c2/3 rear wheel bearing lube

[Bob Lanham #32271]

Rear bearings - whats the consensus? Vote

Obviously most of us don't have the press, dial gauge, etc. to properly do this ourselves. Is it better to: 1. Leave them alone and periodically shake the wheel to make sure they haven't went south


2. Use one of the lube devices sold in the after market catalogs ($20)


3. Take it to a Chevy dealer and pay the money


Place your votes e-mail me if you want and I will tabulate and post the results in a couple of days

[Terry M.]

Re: Rear bearings - whats the consensus? Vote

Bob,


Add option 4)


Check and if bad remove entire trailing arm and send it out for rebuild by reputable shop.


Terry

[Joe L.]

Re: Rear bearings - whats the consensus? Vote

Bob----


Whatever you do, don't suggest that folks take the cars to their CHEVROLET dealer for service. Most of the dealership service technicians were probably about 10 years old when the last C3 was built. Dealing with this assembly is probably not one of their specialties. In this part of the country, most of the Chevrolet dealers simply remove the trailing arms and send them out to Corvette specialty shops for rebuild. Very wise, too.

[Rob Brainard]

Re: c2/3 rear wheel bearing lube

There seems to be alot of talk about "what should be done". Maybe these grease fittings will work OK and maybe they won't. The fact remains that if someone is asking what to do, they don't know the "bearing history" of their car. Why not keep guessing, take a long drive and hope the bearings are going to be OK. If they aren't, all you have to do is pay a large flatbed towing charge, buy the new bearings you should have already bought, possibly buy a new axle, possibly buy a new hub and have your Sunday drive totally ruined. As Joe Lucia wrote and I agree -- do the job right. In the long run you will have peace of mind and you probably will never touch them again.

[Wayne W.]

Re: Rear bearings - whats the consensus? Vote

I had a dealership call me to ask how to press out a rear bearing on a 92, said he didnt have the tools. Just unbolts Dipstick.

[Bob Lanham #32271]

The bliss of ignorance

The things I don't know scare the crap out of me (if I ever find out I don't know it) and the things I do know scare the crap out of me too. At least maybe I'll lose some much unneeded weight.

[Page C.]

Re: c2/3 rear wheel bearing lube

The tools are expensive to perform this project but the job itself is not that hard if the bearings have not seized to the axel from a lack of lubrication. Our NCRS Mid-Atlantic Chapter has these tools ( rear spindle removal and set up tools ) as well as other specialty tools available for its chapter members free of charge. Another good reason to be a chapter member. This might to something that other chapters might consider. 12 inches of snow in Richmond,Va. and its still snowing sideways. Have a good day, Page Campbell #2299

[Gene M.]

Re: c2/3 rear wheel bearing lube

The Valvoline grease Joe mentioned is good stuff, and fairly cheap at good auto parts stores. One thing I'll add to what Joe said is NEVER use grease gun grease for wheel bearings. Always use a grease for wheel bearings and hand pack them after a good cleaning and dried.

[JAT]

Re: Rear bearings - whats the consensus? Vote

My vote is to remove the assembly and send ship it off to a professional rebuilder. I have the stuff to do my 68 and 70 and its not a job I throughly enjoy. In my experience the Chevrolet dealers even back in the 70's didn't have the necessary tools or experise to take care of these bearings.

[John]

Re: Rear bearings - whats the consensus? Vote

Hi, I ordered rebuilt spindle units from Bair's. They supply to most aftermarket venders. The prices are cheap when compaired to most catalogs. can be had with the park brakes or without. I believe without the park brakes they were $150/side for a C-3(75). Their catalog lists lots of other vette parts.


From experience, if you can get use of a lift for this job do so, especially if they have never been changed. Good Luck!!!!