I have a 2000 F250 4x4, 7.3L diesel. Whenever I turn the wheels almost or all the way in either direction, there is some popping as the truck goes through the turn. The Ford dealer checked it out and said the bearings needed to be replaced. (It has 85K miles on it by the way.) But Ford does not sell bearings; they and everyone else just sell a "hub assembly," which I believe contains the bearings. I bought the Ford service manuals off E-bay, which states that two O-rings must be replaced everytime the hub is removed or else there is a chance of losing four wheel drive. One O-ring in\s internal to the hub, and the other is inside that black hub lock that you can turn. The hub assembly, however, does not come with the O-rings, whether I buy it from Ford or anyone else. And the Ford parts people in Pensacola, Florida say they've never sold an O-ring for it. So here are my questions:
Do the O-rings have to be replaced everytime? If so, where can I get them? Is the hub replacement easy; it does not look too hard from the manual's instructions?
Any advice would be appreciated. TIA.