I recently got the truck and it needs wheel bearings
I see Where i have to buy the whole hub and took it to a local mechanic who told me it would be about $200.00 parts cost per hub.

I told him i had found wheel hubs for $68.00 for the left and right TOGETHER on ebay

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pair-of-2-Front-Driver-and-Passenger-Wheel-Hub-and-Bearing-4WD-NO-ABS-/151008206656?fits=Year%3A1999%7CMake%3ADodge%7CModel%3ARam+1500%7CSubmodel%3ALaramie%7CEngine+-+Liter_Display%3A5.9L&hash=item2328ca5f40:g:X98AAOSwcu5UPUu7&vxp=mtr


He told me that he would put any parts on I wanted but wouldn,t stand behind the parts(he normally buys from Oreillys)

Anyone have experience with the Wheel hub and bearing ?

My use for the truck will be using it deer hunting and driving maybe 25 miles a week in 2wd.
As far as being in 4wd I drive a 4wd truck about like a 2wd with just a Little more traction,I dont bust mud holes open or drive across rice fields any more !

Do you think these hubs would work fine?

Thanks for you input on the subject.

Lots of Chinese and Pacific Rim parts on eBay. Very few of them are worth the packaging they come in. What are you going to do when one comes apart on you when you're on the road?

Your choice, your money........

Get the parts off Ebay and put the extra dollars in your wallet. The hardest part with front wheel bearings is removing the spindle nut. I have a 98 Dodge Ram Sport 4x4 with 235,000 miles on it. I do all my own maintenance on it and bought a set of front wheel bearings and spindle off Ebay just in case. I have not installed them yet but I have them if needed. OEM parts are often a rip off anyways. Tom

the cheap chinese bearings often go out after only very few miles...some of them will last , its a gamble

then again , Ive had genuine Timken assemblies that didnt last too long either


I buy alot of parts at the local Oreilys....200 bucks per side sounds awfully high from that supplier

The Dodge doesn't come with just bearings. You buy the entire hub which has built-in sealed bearings. You never have to pack them.
It's cheap when manufacturing pickups but expensive to repair later. At the factory, they just slap on a hub and torque it. They don't have to pack the bearings or mess with adjustment.
I've heard that Ford has the same setup but I don't know if that's true.

I don't think there are any late model trucks running around with anything but unit-bearing hub assemblies. Ford has been using them for some time on their HD trucks.

Oreilly has them on ine for 150. It is normal in the business, but be aware most shops mark parts up 25+ percent. You are not just paying for parts cost plus labor. The mark up on parts is a big part of the profit margin. Thats why a brake job done at home for 50 bucks becomes 150 when done at a shop for 50/hr.

Timken used to be OK. Gamble anymore.
I'd be even more leery of Ebay stuff.
Once you get the old ones out, if your replacement goes bad it'll come out pretty easy.
Sand the bore and antiseize.
I trashed a replacement wheeling and it was a breeze to replace.
The original? PITA

My time is worth something. Breaking stuff wheeling is acceptable. Having parts fail early when not subjected to abuse.........really honks me off.

Have a bud that always goes cheap. Doesn't bother him to do the same job over and over, running lousy parts.

I quit helping him (he bought crappy beer anyway).

I remember grinding the bolts off that mount the hub to the knuckle on my Jeep while in College....in Feb in the UP of Michigan. 10 min at a time until I got them all cut off, couldn't wear gloves because I had no dexterity with them on. That was a long ass day for what should've normally taken an hour tops.