grease 'em. If they're grinding, they are really dry and you'll probably find the rollers badly scored, or falling out of the cage. If that's the case, replace the bearings and races and adjust accordingly.

I generally check/repack my bearings once a year, used to do it more often when I lived in wetter climates (read - flood prone areas). Packing the bearing is a simple matter, I still use the hand pack method. Big blob of grease in the palm of the hand and work the bearing into it until all cavities are filled with grease. Or you could get one of the fancy bearing packing units that pumps the grease into the bearing from a grease gun.


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Mike Tangas
73 280 SEL 4.5

MB doesn't have a service interval on packing wheel bearings because the labor for the service would cost more than the bearings that the service would save.

Besides on the early cars the bearings were easy to pack when the brake rotors were changed which was more often than the anticipated bearing grease life.

We have for years packed the small outer bearing at 30k services. Of the hundreds of wheel bearings we have replaced on the front of MBs probably better than 90% were the small outer bearing. This bearing can easily be removed without disturbing the brakes.

Thanks for the info, always enlightening. :)

anthony