What would be a fair price to have front wheel bearings installed ? they have to be pressed in .

60 dollars an hour x 5 hour job = 300 plus parts = $500 rough estimate-

of course they are pressed in. How else you gonna keep the outer races in place? elmers glue?

Bod is an expensive mechanic. But that's because he's good. Timken bearings cost about $30 each, an excellent brand, and labor about $300 I agree, so I come up with a little less, the only difference we have is the cost of the bearings, but I think Bob is thinking that other things will have to be purchased also. And do you brakes while it's apart, unless they are near new, that will only add about $40 to the job. Good morning Bob.

how are the axles and CV boots, those most assuredly will go bad before the bearing...must have replaced them already?

Yikes, there it is right there, I didn't include bearing races. I should know better than try to correct Bob.

Who told you the bearings were bad anyway? Or what makes you think they are?

Some are bolted in Bob. $60 a hour seems light for my area. I have no clue how long it would take on a Kia or any other car where they pressed in. Video of the procedure - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0LCkycUcqM

H25...good morning kind sir, seemed curious to me as well, how did our customer pinpoint the bearings as a trouble item? seen a lot of drive axles and it's tough to try to maintain them as there aren't any zerk fittings any more on things (know not why)...perhaps this bloke was reading 'service bulletins' and got his dander up and worried about this in a most hypochondriac fashion-

bolted in, tenspeed? curious. like with a clamp plate that sandwiches them in tight but has enough clearance for the axle?...I could see this-

One way to determine if it's a bad bearing is to spin the wheel (by hand) and hold the spring. If it's a bad wheel bearing, you can feel it crunching.

jeez, it's just an estimate. I was thinking that five hours seemed a little conservative-

Yes bolts. The first one I did took hours because of rust. I paint the area with marine anti-seize to make the next jobs easier.

Since GTOMike was going to supply parts, he should call for estimates. Some places near me will charge a higher rate and no guarantee with a supplied part.

Wish GTOmike had just bought another GTO! basically no faith in the korean engineering...seems like they are shootin' for the cheapest solution to any problem...kinda the opposite of Mercedes-

g.morin' fellas. I was just guessing except only thing I did was look up the price of the bearing

Also $60 is light where I live also. More like $80.

So, I'm wrong...no problem, could not have seen the 'bolt-in' outer race, brand-new to me...think this adds to the cost vs press in which has no fiddly bolts-

You do have to pull the drive axle out, and fit it with a new retaining C clip, of course the CV boots are going to need inspection, else get grease all over your hands when you handle them...this could increase the cost substantially...possibly the tie rod will have to be hammered loose and maybe the tie rod end is due for replacement too...tough to estimate this job...unforseen expenses.

Oh, the good old days, nostalgia creeping in. I could change the front wheel bearings on some cars I had circa 1970 in a half hour each. Or less. Well, not including getting the wheel/tire off.

I burned up a wheel bearing on a boat trailer one time, middle of the desert not far from Baker Ca. I always carried spares. I changed it in 20 minutes, I knew a trick about getting the old race off. Hit it with a ball peen hammer and it will shatter, no messing around trying to get it off. And I never put my wheels in the water, I would rather fight getting the boat off and on, it was only a 17' ChrisCraft.

GTOMike, you still around? We really would like to know how you determined the bearings are bad..yoohooo

I remember those boat trailers had those big dust caps that had grease fittings in the end. Living in the Finger Lakes Area of NY, I often see trailers on the side of the road. New people learning the joys of bearing maintenance.

Got THAT right! Exactly why I always had spares, no way was I going to leave my boat unattended. I even made my (then) wife sit in the boat when it happened once before, when I used to drown the trailer and not carry spares. That's probably why she is an ex now

"Guy's gotta have water on the brain, to own a boat" -daffy duck

OK good answers ! The bearings are humming more than a 42nd street hooker ! I know what a bad bearing sound like , however this is NOT my car , I never owned a foriegn car & never will ! My GTO is a 65 and built well . I priced the bearings at auto zone & they are timken bearings for about $65 each . @ Bob why would the axles have to come out when i can just remove the spindle & just tie the axle in place so it doesn't rip the seal. the boots and joints are in good shape. And yes some bearings are bolted in like the ones on my GMC Jimmy which i did last year. & no i did not take the axles out of that either . OK so if i charge $200 labor , to do this job ,that would be a more than fair price ! Thanks guys !