wheel bearings

you will need a press to get them out, and no they are different to the rears, the rears are inner and outer taper bearings while the front are a sealed single unit. you will need to remove the complete hub unit, not reccomended if you A: havent got the right tools, and B: havent done one before or are attempting to do it on the ground without a ramp. if you do have a go yourself i doubt you will get the old bearing case out with at least a 10 tonne press. regards. Steve.

... or, indeed, the new one in?

Many years ago (circa 1979) I was replacing the diff on my old Ford, and whilst I had the shafts out, I thought I might as well replace the bearings. Realising that I didn't stand a chance of pressing the new bearings onto the shafts, I took them along to the local Ford dealer.

When I reassembled everything, the diff was beautifully silent, but there was a very uncomfortable vibration from the rear of the car. I went back to the dealer who strenuously denied that the half shaft was bent - until we jacked the car up and ran it with the wheels removed. Then he claimed that I'd bent the shaft myself - until I pointed out that I'd brought the shafts to him because I had no way of exerting such force. In the end, he supplied me with a new half shaft! IIRC, he even installed it for me.

I don't know how it is with an Audi, but I once took a Toyota axel to PepBoys (auto parts store) to have the bearing removed and replaced and they charged very little.

--Art

they're not hard to get out, as long as you have a decent press, we use a 20 tonne fly press, much better than the hydraulic type, but without them your wasting your time if you get a tight one. steve.

I assume they are different from the rears? I know that you can rent some tools to help extract the rear bearings while on the car. This won't work for the front? I was just wondering. I just had the two rears replaced, and now I'm getting the hum from the right front. Maybe it's time to get a new vehicle. What will go next?

yes the rears are totally different, you can remove these cases with a small hammer and a chisell or a flat punch, if only the fronts were as simple...... its easy to wonder what will go next, but bearings won't last forever, take comfort in the fact that generally Audi's are pretty reliable and built to last. as long as they are looked after, IE regularly serviced, theres no reason why you couldnt expect 200,000 miles. steve.

Depends if he has quattro, the rears and the fronts are then almost the same, and still a bitch to do, unless you have a decent press.

quattro models have sealed bearings all round, and both front and rear will need pressing out.

This is true, but only since it has 4 wheel drive. any wheel bearing which surrounds a driven axle is going to be a lot harder that a freewheeling axle since it surrounds a driveshaft. Steve.