2018 Subaru Forester rear hubs

[badtlc]

Both my rear bearings are making noise. Since the OEM ones are notoriously weak, are there any good aftermarket hub assemblies worth going for? Any ones to avoid?

I was probably going to get timken from rock auto unless anyone has better suggestions.

 

[Trav]

SKF
SCHAEFFLER includes FAG, INA.
BCA
Timken
In that order. Note any of them may be made in China or Korea as well as Euro countries.

 

[D60]

Well, there have been a lot of threads on this. The Critic recently used SKF

There's also a TSB on replacing the backing plates with an updated version, but you don't have to do this:
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/subaru-wheel-bearing.376085/page-2#post-6703667

 

[SwampSurvivor]

I've had worse luck with Timken wheel bearings than the cheap ones.
They're made in China and just as poor quality as the Duralast one you get at autozone

 

[badtlc]

OK. I can avoid Timken. No mentions of MOOG?

 

[Trav]

Moog is one small step above the cheapest white box.

 

[badtlc]

Moog is one small step above the cheapest white box.

Well that is good to know. SKF it is then if there is no upgraded OEM.

 

[IveBeenRued]

The machining quality of the Mevotech Supreme hub and bearing assemblies that I got from Rockauto is impressive. No idea about longevity yet as I only have 3K on them but they are quiet and smooth so far. Installation was a breeze and all new hardware came in the box (hub bolts and a new axle nut).

 

[IveBeenRued]

If you are going to DIY it, you won’t regret getting something like this.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0BFCJST15?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

 

[CarlB]

Both my rear bearings are making noise. Since the OEM ones are notoriously weak, are there any good aftermarket hub assemblies worth going for? Any ones to avoid?

I was probably going to get timken from rock auto unless anyone has better suggestions.

I have more failures from the non-OEM ones. NTN is the supplier for Subaru wheel bearings. Be sure to check the hub for wear, since re-using one that has a worn shaft can lead to premature bearing failures.

 

[badtlc]

I have more failures from the non-OEM ones. NTN is the supplier for Subaru wheel bearings. Be sure to check the hub for wear, since re-using one that has a worn shaft can lead to premature bearing failures.

There has been no revision to the hub assembly/bearing that my forester has from the factory. They didn't even make it to 60k miles in VERY light/easy usage. I really dont know why I'd go out of my way to try and stick to OEM. Normally I'm all about OEM parts but this scenario it really doesn't make any sense. If I tried a third party part that failed this soon, I'd try something else.

 

[CarlB]

There has been no revision to the hub assembly/bearing that my forester has from the factory. They didn't even make it to 60k miles in VERY light/easy usage. I really dont know why I'd go out of my way to try and stick to OEM. Normally I'm all about OEM parts but this scenario it really doesn't make any sense. If I tried a third party part that failed this soon, I'd try something else.

The non-OEM don't make it 20k for me.

 

[nascarnation]

The quality control of metallurgy on these must be awful. Talking all brands of bearings and brands of vehicles. Wheel bearings in the old days of "assemble them on the assembly line" basically never failed. I didn't ever see problems until they went with the unitized hubs. Now they have the life of an incandescent light bulb.

 

[D60]

The quality control of metallurgy on these must be awful. Talking all brands of bearings and brands of vehicles. Wheel bearings in the old days of "assemble them on the assembly line" basically never failed. I didn't ever see problems until they went with the unitized hubs. Now they have the life of an incandescent light bulb.

Just some applications. I think it's just poor engineering and maybe poor metallurgy as you say. Plenty of trucks can go 200k+ with no unit bearing failures. I'd never try that on "old school" bearings without re-packing several times. They are faster to assemble, too. And faster to R&R in most applications, if we don't factor in rust.

 

[badtlc]

Welp, that was a bit anticlimactic. SOA said they would cover the rear passenger wheel bearing. So obviously that means that wheel is getting new OEM hub assembly, new axle nut and new updated backing plate.

I guess I'll buy OEM to do the driver side, too. I'd like to get the SKF and save some $ but my anal retentive side just doesn't seem capable of letting myself do that. They must both match or i'll never sleep at night!