ML Carrier Bearing Replacement, Help?
 

My carrier bearing is now done. No catastrophic failure, but the whir sound will make you buggy! Is the replacement of the bearing a DIY? Does anyone have any directions. My SA made it sound like an intensive procedure. Since this seems so popular a failure it would seem that someone would have posted a procedure, but my search turned up nothing. HELP!

Are talking about the driveshaft center support bearing?

bearing help?
 

yes, i think they are the same thing. my SA called it the carrier bearing and my local independant called it a support bearing. does this mean you can give me some direction. i can't imagine it is so complex that the dealership needs the 3.5 hours they quoted me to replace it. it seems pretty straight forward unless there is a press or special tool needed. any thoughts?

I thought the time to do the center support bearing was 1 hr. or 1 1/2 hour.

only at an independant.
 

the dealer wants $240 for the part and 3.5 hours for the work. that is provided everything comes apart smoothly. smoothly? what the hell does that mean? and if they break it when the take it apart shouldn't they be responsible for the fix? i think if that i have to pay for the repair and pay for anything else that gets broken in the mean time, then i want my moneys worth and break the damn thing myself! any thoughts?

Maybe I'm thinking about the wrong part or they are doing more than just the that center bearing support. Is the part number for the support kit 163 410 00 10?

that is the one.
 

i would like to try it myself. if i dont need some specialized tool to do it. i just need a little instruction. like dont loose this part. try not to touch that. or just have the shop do it.

some info...
 

i just ran a search and used the term driveshaft support instead of carrier bearing and found some info. so it really is not that tough. i will get the parts and give it a try. if you have any suggestions, toss them out. thanks

well, that s@cked!
 

ok it's done. i had to take out the whole drive shaft to do it. there was no other way to remove the yolk from the front shaft. the exhaust and low range shifter presented quite a problem. and *****, *****, moan, moan. all in all i saved $200 dollars at a cost of 6 hours and discovered that the bottom of my 60K mile truck is spottless. them germans in 'bama use good steel.

I replaced mine by myself in a couple of hours.

Center drive shaft support/bearing replacement
 

For future DIYers, the two piece driveshaft is balanced as a unit and must be reassembled in the same splines as before or vibration may become a problem on the road. Most shafts are now marked by the factory but I would certainly make sure I found the marks before separating the two pieces, a necessity for changing the bearing and/or the support.

Regards,

Jim in Phoenix

oh jim, where were you a week ago?
 

there seems to be no vibration, even under extreme load and excessive speed. do you know if this is something that could come back to hunt me in the future, or doe s no problem now = no problem later?

Driveshaft balance
 

oh jim, where were you a week ago?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

<there seems to be no vibration, even under extreme load and excessive speed. do you know if this is something that could come back to hunt me in the future, or doe s no problem now = no problem later>>

If you have no problem now you are OK! You may have been lucky and put it back close to where it was or maybe your two halfs were so well balanced that it didn't make any difference.

Jim in Phoenix

I replaced my center support bearing (2000 ML430) this past weekend and followed the guidance of this forum. I realigned the splines and went so far as to mark the shaft at the trans and rear axle, before reattaching. Unfortunately I have a slight shimmer only when I pull out (heavy load), sort of like driving over small rumble strips in the roadway. This does not occur once I get going or at high speeds, at least not 80mph. Looking back, the only thing I could think of is that perhaps I need to loosen the support bearing and make sure it is set to "exact center", not alot of movement or adjustment though, just 2 bolts. I remember tightening the support first and then the shaft. Perhaps I should have reversed this. Anyway, does anyone have input on this matter, I'm tackling this later in the week?

Is it the bearing or Drivetrain Alignment
 

The replacement of the center support bearing is straight forward, but you must also check the CV joints as they can also fail. I am afraid I am a bit of an expert on problem. I replaced the bearing at 49K, 90K, 127K, and now it is broken again at 150K. Notice the intervals are getting shorter which tells me, it is on the part alone. This past time I replaced the whole driveshaft. I am wondering if the problem is alignment between the transmission and the rear differential, maybe it is a rear suspension issue which increases the stress on this part. BTW, I never tow anything with the vehicle. Does anyone have information?